PTE is Pearson Test of English. The reference here is to PTE (Academic Test), which is different from PTE (General), the latter being a suite of six tests at different levels (Al, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5) designed to assess and accredit general English language proficiency. Both the test types are intended for test takers who are speakers of other languages (ESOL).

Like IELTS and TOEFL, PTE (Academic) is designed to assess the English language skills of candidates who want to study in an English Speaking Country. However, PTE is different from IELTS and TOEFL in several important respects.

         – First and foremost, unlike IELTS but like TOEFL, PTE is an online internet based test.

         – More importantly, PTE is totally free of human intervention; it is a Computer-  based Computer-assessed test.

         – All the items in PTE (Academic) are machine scored.

         – In a way, PTE is the new age language ability test that is free of any cultural or native skills bias. Other tests of similar nature involve human intervention at some stage where assessments can — knowingly or unknowingly — get influenced by external factors, such as, appearance, personality, body language, flow of thoughts, apart from cultural bias. Not so in the case of automated scoring system, where impartiality on all these counts is built-in and one can be sure to be judged only on language performance.

          – An indirect but equally important benefit of the computer-based computer-assessed interface of PTE (Academic) is that the assessment is instantaneous and, at least theoretically, the result can be made available to the student immediately after the test. This is a far cry from tests like IELTS and TOEFL that typically take a fortnight to make the results available.

          – Unlike IELTS and TOEFL that assess the test taker for communicative skills only (Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing), PTE also assesses the test taker for enabling skills (Grammar, Oral Fluency, Pronunciation, Spelling, Vocabulary, Written Discourse). Apart from the composite score, PTE Academic rates the test taker separately on each of these parameters (4 + 6), to a scale of 10-90.

How is PTE (Academic) Different from IELTS and TOEFL?

PTE (Academic) Structure

The test is divided into three main parts and lasts for approximately three hours with an optional break of ten minutes:

Part 1: Speaking and writing (77-93 minutes)

Part 2: Reading (32- 41 minutes)

Part 3: Listening (45- 57 minutes)

PART 1: SPEAKING & WRITING (77-93 Minutes)

Part 1 of the PTE Academic test is Speaking and writing. This part tests your ability to produce spoken and written English in an academic environment.

Section 1: Personal introduction

In this section, you are given a prompt and are asked to introduce yourself orally. You speak about yourself for up to 30 seconds. This is not assessed but is sent to institutions along with your score report.

Section 2: Read aloud

In this section, you are given a text (up to 60 words) and are asked to read the text aloud. You do six to seven of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS
Read Aloud

– Rising your tone at the beginning and falling tone at the end of the sentence will make the sentences sound authentic.

– If you realize you made a mistake, continue speaking and don’t stop.

– From day 1 of preparation, practice with different tongue-twisters every day until the exam day.

Section 2: Repeat sentence

In this section, you hear a sentence. You are asked to repeat the sentence exactly as you heard it. You do ten to twelve of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS 

Repeat Sentence

– Listen with closed eyes and memorize the sentence.

– There is no beep at the end, so just start speaking after the clip ends.

– If you can’t manage to remember the whole sentence, at least focus on the keywords and repeat those.

Section 2: Describe image

In this section, you are given an image (picture, graph, table, etc.). You are asked to describe in detail what the image is showing. You do six to seven of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS 

Describe Image

– Start with words like illustrate, elucidates, depicts, etc.

– Notice whether it’s bar-chart, line-graph or pie-chart. Line graphs have ‘timeline’, pie charts have ‘slices’ and bar charts compare.

– Make use of the following words – on the left-hand side, on the right side, next to, below/bottom, above, at the top, foreground, background etc.

– Try finishing in 30–35 seconds and don’t leave incomplete recorded sentences.

Section 2: Re-tell lecture

In this section, you hear a lecture. You are asked to retell the lecture in your own words. You do three to four of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Answer short question

In this section, you are asked a question, the answer to which is a word or short phrase. You do ten to twelve of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Sections 3-4: Summarize written text

In these sections, you read a text (up to 300 words). You are then asked to summarize the text in one sentence. You are given ten minutes to write each summary sentence.

Section 5: Summarize written text / Write essay

This section is either a Summarize written text task or a Write essay task (see Section 6), depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 6: Write essay

In this section, you are given a prompt to read. You are then asked to write an essay (200-300 words). You are given twenty minutes to write your essay.

TIPS

1: Keep it simple.

Long, convoluted sentences with lots of punctuation are your enemy. The more you try to extend your sentences, the more likely you will be to make grammar and punctuation mistakes! The Pearson test assessors are not looking for long, impressive sentences; they are looking for sentences that are clear and logical.

Look at this example:

Although many people are in support of standardized testing, I disagree with it for a few reasons and I will talk about these reasons below, including about the fact that it allows students to cheat more easily and stifles creativity in people.

WOW. What a complicated sentence! The ideas are all there, but they sure are hard to follow.

Let’s try this instead:

Although many people are in support of standardized testing, I am not one of them. In my opinion, standardized testing makes it easier for students to cheat and stifles their creativity. I will discuss these ideas further below.

When I wrote the PTE exam, I adopted this simple writing style and I took absolutely no risks with my punctuation. My result was a score of 90 across all writing-related skills, including written discourse and grammar.

2:: Take the time to plan your points.

A lot of people run out of time writing their PTE essay because they change their minds about their arguments halfway through and must begin again. People often think that the best tactic is to just begin writing and get the ball rolling and that the ideas will follow. Unfortunately, this is rarely how it works and in general, creating a plan will save you from having to stop and restart.

People will often say that they don’t write out an essay plan because they’re afraid of wasting valuable time. I understand this logic, but I can promise you that it really doesn’t take long to jot down a few quick ideas on your erasable noteboard booklet, especially if you have a method. The E2Language method breaks “planning” into 3 easy steps that take less than two minutes. You can find this method in our PTE “Write Essay” webinar, included in our PTE course preparation packages.

3: Use the “right” format.

When many of our PTE students hear the word “essay”, they automatically understand it to mean a text with 5 paragraphs that includes an introduction, three arguments, and a conclusion. They panic because they realize how unrealistic it is to write all of that content in just 20 minutes with a 300-word limit!

Here’s the thing: you are NOT expected to structure your essay this way. In other words, the standard 5-paragraph template that everyone knows is not the “right” template for the PTE essay section. You don’t have enough time to complete an essay in this style, and you probably won’t be able to think of enough arguments to support your ideas either!

PART 2: READING (32-41 Minutes)

Part 2 of the PTE Academic test is Reading. This part tests your ability to understand written English in an academic environment.

Multiple-choice, choose single answer

In this section, you read a text (up to 300 words). You are then given a multiple-choice question with three to five answer options. You choose the one correct answer option. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS:

– Take a quick look at the questions before you start reading the given passage. This will help you locate only the information you want.

– Read carefully and try to understand the main idea behind the passage. You should be able to describe it in your own words.

– Once you recognize the key idea of the text, look for the supporting ideas and details.

– Read the questions and options again, if needed. If you are able to find the correct answer, select it. Else, look for the ones that are absolutely incorrect. This will narrow your search process.

– Since the questions left unanswered are marked as incorrect, do not leave any of them unanswered. Try to choose the right option or make a guess.

– For effective time management, do not spend more than 1.5 minutes on one question

Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers

In this section, you read a text (up to 300 words). You are then given a multiple-choice question with five to seven answer options. You choose all the correct answer options. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS:

– Though it looks easy, multiple choice questions are quite tricky and challenging. So, read every given information carefully.

– Go through the questions and options given before you start reading the text

– Pay attention to adjectives, nouns and repeated words as it will help you find the correct responses quickly

– If you are not able to find out correct responses, start eliminating the ones which are least likely to be correct

– Spend no longer than 2 minutes on each multiple answer type question

Re-order paragraphs

In this section, you are given a text (up to 150 words) divided into paragraphs. The paragraphs are in the wrong order. You have to drag and drop the paragraphs into the correct order. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS:

– Look for the topic sentence that can stand alone. Every paragraph written in a logical order begins with a topic sentence. Unlike other sentences that follow to support ideas, links, facts and other information later in the paragraph, the topic sentence does not begin with any linker and can give you the much-needed opening.

– Search for the Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives and time-related phrases. Pronouns such as he, she, they, these, those etc. will help you establish the right order quickly. Sentences beginning with Pronouns will never come first in the order.

– Pay attention to the clue-words

– Aim to spend no more than 3-4 minutes on any re-order the paragraph question

Reading: Fill in the blanks

In this section, you read a text (up to 80 words) which has blanks in it. You drag words from a box and drop each word onto the correct blank to complete the text. You do four to five of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS:

– Skim the text to grab the main idea of the passage

– Make use of ‘Collocation’ i.e. look for the words that often go together to form a phrase.

– Search for the missing part of speech to choose the right word for the gap. Always understand the context of the sentence before choosing the word. For instance, hearing and listening infer different meanings.

– Spend approximately 2 minutes on each question.

Reading and Writing: Fill in the blanks

In this section, you read a text (up to 300 words) which has blanks in it. You click on each blank and a drop down list appears. You choose the correct word from each list to complete the text. You do five to six of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

TIPS:

– Skim the text to grab the main idea of the passage

– Make use of ‘Collocation’ i.e. look for the words that often go together to form a phrase

– Search for the missing part of speech to choose the right word for the gap. Always understand the context of the sentence before choosing the word. For instance, hearing and listening infer different meanings.

– Spend approximately 2 minutes on each question.

PART 3: LISTENING (45-57 Minutes)

Part 3 of the PTE Academic test is listening. This part tests your ability to understand spoken English in an academic environment. It also tests your ability to understand a variety of accents, both native and non-native.

Section 1: Summarize spoken text

In this section, you listen to a short lecture. You are then asked to write a summary of that lecture (50-70 words) for a fellow student who was not present at the lecture. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers

In this section, you listen to a recording on an academic subject. You are then given a multiplechoice question with five to seven answer options. You choose all the correct answer options. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Fill in the blanks

In this section, you listen to a recording while you read a transcription of that recording. The transcription has up to seven blanks in it. As you listen, you type in the missing words you hear. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Highlight correct summary

In this section, you listen to a recording. You read three to five paragraphs and select the paragraph which is the best summary of the recording. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Multiple-choice, choose single answer

In this section, you listen to a recording on an academic subject. You are then given a multiplechoice question with three to five answer options. You choose the one correct answer option. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Select missing word

In this section, you listen to a recording. The final word or group of words has been replaced by a beep. You are given three to five answer options. You choose the correct answer option to complete the recording. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Highlight incorrect words

In this section, you listen to a recording while you read a transcription of that recording. The transcription contains up to seven deliberate errors. You click on the words in the transcription which do not match the recording. You do two to three of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

Section 2: Write from dictation

In this section, you hear a sentence. You are then asked to write the sentence exactly as you heard it, using correct spelling. You do three to four of these items, depending on the combination of items in your test.

General Listening Tips –  

   – Listen actively, which means learn to listen to English songs differently. Focus on the lyrics which requires more attention.

   – Watch movies and TV shows first with subtitles and then without subtitles.

   – Listening to new content will increase your vocabulary which will improve your understanding of spoken English while listening.

PTE SCORE

PTE (Academic) provides the taker composite or overall score as well as a separate score for each of the communicative and enabling skills.

Overall Score

The composite score is based on the test taker’s performance on all test items (70–91 items of 20 different types). The score given for each item contributes to the overall score. The score range, for each parameter as well as overall, is 10–90 points.

Communicative Skills Score

The communicative skills measured are listening, reading, speaking and writing. Items testing these communicative skills also test specific enabling skills. For items integrating various communicative skills, the score contributes to such different communicative skills are involved. The score range for each skill is 10 – 90.

Enabling Skills Score

The enabling skills — grammar, oral fluency, pronunciation, spelling, vocabulary and written discourse — are tested in related assessment items in speaking and writing. The score range for each skill is 10 – 90 points. No enabling skills score is awarded if the response for the related item is inappropriate in content or form. An essay write-up unrelated to the topic assigned, for example, will earn no score, even for the related enabling skills. In relation to form, if a task requires a one-sentence summary of a text and the response consists of a list of words, no score points for the response will be given.