Everything you must know about PTE Exam
What exactly is the PTE exam?
Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic English is a language test for international students and immigrants. The PTE exam is divided into two sections:
1) Academic PTE
2) PTE Residence
Why should you take the PTE Academic Exam?
PTE Academic is a computerized, online English language test used for international education and immigration. This test is powered by artificial intelligence technology, and unlike traditional grading systems, PTE grading is fully objective and free of human prejudices.
PTE Test
PTE Exam Types
The PTE Academic exam is divided into two sections:
- PTE Academic Exam
- PTE Academic UKVI
The PTE Academic Exam assesses candidates’ proficiency in speaking, listening, reading, and writing. The entire examination can endure for a maximum duration of three hours. This examination is acknowledged by more than one thousand universities globally, including prestigious institutions such as Harvard Business School, INSEAD, and Yale. PTE Academic is officially acknowledged for visa reasons in Australia and New Zealand.
The PTE Academic UKVI is exclusively accessible within the borders of the United Kingdom. The following is a Secure English Language Test (SELT) that determines eligibility for a UK visa. The eligibility for this test extends to anyone who desire to engage in employment, education, or residency within the borders of the United Kingdom.
PTE exam fee:
s.no | PTE Academic Exam Types | PTE Exam Fee |
1 | PTE Academic exam fee | INR 15,900 |
2 | PTE Academic UKVI exam fee | INR 15,900 |
PTE Exam Fee
PTE exam fee – The PTE exam fee is USD 170 + 15% tax and bank charge for PTE Academic exam.
Cancellation fees for PTE exams
- If a candidate cannot take the examination on the planned day, they are eligible for a full refund if they cancel 14 calendar days before their test date.
- If a candidate cancels their enrollment seven calendar days before the actual test date, they will receive a 50% refund.
- Candidates who cancel their test registration less than 7 calendar days before the exam will not be refunded.
Fees for postponing PTE exams
- Candidates who reschedule their test date 14 calendar days before their actual exam date will not be charged for the new test date.
- Candidates who reschedule the test 13-8 calendar days before the actual test date must pay 50% of the new test date rescheduling fee.
- Candidates who reschedule their exam date fewer than 7 calendar days before the actual test day must pay the entire exam fee.
How do I reschedule the PTE?
To reschedule a Pearson test, follow these steps:
- Navigate to www.pearsonpte.com.
- Sign in to your My PTE account.
- Select the Reschedule or Cancel button.
- PTE Exam Registration and Account Registration
PTE Exam Scheduling
To register for the PTE exam, follow these steps:
- Create a web account on the official PTE Academic Website or log in to an existing one.
- When you create an account, carefully fill in all of the details, including your passport information.
- Following that, you can select the most convenient test location, date, and time for you.
- After filling out all of the information, you can proceed with the payment.
- Once the payment is made, you will receive an acknowledgment receipt.
Which is more difficult, PTE or IELTS?
Both IELTS and PTE are regarded as having the same level of difficulty. The PTE exam is exclusively available online, but the IELTS exam is available both online and offline.
What is the eligibility for the PTE exam?
Pearson does not provide any specific criteria for individuals to be eligible to take the PTE test.
What are the requirements for taking the PTE test?
The test does not have any specific educational prerequisites.
What is the minimum age requirement for taking the PTE?
In order to meet the requirements, the candidate must be a minimum of 16 years old, and anyone below the age of 18 must provide a signed parental consent form.
What is the maximum allowable number of attempts for the PTE test?
There are no limitations or constraints on the frequency with which a candidate can attempt the examination.
Which countries recognize the PTE certification?
The PTE certificate is widely recognized in Canada, Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Singapore, New Zealand, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy
How Should You Prepare for the PTE Academic Exam?
Tips for PTE Exam Preparation:
- Regardless of whether you intend to enrol in a PTE tutoring center or pursue self-study, it is imperative that you diligently and consistently put in effort.
- There is a plethora of online tools that can aid you in improving your preparation.
- In addition to the online materials, you could also utilize the coursebooks.
- Avoid procrastinating studying till the exam. Commencing your studies earlier would facilitate achieving a high score on the exam
Duration of PTE Test Preparation:
The process of preparing for the PTE test typically requires duration of 4 to 6 weeks, during which consistent practice is essential.
What are effective methods for self-studying for the PTE at home?
- Make use of the resources available on the official website of PTE.
- Cultivate the practice of regularly engaging with books, newspapers, magazines, and scholarly publications.
- Participate in virtual English-speaking communities.
- Enroll in an internet-based PTE coaching center.
PTE Study
PTE Study Guide
The following are some PTE preparatory study materials that you can utilize while studying for the PTE exam.
Textbooks for classes
If you are preparing on your own, the official course books can help. Some official guides to help you prepare are listed below:
- The Official PTE Academic Study Guide
- PTE Academic Practice Test Plus
- Volume 1 PTE Academic Practice Test Plus
- Volume 2 PTE Academic 79 Plus l Two Full-Length Practice Tests With Answer Keys
Online PTE Practice Test
You can use the online tools accessible at ptestudy.net/practice/. To access the PTE preparation resources on this website, follow these steps:
- Access PTEstudy.net.
- Sign up for a PTE preparation account or sign in if you already have one.
- Gain access to the PTE practise resources online.
Offline PTE Practice Test
You can take the whole PTE Academic test offline by downloading audio files, PDFs, and sample answers to familiarize yourself with the test format and structure.
App for PTE Study
You could use the official practice app (PTE Academic Official Practice App) to prepare. The following are the advantages of utilizing this application:
- The programmed covers the PTE exam format, structure, and scores in depth.
- It provides practice tests both offline and online.
- You will be given simple preparation advice and tips, as well as a study planner to assist you in tracking your progress.
PTE Practice Exam
PTE Practice Exam
Reading Practice for the PTE
The PTE Reading Section is intended to assess a candidate’s reading abilities.
Total time: 32-41 minutes
Tips for Preparing for the PTE Academic Reading Section
To ace the PTE Reading Section, you must be able to read fluently and grasp texts readily. Here is a collection of reading section preparation tips :
Multiple-choice – Single response:
- Understand the core topic of the passage. To get the correct answer, pay attention to the keywords.
- Before you begin answering, thoroughly read the questions and choose what you should be.
- Recognise the frequency of words such as only, always, never, and occasionally. By eliminating these alternatives, you can quickly locate the correct answers.
- There are no negative markings in this section. As a result, even if you are unsure of the correct answer, it is always preferable to respond.
- Keep in mind that the details in the paragraph are not presented chronologically according to the question. More over half of the answers are in the first or last two lines.
- You must be able to paraphrase the responses without affecting their meaning.
Multiple-choice, multiple-answer questions:
This component has a negative marking. As a result, if you are unsure about your response, it is best not to answer the question.
Rearranging paragraphs
- First, try to figure out the headline and the main idea of the piece.
- Remember that pronouns such as it, he, she, them, they, and those cannot be used in the first sentence.
- For contradictory sentences that begin with the words however, but, although, and other supplementary phrases such as besides and additionally, begin by locating the sentence that comes before them.
Fill in the blanks with the following:
- There are no negative markings on this part. Even if you are unsure about the correct answer, answer the questions.
- Pay close attention to the audio before and after the gap. This will assist you in locating the missing word.
- The missing words’ synonyms can be found within the supplied passage.
Listening Practice for PTE
The PTE Listening component evaluates the candidate’s ability to listen. Audio and video footage will be used to create the questions. The audio and video clips will only be played once.
45-57 minutes in length
Tips for Preparing for the PTE Academic Listening Section
Here is a collection of study strategies to help you ace the listening section.
General Listening Tips:
- You learn to actively listen by listening to news audios, podcasts, YouTube videos, and music and paying attention to parts that are easy and difficult to grasp. Once you’ve identified the source of your difficulties, work on resolving those specific concerns.
- Try watching films with subtitles first, then without.
Spoken Test Summarise:
- Your responses should be no more than 70 words long.
- Begin your statement with phrases such as ‘The speaker said’.
- Recognise the main point and pay attention to the repeated words and buzzwords.
Multiple-choice questions with multiple answers:
- This component has a negative marking. As a result, pay close attention to it and avoid making reckless guesses.
- Make care to listen till the finish of the audio.
Fill in the blanks with the following:
- It is best to take notes on this part with a notepad.
- Listen closely to the audio and decide whether the word comes with or without an article, whether it is singular or plural, and so on.
Emphasize the proper summary:
- Recognise the speaker’s main point and the notion he or she is conveying.
- To reduce down your possibilities, use the elimination procedure.
Choose the missing word:
The primary notion of the audio must be understood in the first half. You should be able to foresee the ending by the second half.
Underline the incorrect words:
- This component has a negative marking. As a result, thoroughly review your responses before submitting them.
- Pay attention when you click on a word because double-clicking it will unselect it.
Write from memory:
- Rather than taking notes, try typing your responses directly into the computer. This will save you time.
- Take care with your spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
Speaking and Writing Practice for PTE
The PTE Speaking and Writing Sections assess the candidate’s ability to write and speak.
Total time: 77-93 minutes
Tips for Preparing for the PTE Academic Writing Section
The writing section is divided into two parts. Here is a collection of study ideas to help you perform better in both of these parts.
Summarize the written text as follows:
- You can get a 90 out of 90 if you know your grammar and vocabulary well.
- You can get a 73 if your grammar and vocabulary abilities are average.
- Your responses should be no more than 45 words long. Long sentences should be avoided because the scoring algorithm may not evaluate them correctly.
- All nouns and the first word of the sentence should be capitalised.
- Avoid writing in the first person. Instead, use the third person.
- Summarise each paragraph in a single sentence and only use examples if they are referenced.
- Pay close attention to the punctuation and the final paragraph, which summarises the primary idea of the text.
Composing an Essay:
- Determine whether it is an opinion essay, a problem essay, or a pros-and-cons essay. Then, choose a format for your essay.
- Take care with your spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
- Keep this pattern in mind as you write – The first paragraph contains the introduction, the second and third paragraphs include the body of the essay, and the final paragraph contains the conclusion.
- In the body paragraphs, provide examples and facts.
- Keep the word count between 200 and 300.
- Tips for Preparing for the PTE Speaking Section
- If you want to do well in this part, follow these guidelines.
Tips for Public Speaking in General:
- Online videos might help you improve your pronunciation and oral fluency.
- To improve your pronunciation, use Google and YouTube IPA and Phonemes.
Read this aloud:
- When you speak, pay attention to your intonation.
- Continue reading even if you make an error.
Sentence Repetition:
- Pay close attention to the audio and try to remember the sentence.
- Begin speaking as soon as the audio ends. There is no sound or text to indicate that the audio has ended.
- If you can’t recall the entire sentence, try to memories the keywords and repeat them.
Describe the image:
- Use phrases such as illustrate, elucidate, represent, and demonstrate.
- Determine whether the image is a bar graph, a line graph, or a pie chart. Each of these performs a distinct function. Line graphs make use of timelines, pie charts make use of slices, and bar graphs compare.
- While recording, do not pause for more than 3 seconds.
Lecture Retelling:
- Pay attention to the keywords and attempt to grasp the main theme.
- Make a list of the most essential sentences and use them to recount the lesson.
Answer the following short question:
- Insert the articles ‘a, an, the’ as needed.
- If you don’t know the answer, repeat the words in the question.
Academic Syllabus for PTE
Academic Syllabus for PTE
- PTE Speaking
- PTE Writing
- PTE Reading
- PTE Listening
PTE Speaking (77-93 minutes) and PTE Writing (77-93 minutes):
- Personal Statement
- Reading aloud
- Sentences That Recur
- Image descriptions
- Lecture retelling
- Responding to brief queries
- Providing a summary of given texts
- Essay creation
PTE Reading (32 – 40 minutes):
- Complete the blanks
- Answers to multiple-choice questions (selecting a single and multiple-choice answer)
- Rearranging the disorganized sentences
PTE Listening (45-57 minutes):
The following are the components of the listening section:
- Providing a summary of the audio content
- Multiple-choice questions and answers (single and multiple-answer options)
- Complete the blanks
- highlighting the appropriate summary
- Selecting the missing term
- Emphasizing the erroneous word
- Dictation-based writing
The PTE exam is divided into the following sections:
- Sections on Speaking and Writing (77-93 minutes)
- Section on reading (32-40 minutes)
- Section on listening (45-57 minutes)
PTE Academic Reading
The PTE Reading Section is divided into five subsections. This part should take between 32 and 40 minutes to complete.
PTE Reading and Writing – Fill in the Blanks | Fill in the blanks in the given passage with the right answers. |
PTE Multiple Choice – Multiple answers | Read the given passage and choose multiple right answers. |
PTE Reordering paragraphs | Reordering the given sentences in the correct order to form a coherent passage. |
PTE Fill in the blanks | Choose the right word from the dropdown boxes and fill in the blanks. |
PTE Multiple Choice – Single answer | Select a single right answer from the list of options. |
PTE Academic Listening
The total duration to complete this section is 45-57 minutes.
PTE Summarize spoken test | Summarize the audio in about 50-70 words in 10 minutes. |
PTE Multiple Choice – Multiple answers | Carefully listen to the audio and choose multiple correct answers. |
PTE Listening and Writing – Fill in the blanks | Listen to the audio and fill in the blanks with the exact phrases in the given transcript. |
PTE Highlight the perfect summary | Listen to the audio and choose the right summary. |
PTE Multiple Choice – Single answer | Choose a single right answer from the multiple-choice. |
PTE Find the missing words | Listen to the audio, find the missing words and fill in the blanks. |
PTE Highlight the incorrect words | Listen to the audio and change the incorrect words. |
PTE Write from dictation | Listen to the audio and highlight the incorrect words. |
PTE Academic Speaking and Writing
This section has 8 sub-sections. The total duration to complete this section is 77-93 minutes.
PTE Personal Introduction | With 25 seconds of preparation time, you will have to read out a prompt and record your personal details within 30 seconds. These details are later sent to schools. |
PTE Read aloud | You will be given a transcript. You will have read the text on the transcript out loud. If you pause for more than 3 seconds, the recording will be stopped. |
PTE Repeating sentences | Audio will be played. You will have to repeat the audio within 15 seconds. |
PTE Image Description | You will be shown an image. After observing it for 25 seconds, you will have to describe it in your own words. |
PTE Retell lecture | Listen to the lecture and summarize it in your words. |
PTE Respond to a short question | Listen to the audio and respond to it with single or multiple words. |
PTE Summarize in a single sentence | Read the given passage and summarize the important points within 75 words in 10 minutes. |
PTE Essay writing | Write an essay in about 200 – 300 words in 20 minutes. |
The following is the PTE syllabus:
PTE Writing and Speaking:
- Personal Statement
- Answer brief questions
- Lecture retelling
- Summarization
- Reading aloud
- Sentences that are repeated
- Image descriptions
- Essay creation
PTE Reading:
- Complete the blanks
- Questions and answers with multiple choices
- Paragraph Rearrangement
PTE Hearing:
- Summarization
- Answers to multiple-choice questions
- Complete the blanks
- Dictation-based writing
- highlighting wrong words
The following is the test procedure:
Reading the question – You will be given time to read the text prompt depending on the length of the content.
Preparing for the answer – For each segment, you will be given an average of 10-15 seconds to prepare to answer the questions.
Answering the questions – As you write, speak, and pick the correct answers, your responses will be recorded. PTE Reading.
PTE Score Chart
PTE SCORE CHART | PTE SCORE DESCRIPTION |
85 and above |
|
Between 76 and 84 |
|
Between 59 and 75 |
|
Between 51 and 58 |
|
Between 43 and 50 |
|
Between 30 and 42 |
|
Between 10 and 29 |
|
PTE vs IELTS Band Score Comparison or PTE score to IELTS
PTE Band Score | IELTS Band Score |
86 and above | 9 |
83-85 | 8.5 |
79-82 | 8 |
73-78 | 7.5 |
65-72 | 7 |
59-64 | 6.5 |
51-58 | 6 |
43-50 | 5.5 |
35-42 | 5 |
30-34 | 4.5 |
PTE Score or PTE Band Score: The PTE score is generated by a computer. There are two types of scoring:
- Correct or Incorrect
- Partial Credit
Partial credit is awarded to all responses that are correct. Deductions will be made from the accumulated points for correct answers in case of any erroneous responses. No points are provided for incorrect responses. Correct or incorrect: The candidate will earn one point for each accurate response. Incorrect responses will not receive any points.
The PTE Scoring System, also known as the PTE Score Chart Calculation, is a method used to determine scores in the PTE exam. The candidate’s cumulative score will be computed by evaluating their performance across all sections. PTE score calculators employ the mathematical operations of addition and division to determine the total score. Two crucial elements of the PTE score are Communicative Skills and Enabling Scores.
PTE Communicative Skills Score: The score for this area encompasses the skills of reading, writing, speaking, and listening. The skill is measured on a scale of 10 to 90 points. The PTE Enabling Skills Score encompasses grammar, spelling, pronunciation, vocabulary, oral fluency, and written discourse. The range of the enabling skill score is from 10 to 90 points. To calculate the overall PTE score, sum up the scores of all Enabling Skills and then divide the total by 6. The average is calculated by combining this with the four communication skill scores. The overall PTE score is determined by computing the mean of these five components.
PTE Speaking and Writing Section
Section | PTE Scoring System |
Read Aloud | Partial credit |
Repeat Sentence | Partial credit |
Describe image | Partial credit |
Re-tell lecture | Partial credit |
Answer Short Questions | Correct/ Incorrect |
Summarize Written Text | Partial credit |
Writing Essay | Partial credit |
PTE Reading Section
Section | PTE Scoring System |
Multiple-choice, choose a single answer | Correct/ Incorrect |
Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers | Partial credit for each correct response. Points deducted for incorrect options chosen |
Re-order paragraphs | Partial credit for each correctly ordered, adjacent pair |
Reading: Fill in the blanks | Partial credit for each correctly completed blank |
Reading and writing: Fill in the blanks | Partial credit for each correctly completed blank |
PTE Listening Section
Section | PTE Scoring System |
Summarize spoken text | Partial credit |
Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers | Partial credit for each correct response. Points deducted for incorrect options chosen |
Fill in the blanks | Partial credit for each correct word spelled correctly |
Highlight correct summary | Correct/ Incorrect |
Multiple-choice, choose a single answer | Correct/ Incorrect |
Select missing word | Correct/ incorrect |
Highlight incorrect words | Partial credit for each word. Points deducted for incorrect options chosen |
Write from dictation | Partial credit for each word spelled correctly |
PTE Result
How to check the PTE Result?
The PTE results will be out within 5 business days from the actual test date. Candidates can access their PTE exam result online. Once the results are out, candidates will be notified via email. Once they receive this email, they can log in to the PTE Academic student account. The PTE exam certification is valid for two years from the actual test date. Students who wish to prove their eligibility post two years will have to retake the exam.
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