TOEFL, or IELTS?
So many tests, so little time! Are you wondering whether you should take the TOEFL or the IELTS as a part of your college application process? Many of my students have this question before we begin our exam preparation coaching sessions. The short answer is : See which exam is required by the university that interests you. If both exams are accepted, then choose the exam for which the school will accept the lowest score. That way, you maximize your chances of succeeding!
The TOEFL and IELTS, as well as other language proficiency exams, are not the most important part of your application package. For U.S.-bound students, know that these exams rank lower than the SAT, in terms of importance. Colleges will not look at them in order to determine how good of a student you are. Language proficiency exams are only an afterthought, if you will : a box to check to prove that you can speak English well enough to do well at an anglophone university. Nothing more, nothing less. But you do need to check that box (or come really, really close) in order to be accepted to that school! On the bright side, the Admissions team won’t really care how many times you took the exam (again, remember that it’s a means to an end, and won’t be the “star” of your application). Therefore, no qualms about taking the IELTS or TOEFL more than once. That should take some pressure off!
Let’s say you do some research, and find out that your university of choice require just about the same scores for the TOEFL (graded on a 130-point scale) and the IELTS (graded on a 9-point band score scale). How to choose? Here are some of my initial thoughts on the subject. Don’t hesitate to contact me for more information! It’s a topic near and dear to my heart.
Overall, the two exams test the same skills : Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing. In terms of timing, the TOEFL takes 3 hours, while the IELTS takes 2 hours and 45 minutes (pretty close). You can now take both exams in-person or on a computer (Contact me for more information). When given a choice, a slighty larger number of my students are electing to take the TOEFL these days. They tend to find the Writing and Reading sections to be the most challenging. For the IELTS, the majority of my students claim that the Writing section is the toughest. The Speaking sections vary, too : the TOEFL’s is completed at the same seating as the rest of your exam, while you have to schedule a separate session for your IELTS Speaking Test (which lasts 11-14 minutes).
Well, which should you choose? If you’ve checked your university’s admissions requirements, have asked your local International Studies Advisor or University Admissions Counselor and are still drawing a blank, contact me to schedule a practice exam for each. We’ll go with whichever test gives you the highest score. See? No pressure. :)
Go live that English-speaking dream,
Meg