{"id":213578,"date":"2020-01-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-16T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-1404196-5286123.cloudwaysapps.com\/india\/gsi_study_guides\/deciding-which-english-test-take-toefl-vs-ielts-vs-pte\/"},"modified":"2025-04-30T08:24:53","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T08:24:53","slug":"deciding-which-english-test-take-toefl-vs-ielts-vs-pte","status":"publish","type":"gsi_study_guides","link":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/study-guides\/deciding-which-english-test-take-toefl-vs-ielts-vs-pte\/","title":{"rendered":"Deciding which English Test to Take: TOEFL vs IELTS vs PTE"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>One of the hurdles to cross in the process of applying to a university is clearing an exam that tests your English language skills. The tests commonly used for applying to universities are TOEFL, <a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/language-prep\/ielts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">IELTS<\/a> and PTE. All three tests measure your ability as a non-native speaker to listen, speak, read and write in English.<\/p>\n<p>TOEFL stands for Test of English as a Foreign Language, while IELTS is an abbreviation of International English Language Testing System. The PTE is short for Pearson Test of English. Although IELTS is the most commonly accepted test, universities accept both the other tests just as well.<\/p>\n<p><strong><i>Read below to learn more about the English proficiency tests, or get in touch with our in-house English experts by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/language-prep\/ielts\/\">contacting us<\/a> today.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Here is a guide to making your choice between the three tests when applying to study in the UK.<\/p>\n<h2>TOEFL<\/h2>\n<p>TOEFL is the oldest of the lot and is developed by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). TOEFL results are accepted by thousands of universities in hundreds of countries such as USA, UK, Canada and Australia.\u00a0 This test can be taken on paper or on the internet and measures the listening, reading, grammar and writing skills of candidates.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 TOEFL is based more on US English, and if you are more comfortable with the American accent, vocabulary, spellings and expressions, you can opt for it.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 TOEFL is the longest test of the three that lasts up to 4 hours.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The proficiency level ranges from 0-120.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 It is an MCQ based test<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The scores are available to view online within 10 days after the test date.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>IELTS<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/language-prep\/ielts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">IELTS<\/a> is the most commonly opted test for applying to UK universities. The IELTS exam involves two parts, one a 150-word report in a chart or table format, describing a process or comparing information. The second part, <a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/study-guides\/study-ielts-at-siuk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">IELTS writing<\/a>, involves writing a 250-word essay.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 If you are more comfortable with the British or Australian accent, vocabulary, spellings and expressions, IELTS is the test for you.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 IELTS uses a wider variety of question types such as MCQ, gap fill and matching questions.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 IELTS is shorter than TOEFL or PTE and gives the chance to write the essay part of your answer.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 You can see all the questions in the beginning of the test itself.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 It is also rated by a person as opposed to the computer.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The proficiency level ranges from bands one to nine, with the latter score being that of an expert.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The test results are available within 13 days from the test date.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>PTE<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/language-prep\/pearson-pte\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PTE<\/a> is a computer based academic test that measures a candidate\u2019s English listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. It is a Pearson test which is relatively new but popular and it originated in Australia.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 PTE is 3 hours in duration.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Its questions are in a variety of formats including MCQ, essay writing, graphs and figures.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 It is considered the most transparent test as it is conducted and rated online by the computer and there is no human interaction in the test.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The proficiency level ranges from 10-90, with the latter being that of an expert.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 PTE scores are available with five working days from the test date.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Apply to a UK University and Prepare with SI-UK<\/h2>\n<p>Based on the above information, you can compare and figure out which English test you\u2019d be most comfortable with.<\/p>\n<p>If you would like to take preparatory classes with us, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/\">visit\u00a0SI-UK<\/a>\u00a0and meet our in-house <a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/language-prep\/ielts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">IELTS<\/a> experts or book a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/language-prep\/ielts\/\">free consultation<\/a> to enquire about the classes, fees and duration of the courses today.<\/p>\n<h3>Related Articles:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/study-guides\/study-uk-without-ielts\/\">Study in the UK without IELTS<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/study-guides\/using-idioms-ielts-exam\/\">Using Idioms in the IELTS exam<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/study-guides\/list-50-common-synonyms-improving-your-ielts-score\/\">List of 50 common synonyms for Improving Your IELTS Score<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/study-in-uk\/free-consultation\/\"><button class=\"btn btn-primary btn-lg btn-dkblue\" type=\"button\">Register for free consultation<\/button><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false},"study-guide-destinations":[127],"study-guide-canada-categories":[],"study-guide-australia-categories":[],"study-guide-usa-categories":[],"study-guide-uk-categories":[1814,1723],"study-guide-nz-categories":[],"study-guide-ireland-categories":[],"class_list":["post-213578","gsi_study_guides","type-gsi_study_guides","status-publish","hentry","study-guide-destinations-study-in-uk","study-guide-uk-categories-ielts","study-guide-uk-categories-study-in-the-uk"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/gsi_study_guides\/213578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/gsi_study_guides"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/gsi_study_guides"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=213578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"study-guide-destinations","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/study-guide-destinations?post=213578"},{"taxonomy":"study-guide-canada-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/study-guide-canada-categories?post=213578"},{"taxonomy":"study-guide-australia-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/study-guide-australia-categories?post=213578"},{"taxonomy":"study-guide-usa-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/study-guide-usa-categories?post=213578"},{"taxonomy":"study-guide-uk-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/study-guide-uk-categories?post=213578"},{"taxonomy":"study-guide-nz-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/study-guide-nz-categories?post=213578"},{"taxonomy":"study-guide-ireland-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gostudyin-dev.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/study-guide-ireland-categories?post=213578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}