Is the TOEFL® right for me?

En este artículo se compara el examen TOEFL® con otros exámenes que hay disponibles en el mercado (TOEIC®, IELTS, Cambridge tests), poniendo especial atención al foco y estructura de cada examen.

When deciding what test to take to help you reach your goals, it would be helpful to know what focus and structure most of the modern tests have. First, let’s look at focus. Most test have one of three foci: a test of Academic English, Business English or General English. The TOEFL® and the IELTS Academic are tests of Academic English. The Business English tests include the TOEIC® and the IELTS General Training. The General English tests include the Cambridge series of tests (The First, Advanced, and Proficiency) and the IELTS General Training.

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The TOEFL® vs the IELTS Academic

Taking the above into consideration, we will first take a look at the differences and similarities between the TOEFL® and IELTS Academic.

The TOEFL® and IELTS are four-part tests with one section for each language skill: Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing.

• Reading:

  • TOEFL®: First test, at least one hour, minimum of three academic reading passages with multiple choice questions.

  • IELTS: Second test, also with three academic texts.

• Listening:

  • TOEFL®: Second test, at least one hour, six listenings (social situations and short lectures), followed by multiple choice questions.

  • IELTS: First test, 30 minutes, four monologues and conversations with questions.

• Writing:

  • Both tests have two writing tasks, one hour total.

  • TOEFL®: One independent opinion essay, one integrated task combining reading and listening.

  • IELTS: One task describing a chart/diagram, and one opinion essay.

• Speaking:

  • TOEFL®: Computer-based, 30 minutes, six prompts (two opinion-based, four integrated). Total of 5.5 minutes speaking.

  • IELTS: Face-to-face interview, 11-14 minutes, familiar topics.

The TOEIC®

This test is simpler and has a Business English focus. It includes only two parts:

• Listening test (100 multiple choice questions):

  1. Match a picture to what you hear.

  2. Listen and choose correct responses.

  3. Short conversations with questions.

  4. Short talks with questions.

• Reading test (100 multiple choice questions):

  1. Complete sentences with the correct word.

  2. Find the error in sentences.

  3. Read texts and answer related questions.

The Cambridge Tests

(Este apartado no estaba desarrollado en el texto original. Puedes añadir aquí un desarrollo si lo deseas, por ejemplo sobre el FCE, CAE, CPE y sus niveles en el MCER.)