Measure Your English Ability! [TOEFL, IELTS, TOEIC]

After learning English for some many years, starts from your Elementary School, you may want to know how far your understanding about this language.

“Am I capable enough?”

“Am I still lack of English in some ways?”

“I think I have good English.”

Maybe some of you have this kind of thoughts, or perhaps you even briefly say,

“My English? I don’t really care!”

It’s up to you because it’s your own choice.

But for some people who really desire to know their capability of English, there are some ways you can choose to measure it. Here they are the explanation for you [*taken and edited from various online sources]:

1.      TOEFL

This one is really well-known among English learners and is commonly taken by students of university for some necessities. TOEFL is abbreviation of Test of English as a Foreign Language. Three skills are measured in TOEFL; Listening, Structure, and Reading. You are given around 100 minutes [1.40 hours] to complete all your questions in an answer sheet. The range of TOEFL score is 310 [the lowest] up to 677 [the highest]. It is used to apply a scholarship to [both] within-the country and abroad. Sometimes, if you want to apply a job in some companies, they require you to take TOEFL in advance. Mostly, the score needed for scholarship is between 450-500. TOEFL is varied in its use and it affects also in its price. There is the so-called ‘abal-abal’ TOEFL; you take it when you just want to know your English ability without any specific purposes. For this kind of TOEFL, usually you just need to pay around IDR 50.000,- even in some places, you just need to pay IDR 20.000,-. If you need the ‘serious’ one to apply a scholarship or a job, you can take TOEFL ITP (Institutional Testing Program). For this kind of TOEFL, you need to pay a little bit expensive, around IDR 300.000 [TOEFL ITP]. However, some scholarships (abroad) require its applicants to take International TOEFL. For this kind of TOEFL, you need to pay much higher, around $ 175 (below IDR 2 millions.)

*IDR = Indonesian Rupiah

2.      IELTS

It is the abbreviation of International English Language Testing System. The dominant difference between it and TOEFL can be seen in the skills tested. IELTS tests 4 skills of your English; Listening (30 minutes), Reading (1 hour), Writing (1 hour) and Speaking (12-15 minutes). In total, you need around 3 hours to complete all IELTS sections. The score is range 1 up to 9. IELTS can also be used as the requirement of applying scholarship because some universities in USA, Europe, and UK require its applicants to have IELTS score. Not only for applying scholarship, IELTS can be used for more important cases, such as making of Visa for work abroad and changing of citizenship. For scholarship, the IELTS score needed is around 5.5 up to 6.5. There is NO variation of IELTS. For this English test, you need to pay around 2 millions [it can be less].

3.      TOEIC

It is an abbreviation of Test of English for International Communication. It is just the same to TOEFL and IELTS in case of function. The difference is put on its specific purpose. TOEIC-takers usually need the score for applying the job as English teacher in foreign countries. Not only that, it is also used to get the license of business, industry, and trading cases. It really is needed for work only. That’s why the questions will be around business matters. In TOEIC, the skills tested are just two; listening and reading. The score is around 10-990. For this test, you need to pay IDR 400.000 up to 600.000,-

Those are some information about English test you need to know. If you are a student, I recommend you to take TOEFL because you will really need it for applying scholarships abroad. Don’t you wanna go abroad some day? ^_^

For more information about TOEFL, I will tell you later in the next section of my writing. Hope you get some useful information from this cekeremes writing of mine ^_^

Sunday, 17^th of February, 2013