PTE Academic Exam 2020: Everything you want to know

What is PTE?

The Pearson Test of English (Full form of PTE) is a computer-based test of English language proficiency. PTE scorecard is accepted by international B-Schools worldwide.

The students interested in pursuing their higher studies in international B-Schools around the globe or trying to settle down in a country where the primary language for communication is English should write the PTE Academic Test to prove their English language proficiency.

PTE Academic Test is a computer-oriented test to be completed in 3 hours. This test is an assessment of the applicant’s capability to understand and respond English language spoken in daily life rather than a test of a high level of knowledge and skills in the English language. The test has a grading system with multiple levels of excellence, which assesses the proficiency of a candidate more accurately.

PTE Academic Exam is one of the top three exams for English proficiency along with IELTS and TOEFL. There are certain factors which differentiate PTE from the other English proficiency tests. All these tests are computer-based and the process of examination is almost similar.

The PTE Academic Exam results and scores are delivered earliest. You will get your PTE Academic Exam result and scorecard in five working days. This advantage qualifies PTE as the most preferable option for a candidate with limited time. If you are looking to go for PTE Academic Test, the following PTE articles could be useful for you:

Why should you take the PTE Academic Test?

 PTE Academic Test is a computer-based test of English language proficiency. PTE scorecard is accepted by international B-Schools worldwide. It evaluates the necessary skills to adapt an environment where English is the primary medium of communication. It assesses three skills mainly, the Listening, Speaking, and Writing capabilities of the applicant.

The PTE test is crafted smartly as each and every question of this exam tests two of the above-mentioned skills together like speaking and writing.

Who accepts PTE Academic Scores?

PTE Scorecard is valid in thousands of B-Schools around the world. It is also accepted by Australian and New Zealand governments for visa applications. This exam could be a good choice for someone who wants to go abroad to study in an international B-School in English speaking countries like United Kingdom, Australia, USA, Canada, New Zealand etc.

Types of PTE Exam

The PTE Exam is organized by Pearson PLC Group. The PTE English proficiency test is of two types, namely, PTE Academic and PTE General. PTE exam evaluates the English language abilities of non-native English Speakers. 

PTE Academic Exam

The aspirants looking for admissions in the international B-Schools can take PTE Academic exam. The exam includes four segments listening, speaking, reading and writing. This test is conducted several times round the year in the test centres around the world.

PTE General Exam

The PTE General Exam is the assessment test for communication skills of the applicant only and is not valid for applying in international B-Schools. This exam is scheduled to be conducted three times per year in May, June and December. The PTE General Test scores are valid for the lifetime.

PTE Exam 2020: Key Facts and Figures of the PTE Academic TEST

Exam NamePTE
PTE full formPearson Test of English
Official Websitehttps://pearsonpte.com/
Conducting bodyPearson PLC Group
Widely popular asEnglish language proficiency test
Generally accepted byB-Schools in UK, Australia, and New Zealand
Types of examPTE Academic Test and PTE General Test
Mode of examComputer-Based
PTE FeeINR 13,300.00
Skills TestedSpeaking, Writing, Listening and Reading Skills in English Language
PTE Helpline00080 0440 2020

Are you eligible for taking the PTE Academic Exam?

The Pearson PLC Group – who conducts the PTE Academic Exams have not set any specific eligibility criteria for this exam. Nevertheless, as per the PTE Academic eligibility criteria, the minimum age for writing this exam is 16 years at the time of taking the test. For candidates aged below 18, consent of parent or guardian is required for taking the PTE Academic Exam.

Age Limit to Appear for PTE Academic Exam

For appearing in the PTE Academic test, the candidate should not be younger than 16 years. For candidates aged below 18, consent of parent or guardian is required for taking the PTE Academic Exam. Consent form can be downloaded from the PTE Academic exam official website. 

Education Qualification to appear for PTE Academic Exam?

There is nothing like a minimum education qualification required for writing this test.

PTE Exam Fee

Fee for appearing in PTE Academic exam in India is INR 13,300. If PTE exam slot is booked within the 48 hours of the exam date, the examination fee with late charges would be INR 13,965.

What is the process of cancelling or Rescheduling PTE Academic Exam?

If you feel that , for some reason,  you will be unable take the PTE exam after booking the date, you should cancel the slot at least 14 days from the exam day to claim the refund. To cancel or reschedule the PTE Exam, you need to visit the official website of PTE. There are two options available if you are looking to reschedule the exam. You can reschedule it online or via phone.

PTE Exam Cancellation Fees

PTE Academic test slots cancelled before 14 calendar days of the scheduled exam date are eligible for full refund. If someone is cancelling the exam within 14-7 days from the exam date, he /she is eligible for a partial refund of 50%.

If a candidate cancels his test slot in less than 7 days from the PTE Academic Exam, he is not eligible for refund. The aspirants looking to cancel or rescheduled the PTE Exam should note carefully that in cancellation and rescheduling provisions, the exam date is not included.

PTE Rescheduling Fees

Test-takers planning to reschedule the PTE Academic Exam, in between 14 to 7 days from the test date (not less than 7 days) have to pay 50% of the Exam fee. If the test is rescheduled less than 7 days before the exam, no refunds will be provided and the candidate has to pay the total exam fee. The aspirants looking to reschedule the PTE Exam should note carefully that in cancellation and rescheduling provisions, the exam date is not included.

PTE Academic Exam 2020 Registration

To register for PTE Academic Exam online, you need a valid identity proof, commonly a passport. You are required to show the ID on the exam day. Otherwise, you will not be allowed to take the PTE Exam. Read more about PTE Registration.

Steps to register for PTE Exam Online are as follows:

  • Go to the official PTE website.
  • Create a Pearson account by providing the personal details.
  • Within 48 hours of completing the process of registration, login credentials will be provided by the conducting body in your email inbox.
  • Check for the test center nearest to your locality.
  • Choose desired date and time for your test.
  • After marking all the required information like date, time and center, look for checkout.
  • Pay the exam fee and this will conclude the PTE exam registration

Other methods of registering for PTE

The online mode of registering for the PTE Exam is mostly preferred, but if required, one can register for PTE exam via phone also. For Indian students, the phone number for registering PTE is 00080 0440 2020. This number belongs to PTE Exam testing body and can be contacted for registration from Monday to Friday in between 09:00 AM to 06:00 PM IST. This facility is not available on public holidays.

Know all about PTE Slot Booking

Aspirants willing to take the PTE test need to create an account on the official website of PTE exam in order to register for PTE Academic Exam and select their PTE exam slot while going through the registration process. Once registered successfully, within 48 hours of completing the process of registration, login credentials will be provided by the conducting body in your email inbox. The aspirants should read the handbook that is available on the official website of PTE carefully before registering for the exam. 

PTE Exam Dates 2020

This test is conducted several times round the year in the test centres. The PTE exam date may vary for different test centers. The candidates should search for seats available against the desired test centers.

So first select the test center. Click on the next tab and select the desired date from the prompted available dates. Read more about PTE exam dates

PTE Exam Centres

Candidates looking to take PTE Exam test can check the list of PTE Academic Exam test centers here. Candidates should choose the nearest and easy to reach test centre.

Accommodations/ Special Arrangements for PTE Academic Exams

For persons with disabilities, the PTE conducting body provides exam accommodations, also known as “Special arrangements”.  The special arrangements include:

  • A special Examination room which is separate from regular ones.
  • They are provided with extrxa exam time.
  • They are also provided with a reader or recorder.

How do I request a test accommodation? 

The aspirants looking for special arrangement should frame their requirements how being disabled is preventing them from doing their best in normal exam situation.

 Such aspirants need to submit their documentation proof and apply a few weeks earlier so that the special arrangements required can be implemented. While registering the special candidates need to apply for special arrangement requirements before selecting their exam slots.

PTE Exam Pattern

PTE Test syllabus consists of three sections:

  • Speaking and Writing
  • Reading
  • Listening

The scorecard will represent the scores of these segments as well as the Total Score of the PTE Academic Exam.

The PTE exam pattern explained ahead describes the sections of PTE Academic exam in detail. The PTE Academic exam aspirants should go through these details once in order to clear any confusion and understand the PTE exam pattern properly. Read more about PTE Academic exam pattern

Speaking and writing section

  • Personal Introduction         
  • Read Aloud
  • Repeat Sentence
  • Describe Image
  • Re-Tell Lecture
  • Answer Short Question
  • Summarize Written Text
  • Essay

Listening

  • Summarize Spoken Text
  • MCQs, Multiple Answers
  • Fill in the Blanks
  • Highlighting Correct Summary
  • MCQs, Single Answer
  • Missing Words
  • Highlighting Incorrect Words
  • Writing From Dictation

Reading

  • MCQ Single Answer
  • MCQ, Multiple Answers
  • Paragraph Reordering
  • Fill in the blanks(Reading)
  • Fill in the blanks(Reading and writing)

PTE Syllabus

It is critical to be familiarized with the PTE Academic Exam syllabus for the candidates to perform as per their expectation in the exam. It is mainly divided into three sections i.e., speaking and writing, listening and Reading. The detailed PTE syllabus for different sections is follows:

Speaking and writing

In this segment, the questions asked would be of following types:

Personal Introduction, Read Aloud, Repeat Sentence, Describe Image, Re-Tell Lecture, Answer Short Question, Summarize Written Text, Essay.

Reading

In this segment, the questions asked  would be of following types:

MCQs, Paragraph Reordering, Fill in the blanks.

Listening

In This segment, the questions asked would be as follows:

Summarize Spoken Text, MCQs, Fill in the Blanks, Highlighting Correct Summary, Selection of missing Words, Highlighting Incorrect Words, Writing From Dictation

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PTE Results and Score

PTE Results are normally delivered online by five working days from the date of examination. These results are declared online and could be checked using the account created while registering for the exam. The candidates used to receive an email consisting of the instructions about how to check the PTE result. Then, following the instructions provided, you can check your result and get your scorecard. Using the account one can send their scorecards with B-Schools for admissions. Read more about PTE result and scorecard 2020

The PTE Academic Exam score is based on a 10-90 scale, provided with 10 as the lowest and incremented in 1-points. Evaluated on this scale, the score represents the overall skillset of the applicant in English as well as the sectional excellence in reading, speaking, writing and listening. The graphical representation of the score is also provided and represents the skillset of the applicant and the areas in which improvement is required.

How to Access The PTE Scorecard

Applicants need to login to their official PTE Account in order to access their scorecard. The candidates used to receive an email consisting of the notification about the sore availability. Once the notification mail has been received, applicants need to login to the PTE Exam account created while registering for the exam to access the result and the scorecard.

How to Send PTE Academic Exam Scorecard?

The student need to visit PTE’s online secure portal in order to send the PTE Academic scorecard to the preferred B-Schools. Sending the Paper or PDF version of the PTE Academic Exam scorecard is not valid as these are not accepted by the B-School.

To send the PTE Academic Scorecard to a B-School, the steps are as follows:

  • At first, you need to login to your PTE account.
  • Then you should click on the hyperlink “View Score Report”
  • Select the “Send Scores” option
  • Input the name of the B-School you need to send the scorecard
  • You should review all the data submitted.
  • Go to the “Next” tab, then another “Next” tab.
  • And you will get the confirmation of the score successfully sent to the B-School.

Rescoring the PTE Academic Exam score?

If an applicant is not satisfied with his / her PTE exam score, there is a provision of requesting for rescore. Nevertheless, as PTE is a computer-oriented exam, the probability of an error is minimal. The Spoken answers and open-ended written answers are there for rescoring. The students can raise a rescore request for their latest attempt only and if they have already registered themselves for a new attempt or send their scorecard to any of the B-Schools, they are not eligible for rescoring. Once the score gets updated, the latest score report will update the older one and the scorecard will be issued again reflecting the updated score for the exam.

PTE Exam Score, Who accepts it?

PTE Academic Exam score is accepted world-wide. In most of the top B-Schools and Universities in abroad, PTE score is accepted.

Colleges Accepting PTE Scorecard

Once having appeared in PTE Academic Exam, the candidates get a massive number of B-Schools to apply for their studies.

Countries Accepting PTE Score

Candidates interested in pursuing their higher studies in countries like Australia, USA, UK, Canada, Ireland, Singapore etc. should take the PTE Academic test. It is one of the most popular computer-based English language tests accepted worldwide. Aspirants take PTE exams mainly for pursuing their higher studies abroad or for immigration purposes.

PTE Exam Preparation Tips

PTE Exam 2020

Usually PTE candidates initiate preparations for the exam with some joining some free practice test services or with coaching institutes. But they miss a trick by doing this. Similar to any other exam, there is a methodology to be followed while preparing for PTE Academic exam too.

We are providing some preparation tips and tricks that will assist in your performing well in PTE Test. The most important factors to keep in mind while preparing for any exam is focussed concentration, efficiency, effectiveness and regular practice. All other things like tips and tricks are secondary. Therefore, it is advised to follow the primary aspects first.

What are the best PTE Books and Resources?

A wide range of books are available for different sections of PTE Academic Exam. We are providing a list of best study materials for PTE Exam Preparation. Aspirants can choose the preferred resources. 

Sample Papers for PTE Exam

Regular practice of PTE Academic Exam sample papers is a better way to prepare for the PTE English language tests. Students should practice different PTE Mock test Papers for their improvement. The objective of the PTE exam is enhancement of you overall English language skills required for communication, at it is crafted to analyze the grip of a candidate over the English language.

Expert level of proficiency in English language is not what the exam evaluates, it checks the usual communication skills in English language and if the candidate is able to express himself properly in English.

It is recommended to practice each section separately with full concentration as it is the basic requirement for absorbing the subject content and perform well in the exam.

Points to be taken care of on the exam day

Candidates should reach the test centre carrying their Identity card (generally the passport) at least 30 minutes before to the starting time of the exam, to provide some time for check-in, security and other exam-related formalities.

PTE Scholarships

Numerous scholarships loans are available for the financially challenged students. Scholarship and other fellowships are provided in different colleges and to the deserving candidates. Loan facilities are also available from financial institutions for pursuing higher education in international B-Schools. The candidates looking for scholarships should visit the official website of the B-school they are interested in for details.

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PTE Exam: Frequently Asked Questions

If you are still having queries related to PTE Academic exam, go through the following FAQs.

Q. How to select the correct PTE exam?

A. PTE is broadly of two types. B-Schools around world accepts PTE Academic Exam that is, the first one. This exam should be taken if someone is looking for pursuing his higher studied in an international B-School.
The second one, PTE General Exam is also a valid proof of excellence in English language and it is generally used for immigration purposes.

Q. How should I prepare to get 79+ marks in PTE Academic Exam?

A. You can prepare for PTE in different ways, including self-study, coaching classes etc. However, you should take care to understand the basics. Start your preparations with a focused mind and with full concentration. Get the recommended study materials, solve as much sample papers and mock test as you can. Good understanding of the PTE Academic Exam syllabus and exam pattern is also needed to perform well in exam.

Q. How and when do I get the PTE results?

A. Results are usually available online within five working days from the PTE exam date. The PTE Academic results are issued online and can be checked using the official PTE Academic student account. The candidates receive an email within five working days with instructions on how to check the results online. Follow the email instructions get the result and score reports.

Q. How should I prepare to score 90 in PTE Academic Exam?

A. Good understanding of the PTE Academic Exam syllabus and exam pattern is essential to perform well. Regular practice following a preplanned timeline is also advised. To reduce errors, the candidates should practice as much as they can.

Q. How many times can I take the PTE Academic Exam?

A. You can take the PTE Academic Exam as many times as they want. However, there should be a gap of at least 5 days between two consecutive attempts.

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