PTE Exam Pattern 2023 - Explore Section-wise PTE Exam Format, Marking Scheme & Duration
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PTE Exam Pattern
PTE Exam Pattern 2023: The Pearson Test of English (PTE Academic) evaluates applicants' Speaking & Writing, Reading, and Listening skills to ensure that they are ready to study in a global setting and have a good understanding of the universal language of English. The PTE exam structure comprises 20 different question types that assess applicants' Speaking & Writing Skills (54 - 67 minutes), Reading skills (29 - 30 minutes), and Listening skills (30 - 43 minutes).
Students who perform well on this test can prove to the admissions committee and visa authorities that they can communicate in the globally recognized official language while studying in a foreign country. A high PTE exam result also assures that candidates can convey their ideas, deliver presentations, aim for international exposure, and perform on the worldwide front in front of foreign audiences.
This allows applicants to guarantee that they are prepared to study in the universal official language with students from all around the world and international faculty members. In this part, we shall discuss the most recent PTE exam format 2023 for applicants planning to take the test.
PTE Pattern - overall exam
| PTE Format | Details |
| PTE Exam Pattern< | An English language exam has been created to assess candidates' Speaking & Writing Skills (54 - 67 minutes), Reading Skills (29 - 30 minutes), and Listening Skills (30 - 43 minutes) for studying abroad in an English-speaking nation. |
| PTE Duration< | 2 hours and a test session< |
| Medium of test< | Computer-based with a headset provided by the exam center< |
| Mode< | Taken in a test center / Home Edition< |
| Test Type< | Assesses real-life English language skills< |
| Test Layout< | 20 types of questions< |
PTE Pattern - Section by Section
Read the section-wise overview provided below:
PTE Test Time allotment details
Speaking and Writing — 54-67 minutes
- As the term suggests, this portion assesses students on their two key communication skills: verbal and written.
- This part consists of six separate sections that assess your quickness in speaking and writing the written test, you're going to read for the first time.
- The total time permitted to the section is 54 - 67 minutes, with the following time allotted to each part:
| PTE Speaking and Writing Section Question Topics | PTE Questions per task | Duration per task | Skills assessed |
| Personal introduction | 1 | 55 seconds: 25 seconds for prompt + 30 seconds to record; You are only able to record your answer once. | - |
| Read Aloud | 6 - 7 | 30-40 seconds for preparation and for reading out the text of up to 60 words | Reading and speaking |
| Repeat sentence | 10 - 12 | 15 seconds: 3-9 seconds to listen, 15 seconds to record what you heard | Listening and speaking |
| Describe image | 3 - 4 | 40 seconds are given to study the image as well as submit your response on the same | Speaking |
| Retell lecture | 1 - 2 | 90 seconds for prompt length, 10 seconds to prepare, and 40 seconds to answer | Listening and speaking |
| Answer short question | 5 - 6 | 20 seconds: 3-9 seconds for prompt, 10 seconds to answer | Listening and speaking |
| Summarize written text | 1 - 2 | 10 minutes to answer to text prompt of 300 words; Include the major aspects of the reading passage in a complete, single sentence of no more than 75 words. | Reading and writing |
| Write Essay | 1 - 2 | 20 minutes to answer to text prompt of 2-3 sentences; Make sure to write a minimum of 200 words, but no more than 300 words. | Writing |
| Total Questions | 28 - 36 | Time Allocation: 54 - 67 minutes | - |
PTE Reading Test Timetable
Reading Part — 29 – 30 minutes
PTE Reading Format
- This section assesses applicants' ability to understand written instructions in the language.
- The section, which will be divided into five parts, lasts 29 to 30 minutes.
Study the segment-wise structure for this section's time distribution:
| PTE Reading Section Question Topics | PTE Questions per task | Duration per task | Skills assessed |
| Fill in the blanks | 5 - 6 | Read up to a 300-word text and fill in the blanks. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Reading and writing |
| Multiple choice, multiple answers | 1 - 2 | Read up to a 300-word text; you need to select all of the response options from the list of possible options. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Reading |
| Re-order paragraph | 2 - 3 | Read up to a 150-word text; arrange paragraphs by dragging them into the most appropriate order. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Reading |
| Fill in the blanks | 4 - 5 | Read 80 words of text, and fill in the blanks. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Reading |
| Multiple-choice, single answer | 1 - 2 | Read 300 words of text Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Reading |
| Total Questions | 13 - 18 | Time Allocation - 29 - 30 minutes |
|
PTE Test Timetable
Listening — 30 to 43 minutes
PTE Academic Listening Format
The PTE Academic listening section lasts 30 to 43 minutes. This one is designed to evaluate your ability to understand spoken English. The student must ensure that they carefully listen to the audio file and remember what they hear.
This portion is subdivided into eight segments, with the time allotted to each segment as follows:
| PTE Listening Section Question Topics | PTE Questions per task | Duration per task | Skills assessed |
| Summarize spoken text | 1 - 2 |
|
Listening and writing |
| Multiple choice, multiple answers | 1 - 2 | 40-90-second prompt; you need to select all of the response options from the list of possible options. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Listening |
| Fill in the blanks | 2 - 3 | 30–60 seconds for the prompt; Left-click on each gap and type in the missing word. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Listening and writing |
| Highlight correct summary | 1 - 2 | 30-90-second prompt, there are several possible response options but only one is correct. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Listening and reading |
| Multiple-choice, single answer | 1 - 2 | 30-60-second prompt. After listening to a recording, select the paragraph that best summarizes the recording. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Listening |
| Select missing word | 1 - 2 | 20-70-second prompt. The last word or group of words in the recording has been replaced by a beep sound. Select the most appropriate option to complete the recording. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Listening |
| Highlight incorrect word | 2 - 3 | 15-50 -second prompt. The transcript contains some errors. While listening and reading, you need to select the words in the text that differ from those in the audio. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Listening and reading |
| Write from Dictation | 3 - 4 | 3-5 -second prompt. you hear a short sentence. You have to type the sentence into the response box. Click on the ‘Next’ option- No time limit is applicable. | Listening and reading |
| Total Questions | 12 - 20 | Time Allocation: 30 - 43 minutes |
|
The speed at which you complete the tasks where a time limit is not allotted will affect your scores.
Pearson places no restrictions on how many times a candidate can take the PTE Test 2023. Applicants can take the exam after a 5-day break. As a result, students may retake the PTE Academic exam as many times as they like. The PTE Academic exam format, as an English language test, focused on three primary aspects of language proficiency: reading, listening and speaking and writing. The entire PTE Academic exam pattern may be found above.
Date and Frequency
IELTS test dates are offered upto 4 times in a month making a total of 48 fixed dates in one calender year. The availability of IELTS dates in India may differ for Academic and General IELTS.
Center and Admit Card
The IELTS Exam is offered across more than 50 locations across India. There is no admit card provided for IELTS examination.
Result
IELTS Exam results are released 10 calendar days after the test for the paper based exam and 5-7 calendar days for the computer based test. The Candidate will receive only ONE original Test Report form (TRF).
Score Reporting
A candidate may request up to 5 additional TRFs to be sent to the receiving institutions (universities, professional bodies, etc) within 1 month of taking the IELTS test. TRFs sent by courier will be sent via DHL and students will be charged accordingly. If the receiving institution accepts electronic submission of scores then that can be arranged through the IDP IELTS office free of charge.
Score Validity
2 Years
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