TOEIC: All About The Exam
Hello everyone! We are back with another blog post for you to give you some important information about the TOEIC exam.
It can be hard work when studying for this exam. Don’t forget to ask us if you have any questions!
There are 4 sections in this blog, laid out in a FAQ style. The last section is the most practical.
What is it?
The Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) is an international test of English language proficiency to evaluate the everyday English skills of people working in an international environment.
There are different forms of the exam: the Listening & Reading Test is the most common; but there are also the Speaking and Writing Tests. This blog will focus on the Listening and Reading Tests.
What is the difference between the linear and adaptive format?
The TOEIC Listening and Reading test is available in:
- A linear, 2-hour format. The test can be taken either online or in print format.
- An adaptive, 1-hour format. The test is taken online.
Test takers at a language school like CEC will take either the linear (2-hour) version or the adaptive (1-hour) version. The level of difficulty, scoring scale and CEFR levels are the same.
Structure of the linear, 2-hour test
- Listening section: 100 questions, 45 minutes
- Reading section: 100 questions, 75 minutes
- Total: 200 questions, 2 hours.
Structure of the adaptive, 1-hour test
- For each section, test takers answer a set of questions (Unit 1) that is the same for everyone. After completing Unit 1, test takers move on to Unit 2 and answer different questions based on their performance on Unit 1.
Listening section: 45 questions (Unit 1 and Unit 2), 25 minutes
Reading section: 45 questions (Unit 1 and Unit 2), 37 minutes
Total: 90 questions, approximately 1 hour.
What are the parts of the test?
There are two sections: Listening and Reading. You need to answer multiple-choice questions (MCQs) within the time limit. The type of questions is the same whether the test is online or in print format or is linear (2 hours) or adaptive (1 hour).
The Listening section (45 minutes)
- The Listening section has four parts. You will be asked to answer questions based on a variety of statements, questions, short conversations and short recorded speeches in English.
- Part 1: Photographs
- Part 2: Questions and Answers
- Part 3: Conversations
- Part 4: Presentations / Announcements
The Reading Comprehension (75 minutes)
- The Reading section has three parts. You will read different documents and answer questions related to the content of these documents.
- Part 5: Incomplete Sentences
- Part 6: Complete Texts
- Part 7: Reading of various content
Do you have any advice for the test?
Here are 4 pieces of advice to help with the test: predicting; eliminating; identifying key words; and timing.
Make sure to do lots of practice and see what strategies are helpful for you.
1. Predicting
Use the information to make logical guesses about answers before you listen to or read a text. For example:
- In listening part 1 (photographs), look at the picture and think about what words might describe it (verbs, nouns, adjectives etc.).
- In listening part 2 (questions and answers), think of a logical response when you hear the question and before you hear the answers.
- In the reading parts 5 & 6 (text completion), think about what words are missing in the blank spaces. You could guess what type of word it is (verb, noun, adjective, adverb, etc.); what verb tense it is (present, past, future etc.); what collocation might fit (do + homework).
2. Emilinating
Sometimes it is quicker and easier to eliminate the wrong answer than to decide which answer is right. There are many ‘distractors’ in the test (which try to distract you from the right answer); so, eliminate answers which are impossible, illogical or irrelevant. This strategy can be used on all parts of the test.
3. Identifying key words
Like with other tests (IELTS, Cambridge etc.), it is crucial to identify the most important words in questions so you can focus on what information is needed for the right answers. It is often helpful to underline (or circle) these key words, to help you pay attention to them. For example:
- In listening part 3 (conversations), read the questions and choose the words you think are most important. Let’s say that there is a question “where is the new phone” – which words would you say are the most important? Maybe ‘where’ and ‘new phone’.
- In reading part 7 (reading comprehension), choose what words are important in the questions and try to find the answers in the texts.
4. Timing
Many students panic during the test and run out of time, so it is important to practice and use your time wisely before the test day. Do you know, for example, how much time you should spend on part 5 of the reading test? Read on to find out!
Listening
- There are 100 questions on the listening test, and it lasts about 45 minutes. You should practice different strategies (like the ones above) so you become faster at answering the questions.
- You only get to listen once, and you are only given a certain time to answer each question. Again, practice will help you become familiar, so you do not panic.
Reading
- There are 100 questions on the reading test, and it lasts about 75 minutes. If any one question is taking too long, move on so that you can use that time to answer another question.
- Do the easier questions first. For example, if you find it easy to read quickly, then start with part 7 (reading comprehension) and spend a certain amount of time on that before doing sections 5 and 6.
- Here are some suggested timings: part 5 (incomplete sentences, 40 questions) = 20 minutes; part 6 (text completion, 12 questions) = 10 minutes; part 7 (reading comprehension, 48 questions) = 45 minutes
If you want to do more research on TOEIC you can do so by checking out their website here.
We hope that was helpful. Don’t forget to ask us if you have any questions about the TOEIC exam. Good luck!