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If you are planning to study abroad you will need to prove your proficiency in English through standardized exams. TOEFL iBT is one such exam which is accepted by universities in USA, UK and Australia. Here is an overview of the exam and tips to maximize your score:

TOEFL iBT Format:

TOEFL iBT consists of four sections:

Section	Number of Questions	Duration
Reading	3-5 passages, 12-14 question each	60-100 minutes
Listening	4-6 lectures, 6 question each 2-3 conversations, 5 questions each	60-90 minutes
Speaking	6 tasks: 2 independent and 4 integrated	20 minutes
Writing	1 integrated task 1 independent task	20 minutes 30 minutes

TOEFL iBT Reading Section:

Type of passages

• Exposition – Passage which provides explanation of a topic
• Argumentative – Passage which provides an idea and evidences to support it. Here you should look out for two kind of evidences, one which support the argument and the other which makes the argument weak.
• Historial – Passage which discusses an event from the past

Type of questions:

A)     Multiple choice question with four answer options and only one correct answer

B)      Insert a sentence question in multiple choice format. Students have to select where the given sentence best fits in the passage

C)      Reading to learn questions – These are multiple choice questions with more than one correct answer. These questions can be chart based or summary based. In chart based questions students have to organize the sentences under two categories. In summary based questions students have to create a summary by selecting 3 appropriate sentences.

What is being tested – Reading section tests the students on three things:

• Ability to find relevant information by quickly going through the passage – Tested through question type A and B
• Comprehension and understanding of the ideas presented in the passage – Tested through question type A and B
• Understanding relationship between different ideas and comprehending the main points of the passage – Tested through question type C

Tips to score higher:

• Break down the passage. You should try to break down the passage into the following parts – introduction, main idea, supporting ideas, counter ideas (if any), examples given (if any), and conclusion. This will help you to get an overall feel of the passage
• Underline all inferences, major ideas and connecting information since you will most likely have questions related to these
• During the preparation phase start writing a summary of the passage which you read this will help you to identify the main idea and the supporting ideas
• Read newspaper or websites like BBC or CNN

TOEFL iBT Listening Section

Type of listening sections:

• Academic lectures – the type where a professor is talking about an academic topic or it can be a discussion where professor and student are discussing a topic
• Conversation in an academic setting – this can be a conversation between a student and a college registrar or a conversation between a student and some college representative.

Type of questions:

A)     Multiple choice questions with four answer options with one correct answer

B)      Multiple choice question with more than one correct answer

C)      Ordering questions – students are required to order events or steps in a process

D)     Matching questions – students are required to match objects or text to categories

What is being tested: Listening section tests the students on three things:

• Ability to comprehend basic ideas, main idea and its associated details – Tested through question type A, B, and C
• Ability to recognize speaker’s attitude through voice tones – Tested through question type A, B, and C
• Ability to connect spoken ideas, establish relationship between ideas presented, make deductions, and recognize change in topic – Tested through question type A, B, and C

Tips to score higher:

• Practice by listening to topics which are new to you. Follow debates on TV channels like BBC, Times Now
• Take notes of what you are listening. Try to write a summary of what you have just heard. Also you should note down new words that you hear and find out their meaning. Listen the same content again and compare your summary with the original content
• Watch movies with English subtitles on either STAR movies or HBO. Keep reading what you are listening. It will help you to better understand foreign English accents.

TOEFL iBT Speaking Section

Type of speaking sections:

A)     Independent Speaking Tasks – student speaks based on his experiences, thoughts, ideas when responding.

B)      Integrated Tasks – student first reads a passage, listens to a small conversation and then speaks in response. It can also be just listening to a conversation and speaking in response.

What is being tested: Speaking section tests the student’s capability to:

• Speak both inside the classroom – to discuss with other students, respond to questions, express their views. Tested through question type A and B
• Speak outside the classroom – participate in conversations, express their thoughts etc. Tested through question type A and B

Tips to score higher:

a)      Focus on speaking correctly and clearly in short sentences rather than long sentences. Practice speaking about your life in college, the city you live in, the things you like to do. Speak about the same topic three four times to build up fluency

b)      Your next sentence should follow from the previous one. You should use connecting phrases like, “I like doing this” or “this is preferred in comparison to..”

c)       Before speaking make points on paper and move from one point to another as you speak

d)      Chat with people in English using your favorite chat software

e)      Find a speaking partner and talk to him/her only in English

TOEFL iBT Writing Section

Type of writing sections:

A)     Independent writing tasks- student write based on their experiences, views and thoughts

B)      Integrated writing tasks – student read  a short passage, listen to a conversation regarding the same topic  and write a summary explaining how passage is connected to the conversation.

What is being tested: Writing section tests the student’s ability to:

• Write in academic situations like writing for assignment, writing for communicating with university representatives.

Tips to score higher:

a)      Write only about the topic. Many a times student put in information which is not relevant to the topic. Don’t do this mistake

b)      Before you start writing make an outline of the essay. This should have the points that you want to cover in your response

c)       Don’t jump from one idea to another. Each sentence should logically follow from the previous one. For e.g., if you are talking about fishes dying due to pollutants in sea in one sentence, the next sentence should either talk about either dying fishes or other bad effects of pollutants

d)      Read two articles on same topic then write a summary specifying how the two articles are same or different

e)      Practice typing fast on computer keyboard since you will be required to type your essays in TOEFL iBT writing section