PTE Academic with minimal prep....

[Cobs_Ahoy]

Has anyone sat the PTE with minimal prep and scored 79+ points? I had a lovely revision timetable sorted but covid restrictions and associated childcare issues put a spanner in the works.

 

I’m booked to take the test on Saturday but will be working all week. I’m going to try and do some revision in the evenings, but with two small children at home I often find my brain doesn’t really function after midday wondering just how bad my chances of a decent score are at this point.....

[wrussell]

Preparation is the name of the game. Paralysis by analysis.Take your pick.

[Conyo2588]

21 hours ago, Cobs_Ahoy said:

Has anyone sat the PTE with minimal prep and scored 79+ points? I had a lovely revision timetable sorted but covid restrictions and associated childcare issues put a spanner in the works.

 

I’m booked to take the test on Saturday but will be working all week. I’m going to try and do some revision in the evenings, but with two small children at home I often find my brain doesn’t really function after midday wondering just how bad my chances of a decent score are at this point.....

Tbh I think it depends entirely on how confident you are with the English language, ‘test’ situations and how much writing etc you tend to do on a daily basis. 

As an example, my partner and I both had to complete it (native English speakers) for different reasons. He’s the main applicant, so was doing it for points, I completed it as part of an assessment for my occupation.

He works in a trade and doesn’t use computers/draft emails much. Our agent advised he studied for his, to brush up on his skills. He got an overall 79, with his writing being the lowest score of 73.

I didn’t study at all, as our agent advised that due to my occupation, the likelihood was that I’d be quite comfortable in the test anyway. I got an overall 90, with writing being my lowest at 87.

I think sometimes the pressure you apply before doing any test and reading horror stories and words of warning can do more harm. If you’re pretty confident in your abilities, I wouldn’t see the need to revise. If you’re feeling a little uneasy and feel like your skills could do with a brush up, then setting a few hours aside can’t do any harm. Even if it’s only to ease your fears. 
 

Good luck x

[Cobs_Ahoy]

That’s really useful, cheers. I had a free morning today so decided to do one of the scored practice tests to familiarise myself with actually doing the test, and also to give me an idea of scores. 

 

I was pleasantly surprised, scored 86 and the test was much easier than I thought, but unsurprisingly I have appalling spelling! One of my answers didn’t save as I started talking after a 3 second delay so the mic switched off. I’m glad I took the mock, I know where to work on before the test, feel a bit more relaxed now and think it has been helpful to familiarise myself with the format. 

 

Anyway here is my mock test score sheet in case it’s of use to anyone else....

 

 

Edited September 6, 2021 by Cobs_Ahoy

[Cobs_Ahoy]

In case anyone looks at this thread and wants an update....

 

I sat PTE this morning and received my results less than an hour later, 90 in all sections, phew

 

After taking the scored practice test on Monday, I revisited the Supercow thread on this site and looked for some tips on improving my writing, watched an E2 language video on the strategy for approaching essay writing, then paid the $20 for the question bank and spent a couple of hours over 2 days practicing.

 

When I sat the test this morning I noticed how much easier it was to write the essays using the E2 strategy, and I think the practice summarising chunks of info into one sentence helped. I actually found the real tests harder overall than the practice, but I guess some of that was nerves. 

 

Anyway, off to set up an ANMAC account and submit my application for a skills assessment