Tuesday, January 20, 2009

An Essential Factor For Studying Abroad – Standardized Tests (GRE, TOEFL, IELTS, GMAT, SAT, OET)

If you are planning to study abroad, you will likely have to undergo the obligatory standardized test, which can be either or the combination of GRE, TOEFL, IELTS, GMAT, SAT, OET.

Standardized Test:
Standardized test is an essential tool required to evaluate the student’s proficiency in English, which is crucial to study abroad. It is the test administered and scored in a consistent manner. The tests are designed in such a way that the "questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent" and are "administered and scored in a predetermined, standard manner. These tests are the utmost way to ensure you get the results you want from the standardized tests you take. It really helps to be as prepared as you possibly can be.
Usually in India, the Standardized tests that are often taken by the students to study abroad are:

GRE:
Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is a commercially-run standardized test, which is required for obtaining admission to study higher education in the USA and in other English speaking countries. GRE was formed and administered by ETS (Educational Testing Service) in 1949. The test primarily focuses on testing abstract thinking skills in the areas of math, vocabulary, and analytical writing.
In the graduate school admissions process, the level of emphasis that is placed upon GRE scores varies widely between schools and even departments within schools. The importance of a GRE score can range from being an important selection factor to being a mere admission formality.

TOEFL:
Test Of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is a common standardized test, which is highly taken by many students in India. The test evaluates the potential success of the test-taker to utilize and analyze Standard American English at a college level. It is required for non-native applicants at many English-speaking colleges and universities. TOEFL is also required in various institutions such as government agencies, businesses, or scholarship programs. The test scores are valid up to two years from the test date and then is deleted from the official database.
TOEFL test is a registered trademark of ETS (Educational Testing Service) and is administered worldwide. The test was first administered in 1964 and has since been taken by nearly 20 million students.

IELTS:
International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is an international standardized test that evaluates the proficiency of the test-taker in English language. IELTS is established in the year 1989 and is jointly managed by British Council and IDP Education Australia. IELTS is accepted by several education providers of the world and recently even many US universities are accepting IELTS in their admission process. The test results of IELTS or Test Report Form (TRF) is valid for two years.
In 2007, IELTS tested over a million candidates in a single 12-month period for the first time ever, making it the world's most popular English language test for higher education and immigration.

GMAT:
The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is a computer adaptive standardized test conducted to evaluate the test-taker’s aptitude to succeed academically in graduate business studies. A high score in the GMAT exam is essential to get admission in top business schools. The test consists of three modules: GMAT Verbal, GMAT Math and Analytical Writing.
Business schools commonly use the test as one of many selection criteria for admission into an MBA program. It is given at various locations around the world. As of 2007, the fee to take the test is U.S. $250 worldwide.

SAT:
SAT Reasoning Test is a standardized test for college admissions in the United States. It is formerly known as ‘Scholastic Aptitude Test’ and ‘Scholastic Assessment Test’. The test was introduced in 1901 which is owned, published, and developed by the College Board, and was once developed, published, and scored by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), which is now administering the test. The test is classified into 3 sections viz, Math, Critical Reading, and Writing with 800 points in each, along with other subsections scored separately.

OET:
Occupational English Test (OET) is an English language proficiency test for overseas trained health professionals who want to work or study in Australia. The test is administered by The OET Centre. The test consists of four sub-tests: Listening, reading, writing, and speaking. OET is recognised by the Regulatory Authorities of 12 Australian health professions. Currently, one should obtain at least B for all four sub-tests to be eligible to work as a doctor in Australia.

1 comment:

academicstudies09 said...

What an amazing blog!!It's a very good source to know about the test conducted for getting admission in various premier institutions for studies abroad.If you want to prepare then refer academicstudies.com.