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Standardised Test Preparation

PTE Academic Preparation

Computer delivered, fast results, and the strongest positioning for Australia and New Zealand. Taught with both question types added in August 2025.

Format
3 parts, computer delivered
Duration
About 2 to 2.5 hours
Scoring
Global Scale of English, 10 to 90
Validity
2 years

Three parts, one integrated test

PTE Academic is computer delivered at a test centre, scored on the Global Scale of English from 10 to 90, and turns results around faster than any other major English test.

PartDurationQuestion types
Speaking and Writing76 to 84 minutes9 types, plus an unscored personal introduction
Reading23 to 30 minutes5 types
Listening31 to 39 minutes8 types

Pearson describes the test as approximately two hours. Summing the published section ranges gives between two hours ten and two hours thirty three, so plan for two and a half hours.

Two question types were added in 2025

For any test taken after 7 August 2025, Speaking and Writing includes Summarize Group Discussion, where you listen to a three minute discussion between three people and summarise it in your own words with two minutes to respond, and Respond to a Situation, where you give an extended spoken answer to a described scenario in forty seconds. The original twenty question types remain. If your practice material predates August 2025, it is missing both.

Scoring is now hybrid. PTE moved to a combination of AI and human evaluation for some responses. Pearson states humans never assess pronunciation or fluency, which remain machine scored. Preparation still rewards clear, steady delivery and full content coverage, but the old advice to treat it as purely an algorithm is no longer accurate.

Where PTE carries the most weight

Pearson reports acceptance by every Australian, New Zealand and Canadian university and college, and 99 percent of those in the UK. If Australia or New Zealand is your destination, PTE is usually the most efficient route, largely because of turnaround time.

Which version

PTE Academic for university. PTE Academic UKVI for UK work visas and below-degree study. PTE Core for Canadian immigration. PTE Home for UK settlement and family routes. These are not interchangeable and booking the wrong one is not refundable.

What preparation with us looks like

We do not publish a PTE to IELTS conversion table. The commonly quoted equivalences are not published by Pearson, and universities set their own PTE thresholds directly. We check the requirement on your actual offer instead.

What we help you with

Five things are in every test preparation programme we run, whatever the exam and whatever the level you start at.

One to one doubt clearing, on your schedule

Every programme includes dedicated one to one sessions with your own teacher for the questions that came up after class. Booked when you need them, not parked until the next group session.

Video recording after every lesson

The recording reaches you the same day, every time. Miss a class for a school exam, a work trip or a bad week and you have not missed the lesson. It is also the fastest revision tool you will have in the last fortnight.

Full length mock tests, in the real interface

Not a question bank. Complete timed papers sat under exam conditions, marked the way the board marks them, with a per section breakdown so you know which paper is costing you the score and not just that your total is short.

Strategy sessions, not just teaching hours

Before you start, we set the target and the timeline. Midway, we reset it against your mock results. Before you book the exam, we confirm you are sitting the right version on the right date. Teaching without this is just hours.

One to one personalised programmes

If a group cohort is not right for you, the whole programme can run one to one. Your own teacher, your own pace, sessions timed around school or work, and a plan built only around your weakest paper.

Faculty

Taught by trainers, marked against the official criteria

Every programme is led by a subject trainer who works to the examining board’s own published criteria, not to a generic syllabus. Your mock papers come back with a per section breakdown and the specific reason each mark was lost.

We keep cohorts small enough that the trainer knows your weakest paper by name, and we pair every group programme with one to one time on it.

Which test, and when?

Picking the wrong exam costs a year. TAICF, our own assessment framework, reads your academic record, your target countries and your deadlines, then tells you which test your shortlist actually accepts and what order to sit things in.

How TAICF works

Questions people actually ask

How fast are PTE results?

Typically much faster than IELTS or TOEFL, which is the main reason candidates choose it when a deadline is tight. Pearson publishes current turnaround on its results page.

Is PTE adaptive?

Pearson does not describe PTE Academic as adaptive and we will not claim it is. It is a fixed, computer delivered test with integrated tasks that score more than one skill at a time.

How long is a PTE score valid?

Two years from the test date, as stated in the official test taker handbook.

What does PTE cost in India or the UAE?

Pearson does not display country fees on its public test centres page and defers to the booking system. We do not quote unverified figures. Check the official booking page for your country.

Is PTE easier than IELTS?

Not easier, different. There is no face to face speaking examiner, which suits some candidates and unsettles others, and the machine scoring of fluency and pronunciation rewards steady, clear delivery over expressive speech. Candidates who score well in IELTS Speaking sometimes underperform in PTE and the reverse is just as common. The diagnostic tells us which suits you.

Start with a diagnostic, not a guess

Book a free consultation at Gurugram or Dubai Silicon Oasis. We run a full-length diagnostic first, then build the plan backwards from your target score and your application deadline.

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