The PTE Academic Test is crucial for many international students to prove their English language skills so they can study abroad or get better prospects for migration. For instance, achieving a higher score of 79 plus each band requires a clear understanding of the test, question structure, strategic preparation, and expert guidance. Here, we will outline three essential steps to help students excel: understanding the test, developing a test strategy based on score distribution, and seeking mentor support.
1. Understand the PTE Academic Test
The PTE Academic Test evaluates listening, reading, speaking, and writing skills using a variety of task types that integrate these skills. The test is entirely computer-based, and an automated scoring system assesses the test taker’s responses. The AI-integrated PTE testing system is skilled in examining skills and answers that align with human examiners. Knowing the test’s structure is fundamental for success.
The test has three main sections: Speaking and Writing, Reading, and Listening. Each test section includes various tasks to gauge English skills; they may have partial scores for each other section, such as summarising written text, writing essays, and describing images. Scores for these tasks contribute to both the communicative skills scores and the overall score, which ranges from 10 to 90.
Integrated tasks, which assess multiple skills simultaneously, are a significant feature of the test. For instance, a task may require listening to and summarising a lecture in writing, contributing to both the listening and writing scores. Familiarising yourself with these task types helps you plan your preparation.
2. Prepare with Score Distribution and Develop your Strategy
Preparation for the PTE Academic Test isn’t just practising using available materials on tasks that come in the test. PTE preparation means understanding how scores are allocated to each task and strategically focusing on the areas with maximum points allocation. The test doesn’t calculate the overall score as an average of the communicative skills scores. Instead, it considers task performance, emphasising content, form, and fluency.
Each section requires specific strategies to ace the test. For the Speaking section, you need to prioritise oral fluency and pronunciation. You must deliver a smooth and natural speech. For writing, you need to focus on content relevance, grammatical accuracy, and essay structure. Use the official score guide from Pearson to pinpoint high-impact traits and work on these to improve communicative and enabling skills.
Moreover, allocate preparation time wisely. If you’re good at reading but weak at speaking, improve oral fluency and practice tasks like “Retell Lecture” or “Describe Image.” Tools such as PTE preparation materials, mock tests, and self-assessment guides can help identify weak areas.
A comparison table between PTE Academic and IELTS Academic scores.
| PTE Academic Score | IELTS Band Score |
|---|---|
| 86–90 | 9.0 |
| 84–85 | 8.5 |
| 76–83 | 8.0 |
| 73–75 | 7.5 |
| 65–72 | 7.0 |
| 59–64 | 6.5 |
| 51–58 | 6.0 |
| 43–50 | 5.5 |
| 35–42 | 5.0 |
| 30–34 | 4.5 |
| 10–29 | Below 4.5 (limited English) |
3. Seek Mentoring from Experts
Self-study is a must, but enrolling in a PTE class in Sydney or accessing expert mentoring is beneficial to improve test performance. That would help you significantly boost your performance. Your mentor provides tailored feedback, helps identify weaknesses, and offers insights into the scoring algorithm you may not get by studying guides yourself.
Experts can also help you develop time management skills in tests, ensuring you complete tasks within time while maintaining the accuracy of the answers you provide. Mentors guide students on approaching tasks that carry partial scores, like “Fill in the Blanks,” where each correct response adds points, but incorrect choices deduct them.
Additionally, being part of a structured PTE preparation class in Sydney allows for peer learning and access to the latest test materials. Many Sydney PTE students find their confidence boosted while practising under the supervision of a PTE trainer who deeply understands PTE marking.
Conclusion
A 79 plus or even higher score on the PTE Academic Test requires more than just English proficiency. It needs a strategic approach, a deep understanding of the test structure, and expert guidance. With a comprehensive understanding of the test, strategic and score distribution-based preparation, and help and mentoring from an expert PTE trainer, you can achieve your desired score on PTE and open doors to academic and migration opportunities in Australia.
