TOEFL Essentials Test 2023: Dates, Fees, Eligibility, Registration, Format

What is the TOEFL Essentials Test?

ETS (Educational Testing Service) - the conducting body of the TOEFL iBT test has launched the TOEFL Essentials test for test-takers from August 21, 2021. Due to the ongoing pandemic, a lot of universities had to adopt test-optional policies or rely on substandard tests which were more affordable and convenient language tests but not necessarily of high quality nor sustainable going forward. Hence, niche English test provider, ETS has launched the TOEFL Essentials test which is a higher-quality testing option in the face of the pandemic. Candidates looking to appear for the TOEFL Essentials test will be familiarizing themselves with the following topics as they read along.

• TOEFL Essentials Eligibility
• TOEFL Essentials Dates and Test Centres
• TOEFL Essentials Registration Process
• TOEFL Essentials Exam Pattern
• TOEFL Essentials Syllabus
• TOEFL Essentials Preparation
• TOEFL Essentials Practice Test
• TOEFL Essentials Results and Scores

Why take the TOEFL Essentials Test?

As stated before, the TOEFL Essentials Test is a high-quality exam launched in the face of the pandemic for candidates looking to appear for the TOEFL test from the safety of their homes. While a lot of universities have made English language tests optional for the convenience of students, a lot of universities are still relying on English language scores as part of their admission process. While even the TOEFL iBT exam is available at the home version, however the much shorter version of the TOEFL iBT test with a lower registration cost, the TOEFL Essentials test is a more convenient solution for candidates looking to appear for an English exam during the pandemic. 

How different is the TOEFL Essentials test from the TOEFL iBT Test?

One of the most common questions would be the difference between the TOEFL Essentials test from the TOEFL iBT test. Candidates are requested to read on as we are going to explain all the aspects of the TOEFL Essentials test and how it is different from the original TOEFL iBT test.

Recent Updates on TOEFL Essentials test?

This section would cover any latest developments revolving around TOEFL Essentials for the benefit of students who are planning to appear for the test.

TOEFL Essentials test to be held from August 21, 2021, Registration opens June 17, 2021, onwards

The TOEFL Essentials test has been launched by ETS, however, registration for the same will only commence from June 17 onwards. The first date of the examination has been scheduled for August 21, 2021. 

TOEFL Essentials Test 2023: Exam Key Highlights

Read on to know all about the TOEFL Essentials test as is available on the official website.

What are the eligibility criteria for the TOEFL Essentials test?

ETS the conducting body of the TOEFL exam has not established any eligibility criteria for appearing for the TOEFL Essentials test. Candidates looking to study abroad in universities that would require English proficiency scores can register for the TOEFL Essentials test. There are no prerequisite qualifications, age criteria, or academic qualifications established by the conducting body. 

What is the cost of the TOEFL Essentials test in India?

The cost of the TOEFL Essentials test has been priced at US $120. Rescheduling and cancelling your TOEFL Essentials test would come with additional costs as mentioned below.

Rescheduling the TOEFL Essentials test

Candidates looking to reschedule their TOEFL Essentials test must do so four full days before their test date. So, for example, if your test has been scheduled for a Friday, you will be required to reschedule by Monday. The fee to reschedule your TOEFL Essentials test is US $30 and must be paid before scheduling your new appointment.

Cancelling the TOEFL Essentials test

If you need to cancel your TOEFL Essentials test, you are required to do so four full days before your test date to be eligible for a 50% refund. Candidates would be required to reschedule or cancel through their ETS account or by phone. By phone, candidates should be prepared to provide their appointment number and the full name that they have used during the registration process.

How to Register for the TOEFL Essentials test?

Candidates would be required to visit the official ETS website to register for the TOEFL Essentials test. This is similar to registering for the TOEFL iBT test. Candidates would be required to present a valid passport with their name, photograph, and signature as their primary ID. There are no exceptions to this policy.

How to book a TOEFL Essentials test slot?

TOEFL Essentials test appointments would be made available to the candidate round the clock. Initially, the TOEFL Essentials test would be available to students 1-3 days per week, and slots for registration would be available as early as 24 hrs after registration. There would be no need to visit a TOEFL Essentials test centre to take the test, as the student can take the TOEFL Essentials test from the safety of their home, anywhere in the world as long as they have a reliable internet connection.

TOEFL Essentials Test Dates

The TOEFL Essentials test dates have been introduced for candidates to be able to take the test from the safety of their homes and the test would be available to students 1-3 days per week. 

TOEFL Essentials Test Centres

As informed before, the TOEFL Essentials test has been introduced to make the lives of students looking to appear for English proficiency tests simpler. hence, there are no test centres designated for the TOEFL Essentials test. Candidates can take the TOEFL Essentials test from the safety of their homes as long as they meet system requirements. 

TOEFL Essentials test Format

Similar to the TOEFL iBT test format, the TOEFL Essential test has four sections that are built around the core English-language skills of listening, reading, writing, and speaking. The duration of the TOEFL Essentials test has been kept to 1.5 hours which is much shorter than the TOEFL iBT test format. A new addition to the TOEFL Essentials test Format is a five-minute unscored personal video statement, where the test taker allows institutions to get to know him and see their unique personality through the medium. Know about the TOEFL Essentials test Format in detail below

TOEFL Essentials test Syllabus

The syllabus for the TOEFL Essentials test would be designed to measure the candidate's understanding of the important aspects of the English language including vocabulary knowledge and sentence construction. The syllabus for the TOEFL Essentials test is as follows. 

TOEFL Essentials Listening Section

The TOEFL Essentials Listening Section includes tasks such as Listen and Reply, Listen to a Conversation, Academic Listening to Announcements, and Talks. Candidates should note that this section would primarily test the candidates listening alertness. The candidates would be required to listen to conversations, recordings, announcements, and talks and select the most appropriate response to the questions.

TOEFL Essentials Reading Section

TOEFL Essentials Reading Section includes tasks such as testing your vocabulary and reading abilities, both academic and non-academic. Candidates should understand that this section primarily assesses their reading abilities of the candidates. TOEFL Essentials test-takers would be required to read both academic and non-academic passages and answer questions around them.

TOEFL Essentials Writing Section

TOEFL Essentials Writing Section would largely include tasks such as Build a Sentence, Write an Email, Describe a Photo and Write for an Academic Discussion. Test takers should note that the TOEFL Essentials Writing Section is going to measure the candidates’ ability to write, review and edit texts in English. This would be achieved by requiring the candidate to perform tasks such as, correcting a sentence, writing an email for a specific purpose, writing a social media post championing a cause, or simply stating an opinion and supporting the safe.

TOEFL Essentials Speaking Section

TOEFL Essentials Speaking Section would include three tasks: Read Aloud, Listen and Repeat, and Virtual Interview. Here the primary focus is for the candidate to be able to speak and communicate effectively in a variety of situations. Here, candidates would be required to read aloud, repeat sentences, and appear in an interview with a prerecorded interviewer.

Personal Video Statement

Candidates should note that while the above sections are scored as already mentioned in the TOEFL Essentials Exam Pattern, the newly introduced Personal Video Statement is unscored. Here, the candidate would be allowed to record a Personal Video Statement where he would be required to respond to two questions in English. This particular addition would allow the candidate to share additional insights about themselves showcase their unique personality to institutions.

TOEFL Essentials Test Preparation

ETS has made three free TOEFL Essentials sample papers available on their website for the benefit of the test takers to get familiarized with the questions that may be asked during the exam.  

TOEFL Essentials test Scores and Results

The TOEFL Essentials test would be scored by both humans and AI tools to ensure high reliability, accuracy, and score validity. Apart from the USPs, candidates appearing for the test would be able to view their unofficial Reading and Listening scores at the end of the test as an early indicator of their performance.

TOEFL Essentials test Sore Reporting: Unlike the TOEFL iBT test, test takers can send their TOEFL Essentials score reports to as many institutions as they deem fit at no extra cost. However, there is a limit to 20 institutions per registration. The TOEFL Essentials score report also comes with the MyBest Scores attribute, a feature in which a combination of the test taker's best TOEFL Essentials scores from all valid tests in the last 2 years is provided under MyBest Scores.

When will my TOEFL Essentials test Score be available?

Test takers can expect their scores to be made available on their ETS account six days from the test date. Candidates who would require a hard copy would have to mention the same during the registration process. PDF versions of the TOEFL Essentials test Scores would be available eight days after your test date. And score reports would be sent to institutions 11 days after your test or sooner depending on the method of delivery.

TOEFL Essentials test Score review and cancellation process

Candidates should note that their TOEFL Essentials test Scores cannot be reviewed or rescored. At the end of their TOEFL Essentials test, the test taker would get an option to either cancel scores or report them. If the candidate opts to cancel his scores at the end of his test but then changes his mind, his cancelled scores can be reinstated if the request arrives at ETS within 60 days after his test date.

Test takers can order their scores to be reinstated through their ETS account for the fee of US$20. Your scores will be reinstated and reported within 3 weeks after receipt of your request and payment. This only applies to scores cancelled by the test taker. If TOEFL Essentials test scores are cancelled by ETS, they cannot be reinstated.

What is the validity of my TOEFL Essentials test score?

Your TOEFL Essentials test scores are valid for a period of two years after your test date.

TOEFL Essentials Test vs TOEFL iBT Test

We are going to look at a select few differences between the TOEFL Essentials test and the TOEFL iBT test to understand the contrast between the two

source: TOEFL website