Overview
PTE Academic is taken at a test centre on computer in about two hours and has three parts: Speaking & Writing, Reading, and Listening. Many tasks are integrated, so one response contributes to more than one skill score. Repeat Sentence, for example, reflects both listening and speaking. Results are reported on a 10–90 scale, overall and for each communicative skill, and are aligned with Pearson's Global Scale of English.
In August 2025 Pearson added two speaking tasks to PTE Academic and PTE Academic UKVI. Summarize Group Discussion asks you to listen to a discussion among several speakers and summarize it aloud; Respond to a Situation presents a short scenario to which you give a spoken response. At the same time, some responses began to be part-scored by trained human raters as well as by AI, while pronunciation and oral fluency remain machine-scored.
Because the scoring is systematic, small behaviors matter: long pauses, restarts, off-topic content and word-limit violations. Our coaching makes those visible through recorded practice and a task-by-task error log, and prioritizes tasks that affect several skills at once.
Who it’s for and the problems it solves
This is for you if you are…
- University applicants whose programs accept PTE Academic
- Professionals who need PTE Academic for registration or migration purposes where it is listed
- UK applicants who need PTE Academic UKVI
- Candidates stuck just below a target in speaking or writing despite good general English
- Former PTE candidates who need to prepare for the two newer speaking tasks
Common problems we help with
- Speaking scores stay low even though you feel fluent in conversation
- You rely on templates for Describe Image or Retell Lecture and are unsure whether they still help
- Summarize Written Text or Write Essay responses break word limits or lose the main idea
- Reading: Fill in the Blanks costs time because of collocation and grammar uncertainty
- Write from Dictation answers have spelling and plural errors you do not notice
What’s included — and what isn’t
Included
- Diagnostic across all three parts, with a map of which tasks feed which skill
- Speaking coaching: Read Aloud, Repeat Sentence, Describe Image, Retell Lecture, Answer Short Question, Summarize Group Discussion and Respond to a Situation
- Writing coaching: Summarize Written Text and Write Essay, within word limits
- Reading strategy: Reading & Writing Fill in the Blanks, multiple choice, Re-order Paragraphs, Reading Fill in the Blanks
- Listening strategy: Summarize Spoken Text, Highlight Correct Summary, Highlight Incorrect Words, Write from Dictation and others
- Microphone technique and delivery practice for a busy test room
- Timed practice with official or current-format materials and a progress log
Not included
- Guaranteeing any score, visa or admission outcome
- Memorized 'universal' templates designed to game scoring — these risk low content scores
- Recalled or leaked test questions
- Immigration advice about which test or score a visa route requires
What you receive
- Diagnostic and task map
- Estimated performance per skill plus the specific tasks dragging each skill down.
- Priority plan
- A plan that orders tasks by their effect across skills and your current error rate.
- Recorded speaking review
- Your recordings with notes on pauses, pace, stress and content coverage for each task type.
- Marked writing
- Summaries and essays checked for word limits, content, structure, grammar and vocabulary.
- Accuracy drills
- Personalized dictation and fill-in-the-blank sets drawn from your recurring errors.
How it works
Clarify the requirement
We confirm whether you need PTE Academic or PTE Academic UKVI, and the overall and skill scores required.
Diagnose
Timed diagnostic with recorded speaking, analyzed task by task.
Build habits
Short, frequent drills on delivery, dictation accuracy and summary writing, reviewed in sessions.
Integrate
Full-length practice under timing, including the newer tasks, so the full sequence feels routine.
Review and decide
We review mock trends and advise honestly whether to keep your test date.
What we focus on by task
- Read Aloud and Repeat Sentence
- Smooth phrasing, natural stress, no restarts — these tasks feed speaking and, for Repeat Sentence, listening.
- Describe Image and Retell Lecture
- A flexible structure for main trend or idea, key details and a conclusion, using content from the prompt rather than filler.
- Summarize Group Discussion
- Note-taking on each speaker's view, then an organized spoken summary covering the main points and the relationship between views.
- Respond to a Situation
- Identifying the purpose and audience in the scenario and giving a relevant, polite and complete spoken response in the time allowed.
- Summarize Written Text and Write Essay
- One-sentence summaries within the word limit; essays with a clear argument, developed paragraphs and controlled grammar.
- Fill in the Blanks
- Collocation, part of speech and grammatical agreement practice based on your own errors.
- Write from Dictation
- Accurate spelling, plurals and articles under time pressure — often a high-impact listening and writing task.
Templates: where structure helps and where it hurts
Many PTE courses teach fixed sentences to drop into any Describe Image or Retell Lecture response. A short routine for organizing your answer is useful, but answers that are mostly generic filler do not describe the actual image or lecture, and content is part of the score. With human part-scoring now in place for some responses, irrelevant or memorized material is even less likely to help.
We coach a flexible order of ideas — overview, two or three specific details, a conclusion — filled with content from the prompt itself.
PTE Academic, PTE Academic UKVI and PTE Core
PTE Academic is used for university study and by many registration and migration bodies. PTE Academic UKVI is the version approved as a Secure English Language Test for some UK visa routes. PTE Core is a separate general English test; it, not PTE Academic, is the Pearson test listed for Canada's Express Entry. Preparation overlaps, but always book the version your receiving organization names.
What the work can look like
Illustrative example — fictional data
Sample task review: Summarize Group Discussion
A fictional candidate targeting 65 overall records a practice response after listening to three students discuss whether lectures should be recorded.
Content coverage
You summarized the first speaker well but merged the second and third speakers' views. The third speaker's point — that recordings reduce attendance — was missing. Note each speaker's stance in a column while listening.
Delivery
Two pauses of more than three seconds while searching for words. Use simpler reporting language ('The second student argued that…') to keep going.
Next drill
Three more discussions this week, each summarized in under the time limit with all speakers named.
Illustrative example; the candidate, discussion and target are invented. Our feedback estimates performance and is not a Pearson score.
What you’ll need to provide
- The organization's stated PTE requirement, including skill minimums
- Any previous PTE score reports or practice test results
- A headset or quiet room for recorded speaking homework
- Your booked or target test date
You don’t need everything ready to ask for a quote — tell us what you have and we’ll say what’s missing.
What affects price and turnaround
Price depends on
- Number of coaching sessions and length of preparation
- Volume of recorded speaking and writing you want reviewed
- Focus on specific tasks versus the full test
- Whether you want scored practice tests included in the plan
Turnaround depends on
- Your booked test date
- How consistently you complete short daily drills
- Size of the gap between current and target scores
Every project is quoted individually. How we price our work.
Questions people ask before starting
Is PTE scored only by AI?
Pearson states that its AI scoring is the main method, and that since August 2025 some responses are also part-scored by human raters, while pronunciation and oral fluency are scored by AI. Check Pearson's current score guide for details.
Can you estimate my PTE score?
We estimate from practice under timed conditions and our analysis of your responses. For a machine-scored estimate, Pearson's official scored practice tests are the closest guide; we help you interpret them.
I've heard fluency matters more than content. Is that true?
Both are scored. Hesitant delivery does lower oral fluency, but fast speech that ignores the prompt loses content marks. We work on both together.
Which PTE do I need for my visa?
It depends on the country and route. For example, the UK lists PTE Academic UKVI for certain routes, and Canada's Express Entry lists PTE Core. Check the official government page for your route; we do not give immigration advice.