The TOEFL® Family of Assessments: 
A Portfolio of English-language Testing Options

The TOEFL® Family of Assessments: 
A Portfolio of English-language Testing Options

Over the last 16+ years, ETS’s TOEFL ® program had one four-skills English-language test offering a single mode of delivery that learners around the world could use for university study, work and immigration — the TOEFL iBT® test. This world-renowned, gold standard test has grown into the worlds most accepted and respected English-language test, accepted in over 11,500 institutions in 160 countries, and has been an important part of study-abroad journeys, university admissions processes, and classroom instruction for English-language learners, admissions representatives, and teachers around the world.

Over the past two years, ETS’s TOEFL® program has grown that single test into a portfolio of testing options.  Offering convenient test locations and delivery modes to cater to student and institutional needs around the globe. In addition, the TOEFL iBT® test experience has added numerous enhancements to provide test takers with an ideal test-taking experience.  

TOEFL iBT® test experience enhancements 

A few highlights showcasing ways in which the TOEFL iBT® test experience has been optimised include:

• Shorter Test: As of August 2019, the duration of the TOEFL iBT® test was reduced by 30 minutes to just three hours.  The overall format, question type and scoring structure remain unchanged — whilst maintaining the test’s best-in-class quality. 
• Instant Reading and Listening Scores: Test takers can review unofficial Reading and Listening scores as an early performance indicator before leaving the test session. 
• Quicker Retesting: Mandatory waiting time between tests was reduced to three days, with registration available online up to two days before a test administration.  
• MyBest® scores: Demonstrates test takers’ best overall performance by combining the highest section scores for all tests taken within a two-year period. With more and more institutions accepting MyBest® scores, this can help test-takers achieve their goals sooner, since they can meet institutions’ score requirements with fewer tests. MyBest® scores are automatically included on all TOEFL iBT® score reports.  

Additional TOEFL iBT® test offerings – TOEFL iBT® Home Edition + TOEFL iBT® Paper Edition

TOEFL iBT® Home Edition was born out of the pandemic, and its success and popularity amongst students has solidified its place in the TOEFL® portfolio. The test provides students around the globe with the option of taking the same TOEFL iBT® test — from content and format, to on-screen experience, scoring and pricing — from the comfort and safety of home. The test is a convenient option for test-takers who may prefer to test at a particular time, or in the event they experience issues with reserving an in-person test while capacity at test centers gradually reopens from pandemic-related closures. In addition, because the test is identical to the TOEFL iBT® test, it can be accepted by universities in the same way.  This test enjoys almost universal acceptance from universities worldwide. 

Most recently, the TOEFL® program announced the addition of TOEFL iBT® Paper Edition in the United States, India, Mexico and Colombia, with additional markets to be added over time. It is the same four-skills TOEFL iBT® test, just delivered in a different format over two sessions. 

In the first session, test takers will take the Reading, Listening and Writing sections on paper at an ETS-authorised test center, followed by the Speaking section in a separate, second session from the comfort of home, with an online human proctor, within three days. In addition to this, test-takers can send unlimited score reports free of charge, which will automatically include MyBest® scores.

With the addition of TOEFL iBT® Home Edition and TOEFL iBT® Paper Edition, there are now three ways to take the world renowned TOEFL iBT® test, each with its own unique advantages and features that put the test-taker in the driving seat to choose which test is most suitable for their testing style and preferences.

A convenient and accessible English-language test – the TOEFL® Essentials™ test

Alongside the flagship TOEFL iBT® test, the TOEFL® program also accelerated the timeline for the development of one of its newest products — the TOEFL® Essentials™ test — a versatile, at-home English-language test measuring foundational elements of English proficiency for communication in both academic and daily life contexts.  The first of its kind in the industry, it offers a unique combination of quality required by universities, coupled with the affordability, accessibility and friendly features that students value and need. The questions are fast-paced and dynamic, and the test features a multistage adaptive format that measures language proficiency efficiently, by matching test content to test takers’ ability.

The TOEFL® program is committed to keeping its stakeholders’ needs at the forefront of every decision, and the recent TOEFL iBT® test enhancements and addition of test options and offerings reflect this commitment. To learn more about the TOEFL® Family of Assessments, visit https://www.ets.org/toefl.