Should I take the IELTS or the TOEFL to study in the USA? It can be said that this is one of the questions many of you wonder and wonder about when you intend to study in the USA because an English certificate is one of the required admission requirements in your application. In the article below, we will discuss this issue, answer in detail when studying in the USA, what kind of English language certificate that colleges require.
What are IELTS and TOEFL certificates? How are they different?
Before going into the main issue that studying in the USA should take the IELTS or TOEFL, let’s find out what these two types of certificates are. In common, IELTS and TOEFL are both globally recognized English tests, often required by international students to study or work in English-speaking countries.
The differences between these two types of tests are as follows:
- IELTS (International English Language Testing System) is an international English language proficiency test founded by three organizations: ESOL (University of Cambridge), British Council and IDP (Australia). This certificate includes 4 skills: Listening – Speaking – Reading – Writing. This is the most popular and important test in the world. You can choose to take IELTS Academic or IELTS General.
- TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) is an English proficiency test organized by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). Exams for this type of certification can be taken on computer (TOEFL iBT) or taken directly on paper (TOEFL PBT).
Should I take the IELTS or the TOEFL to study in the USA?
After finding out what the above two types of certificates are, now comes the main question: Should I take the IELTS or the TOEFL to study in the USA? The answer is that you can study either of these two types of certificates because they are both accepted in schools in the US. However, in general terms, the TOEFL certificate is somewhat more appreciated, having the opportunity to win valuable scholarships. The reason is because the TOEFL certificate uses an American-English accent, while the IELTS uses a British-English accent when taking the test.
If in case you are still wondering whether to study IELTS or TOEFL, you can analyze some of the issues below to be able to make the best choice:
- Voiceover: English is currently divided into two accents, British English and American English, and as mentioned above, TOEFL uses American English and IELTS uses British English. In fact, there is not much difference between the two voices, but when taking the test with high difficulty, it will still be clearly distinguished. Therefore, based on your own speaking ability, which voice you find yourself stronger, choose that voice. However, perhaps because in the USA, American English is used, so you should also consider getting acquainted and learning American English accent by studying and taking the TOEFL.
- Self-efficacy: Normally, the TOEFL test is more about the ability to reason and imagine well through multiple-choice questions. IELTS requires the ability to remember the details in the test. Based on this feature, reflecting on your own ability, you can choose the most suitable because the ultimate goal is to get a certificate with a high score.
- Scoring: TOEFL requires thinking, so answers with strong, well-reasoned arguments will often be appreciated. And IELTS is somewhat more rigorous in grading.
Through the above factors, you can consider and compare with yourself to see which certificate will be more suitable. There is a need, firstly to ensure self-development, and secondly, to increase the rate of achieving a higher score for your certificate.
So, with the above information, you probably have the answer to the question of ‘Should I take the IELTS or the TOEFL to study in the USA?’, right? If you still have any questions that need to be answered, contact us, a team of consultants will assist you.
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