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I just beat the TOEFL

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HenkVh Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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I just beat the TOEFL Post Wed Feb 23, 2011 5:03 am
I took my TOEFL test on the 11th of February and I received my score Monday 21st of February.

Although I had already practiced quite a lot with comprehensive reading for the GMAT (28V; 48%), I was quite anxious for the TOEFL reading part, because I didn't do very well in the GMAT. Therefore I bought the the Official TOEFL Prep Book.

My prep consisted of reading the entire booklet and preparing the Speaking and Listening parts. THe book is also available online so I don't recommend you to buy it. The most valuable information in the book was the test setup, but you can find this information elsewhere, so it is not really worth it.

To prepare for all the sections begin by reading the Economist, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times and go for in depth stories. This is the basis for the rest of your English, including listening and speaking.

By reading 'tough' material you increase your vocab and this comes in handy with all the other sections, therefore it is the fundamental skill you should practice. Try to get your hands on some old Economists and just read all of it. Start reading difficult stories this same moment. Just read some stuff every day for 1 hour a day or for as much time as you have.

Listening:

To practice the listening part start watching American movies, TV-shows, National Geographic, Discovery Channel etc. It is better to watch the latter because they have harder subjects and you'll again increase your vocab. It is also better because most TV-shows( like How I met your mother, Friends, 24 etc.) are very easy, and you'll understand most of the stuff without having to understand what is being said. Therefore you will not learn a whole lot by doing this. You can also try to follow some lectures that are on YouTube ( I know MIT and Yale have some lectures online). This is valuable practice material because you also get lectures during the TOEFL Test.
Once you have had enough practice, try to get your hands on some of the official listening material. It is fairly straightforward.

Speaking:

Just do it! Find some native English person and start conversing. Don't bother about the subjects at first, but just make sure that you can easily start a conversation just about anything. If you cannot find someone around you, look for someone you can talk to that has Skype. Once you are comfortable with speaking in English, you can start changing the subjects. Try to increase the level of difficulty as you progress: politics, environment, business, nano-science etc. etc.

Once you are comfortable with addressing different subjects and you have the idea that your vocabulary is sufficient, you can starting timing yourself.

Writing:

The most important thing for the writing portion of the TOEFL is that you know what layout you should go for:

Introduction
First paragraph
Second paragraph
Third paragraph
Conclusion

Make sure you use transitional phrases, this is probably the most important thing aspect, besides spelling/grammar and sentence setup.

Start reading asap and the rest will follow.

My score was 119/120

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DanaJ Site Admin
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Post Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:38 am
Wow, that's an awesome score! Congratulations!

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