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What is a good TOEFL score?

What is a good TOEFL score? My TOEFL students ask me that question all time, and I always reply, "What score do you need?"

For example, let's say you want to apply to Yale or Princeton or Colombia. These are top schools. The best. That means you need to get the highest TOEFL iBT (not PBT!) score possible. The rule with these schools is the higher, the better. 100/120 at least. Why? Because you're not just competing against Americans. You're competing against the world. And remember: Your TOEFL score is only one part of your admissions package. For these schools, you must be the best in your class - your country! You must also demonstrate leadership or some other special talent that separates you from everybody else. To get into these schools, perfect grades and a perfect TOEFL score are not enough. What makes you special? That is what Yale and Princeton and M.I.T. want to know.

Note: Harvard does not require a TOEFL score. Submitting one is optional (read Harvard's TOEFL policy). Why? Good question. I guess Harvard figures if they let you in, you're pretty much a genius and already speak fluent English - and a couple of other languages - so why test your English. Note: As a university, Harvard is often ranked #1 in the world, right up there with Cambridge and Yale.

Okay, so you don't want to go to Yale. You want to go to a regular school. In that case, before you take the TOEFL iBT, contact the school and find out what TOEFL score you need, then aim for it. For example, if you need 79/120, and you score 79/120 on the TOEFL test, 79 is a good score. If you need 90/120, and you score 90/120 on the TOEFL test, 90 is a good score. However, if you only score 82/120...? Not so good.

As you can see, a good TOEFL score is the score you need. Don't stress out thinking, "I want 100! I want 100!" if you only need 79. You're not trying to impress your friends (though scoring 100 would be totally cool!) You are trying to get into an English-speaking school or trying to get a professional license, whatever the case may be.

Remember: "Wanting" is different from "needing." A good TOEFL score is not the score you want. It is the score you need.

Remember: Before you take the TOEFL test, contact the school(s) or licensing agency you are applying to and find out what TOEFL score they require.

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- She Knows the Score -

   

© Bruce Stirling 2010-11

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Sample Independent Essay #2 - Find the Mistakes

The independent essay below has 15 mistakes in grammar and spelling. Can you find them?

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What is telecommuting? Telecommuting means you can work from home while been connected to your office by the internet. Personally, I prefer work from home. Working from home has many advantages, such as more privacy, fewer stress and seeing my children more.

First, telecommuting gives me more privacy. For example, at work I have a cubicle is really noisy because people are always taking and using the copy machine. Also, people are always stopping and saying hello to me. This is not good because it wastes a lot of time. It also makes it hard for me to finish my work. But if I work from home, nobody bothers me and I finish my work without interruption this is an advantage of telecommuting.

Also, with telecommuting there is less stress. When I go to work, I must get up early and drive, it takes an hour and the traffic is always bad. If is an accident, I get to work late. That means I have to stay late to finish my assignments. But if I work from home, I don’t have to worry about getting up early or about traffic or being late for work this is another big advantage of telecommuting.

Finally, working from home let's me see my children more. My children are very young, only seven and eight. I drop them in day care when I go to work but when I work from home, I can look after them. This really saves me money. Also, I can spend more time with my children. This makes us all very happy. This is the best advantage of telecommuting.

Suffice, telecommuting has a myriad of advantages. Dont you wish you could just fallen out of bed and go to work in your pagamas?


check your answers

_________________________________________________ © Bruce Stirling 2011

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