Month: October 2024

IDP Holds Annual General Meeting, Shares Drop

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IDP Education held its annual general meeting yesterday.  Shares slid 7.44% in response.  Here’s a PDF summary provided by IDP.  Most of the news is old news, previously shared in the annual report published a little while ago.

If you are curious, the precise number of IELTS tests delivered by IDP in FY2024 was 1,584,100, a decline of 18% compared to FY2023.  They report 3.98 million IELTS tests being taken in total.  That seems a bit high, but perhaps the British Council is doing better than I imagine.

Nothing is mentioned in the presentation file about IDP’s plans for direct testing in China, which I am really bullish on.  I think they represent a really fantastic opportunity for IDP and will make life easier for learners in China.  I’ll write more on that topic later, I suppose.

I Will Take the PTE Core Test!

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This Wednesday I’ll take Pearson’s PTE Core Test.  Let me know if there is anything I should keep an eye out for, or if there is anything specific you want to know about the test.

As most readers probably know, PTE Core is a fairly new test (booking opened in January of this year) and is accepted by the Canadian government for permanent residency and citizenship applications.  It is not currently used for any other purposes.

Since the test is outside of my usual wheelhouse of testing for academic admissions, I’m not particularly knowledgeable regarding its structure and item types.  As far as I know, it’s a three-part test, taking just under two hours to complete. Befitting its intended use, the test focuses on general rather than academic tasks.  And like other Pearson products, it seems to contain numerous and varied short tasks, rather than a small number of long tasks.  Tomorrow I’ll dig into some of the practice materials.

According to the test’s website, scores from the test have been mapped to CLB levels 3 through 10.  Scoring is done by AI.

Since the test is used exclusively for immigration purposes, it can only be taken at test centers.  There are two test centers in Seoul offering the test, and one in Busan. I’m happy to have a good reason to go into the city, as in my daily life I rarely venture further afield than the magazine rack at the Doksan Public Library.

My thanks to Pearson for providing a test voucher.

Which Tests do Students Use for UK Visas?

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The PIE News has some useful numbers regarding which tests were used by students entering the UK for studies in the 23/24 enrollment cycle.  The numbers come from Enroly, which apparently processes a third of all international student applications for the UK.

It reports that about 65% of students took an English to show they met the language requirements for a student visa.

About 34 percent of students used an IELTS score to meet those requirements.  About 8 percent used a PTE score.  About 10 percent used a score from one of the other SELT tests.  About 13 percent used a score from a non-SELT test.

TOEFL and Duolingo are the biggest non-SELT tests, but there are others.

TOEFL Partners with United Airlines

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ETS has partnered with United Airlines in Taiwan. TOEFL test takers who upload a score report can win airplane tickets. The report must be from a test taken in Taiwan sometime after January 1 of this year. Fun partnerships like this one give me joy.  I’m reminded of the small discount for ISIC card holders.  These small partnerships aren’t going to increase test volumes very much, but they make tests feel a bit more vibrant and alive.

New TOEFL Integrated Writing Practice Question

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No clients to write for at the moment, so I finally have a moment to produce my own material. Here’s a new TOEFL integrated writing practice question.

It’s about banning CFL light bulbs. The topic represents an effort to make questions that are more tedious and obscure than what test takers usually find in practice materials. As it is a first draft, let me know if you spot any typos or unclear phrases.

I realize now that I must stop writing so many lecture “paragraphs” that begin with some variation on “as for the argument about xxxxx.”

According to the pile of post-it notes on my desk, next up is a question about whether or not a certain ring belonged to Caligula. Apparently I read an article about that topic earlier this year.

GRE Coupon and Promotional Codes for 2025

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Here’s the GRE Coupon tracker!  I’ve also got a TOEFL coupon tracker.

Update:  Try the code DREAMBIG25 to save $55 on your registration.  Today is January 5, 2025 and the code works.  I don’t know when it will stop working.

Update:  According to Internet scuttlebut, the code GREBF24 will be activated November 29 and offer a $70 discount in the USA and Canada.

Update:  According to ETS’s instagram channel, the code IDA40 will get you a $40 discount.  Must be used before September 30, 2024 I think.

Update:  An e-mailer today (August 29, 2024) noted that the code  STEM2024 got her a $33 discount!

Update:  The code TAKE2 will probably get you a $60 discount.  I don’t know the validity period.

Update:  The code CC25A or CC25T should get you a Rs.4777 discount (maybe more) in India.  I don’t know the validity period.

Update:  Someone else got an email from ETS which suggested that the code COMEBACK-70 would give them a $70 discount.  Again, registration must be completed by July 4, 2024.

Update:  According to an email I just got from ETS, the code COMEBACK60 is good for a $60 discount.  Registration must be completed by July 7, 2024 (the test can be after that date, of course).

Update:  Try the code GRESUMMER60 to get a $60 discount.  It may not work in every country, but should certainly work in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.  Today is June 26, 2024.

Update:  The code GREBUS50 will get you a $50 discount on GRE registrations completed before July 31 of 2024.  Details here.

Update:  According to people all over social media, the code COMEBACK70 will get you a $70 discount on GRE registrations.  Today is April 28, 2024 and it works.

Update:  ETS emailed me today (March 23) to tell me that CC24 is still good for an INR 1000 discount.  India only, obviously.

Update:  ETS launched a new Instagram campaign with some discount codes.  Check the descriptions of the following videos for the codes:  here, here and here.  Complete the registration before March 15.

Update: ETS just announced on social media that the code NEW2024 is good for a $50 discount on registrations for test dates before April 30 of this year.  I am not sure when the code expires.  Test-takers in India should probably use INDNY24 or BI2024 to get a discount of ₹ 4000.

Update: My man John Healy went to the big ETS event in Italy this month and got the coupon code ITALYGRE23 which is good for a $30 discount in Italy only.  It must be used before December 31.  Smart people might try changing the country name to discover discounts for other places.

Update: The code GREBF23 is good for $75 off registrations (USA and Canada only) before March 31 of next year. That’s the best deal on the test I’ve ever seen.  The code will work until November 27, apparently.  Worth trying a day or two after, though.  It’s a GRE Black Friday sale!

Update: I got an email from ETS India that says the code CC24 is good for a discount of INR 1000.  Only in India, obviously.

Update: The code GRE4LAW will give you a $60 discount on test dates before December 31, 2023. More details over here.  Someone on Reddit asked ETS and, yes, this can also be used by people not going to law school. 🙂

Update:  According to the social media accounts of ETS Global, the code GRE602023 will get you a $60 discount if you register for a test date before September 20.  People in India should use INDTEST2023 instead.

Update: I think the SOCL20 code ($20 discount) has been extended until the end of April.  Leave a comment if it works for you.

Update: Get a $20 discount on the GRE by using the code SOCL20.  This one is valid until March 31, 2023.  I got it from the ETS social media accounts.  It worked for me when I tested it today (March 23).

According to social media, you can use the coupon code NEWYEAR50 to get a $50 discount on the GRE General Test.  I don’t have a terms and conditions link, but I think registration must be completed before January 31, 2023.  The test must be taken in:  Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Ghana, Guam, India, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Puerto Rico, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, or the United States.  I tested this with a registration for a test center in the USA and received the discount.

Let me know with a comment down below if it works for you.

GRE coupons don’t come up very often, but I will update this page if I find any more.  Bookmark it and come back later.  And, of course, please share any active codes you locate.  Note that I also track TOEFL coupon codes, which are pretty common.

Immigration Agencies in Punjab

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Below are a few photos taken the immigration hub across the street from Khalsa College in Amritsar (click for bigger versions).  The hub consists of a couple of city blocks consisting almost entirely of immigration consultancies.  Signs advertising the same can also be found in the adjacent residential area.  As you can see, PTE and IELTS dominate the market.

I’m really digging the stairway ads.  And the hand painted signs on brick have a certain beauty to them.

I spotted a couple of Duolingo signs, and one CELPIP sign.  I could not find any references to the TOEFL test at the hub, but did spot one from the window of my Uber about halfway back to my hotel in the center of town.

A mission for my next visit to India:  understanding how these storefront operations fit into the agent/sub-agent/sub-sub-agent/sub-sub-sub-agent pipeline.

I did not dine on “Canadian Pizza.”

Testing is Fun!

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So I sat down at a tea stand in Amritsar to drink tea and read The New Yorker (as one does).  I looked up and across the street spotted a big ol’ “go to Canada” consultancy.  What are the odds?  Pretty good, actually, as there are whole city blocks filled with almost nothing but such offices (more on that later).

There is more. When I turned the page in my magazine I found a long profile of Luis von Ahn, which included quick references to both the TOEFL and  DET tests.  What are the odds of both of these things happening?  I do not know.

I mention these things for a reason. Starting around 2018 I was pretty burned out on English testing.  It was boring and the monopolies seemed like they would never go away.  But these days there is a lot to get excited about.  Tests get referenced in the magazine I read to make myself look smart, but that’s not all.  TOEFL is coming to Broadway.  There are a bunch of small and medium-sized tests to explore and learn about.  Very important English broadsheets are digging into the HOELT.  Legacy testing firms are being forced to change, and to do better.

I’m having a good time.  Testing is fun again.

TOEFL Website Overhaul

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The TOEFL website was just overhauled!  There is a new registration portal that looks like this:


The date of birth error I mentioned a couple of days ago has been corrected.

Also, the rest of the website has been reorganized with an improved navigation system.  There is still too much stuff on the site, but it really does seem easier to navigate than before. 

A notable addition is a listing of TOEFL “strategic advisors” from around the world. Basically, ETS now provides the name and email address of an ETS staffer in each country who can provide “personalized guidance and support” when test takers experience issues. I’ve been doing that for free since 2012, so I’m pretty happy to see this update.  I have already begun referring people (almost every day) to their local advisor.

Prometric Prepping for Sale?

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I read this report that Prometric might be for sale. Prometric does a lot of things related to English testing; it operates test centers around the world, remotely proctors the “OET@Home,” and owns both the CAEL and CELPIP tests.

Regular readers know that Prometric was owned by ETS from 2007 to 2018. It was sold by ETS for about one billion dollars to Baring Private Equity, now a part of Swedish firm EQT.

Skills for English Partners Meet

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I had the honor of speaking at the Skills for English Partners meet in Chandigarh a couple of days ago.  My congratulations go out to Prakash Upadhyay and Mazhar Hussain and Lesinda Leightley for their deft organizational skills, and my sincere thanks go out to them for inviting me to take part.

I spoke a bit about what I like about the Skills for English test, which I’ve touched on here before.  I did my best to highlight the value of consumer choice and competition.  Namely that it helps test-takers find a test that makes it possible for them to best demonstrate their competencies in a way that being forced in a one-size test fits all test does not, that it helps test takers to avoid traveling long distances and missing out on wages to take a test… and that, overall, it forces test companies to do better. Given the coming of the HOELT, this is worth dwelling on.

In the limited time I had, I did my best to emphasize that (despite everything) we are in very exciting times when it comes to this sort of testing, and there are many opportunities for firms and individuals.  Here’s an interesting thing:  I’ve been writing the same nonsense for a decade, but for the first eight years the audience was like ten nerdy teachers (or maybe just John Healy hitting “refresh” ten times).  In the past couple of years, though, many sorts of people have reached out to learn more about the industry or to hit me up for free information – AI dreamers who think they have the next big thing, people in the press who have noticed English tests for the first time in ages, investment firms that want to get in on the action… all sorts of people  (And little do they know that if they schedule a 30 minute Zoom chat about tests, I’m gonna keep them on the call for a minimum of 90 minutes).

I’ll post my speaking script here at some point.

Anyway, a few notes about the evening:

  1. This was the beginning of my education into the B2B world of testing in India.  Those of us in tests who don’t really deal much with the Indian market sometimes fail to understand the importance of B2B relationships between test makers and their partners.  Those relationships play a huge role in the rise and fall of tests.  They are so essential, in a way that many of us are only vaguely aware.  Go to India and take plenty of notes, I say!
  2. Skills for English is mostly taken by individuals headed to the UK, but given the location of the event I had to ask about Canada.  The reports are true – interest in Canada has dropped dramatically among young people in Punjab. Educational consultancies have seen that part of their business decline significantly. Obviously the unsubtle messaging coming out of IRCC is having an impact, but so are reports about the high cost of living and how difficult it is to find employment.  More people will head to the USA, or course.  But European schools will also find themselves with more applicants.  And other people will simply choose to study at domestic universities.
  3. Test Prep is so important.  So you want people to take your test?  Or to be more precise: do you want B2B partners to promote your test to students?  Give them some darn test prep.  Don’t forget to provide it in print form.
  4. There is an enormous interest in choice when it comes to testing.  You know, the tests all work.  They are all valid.  You could bring back the 1964 TOEFL, update the vocabulary choices and it would still be valid.  But they all have unique strengths and weaknesses.  And as I have spent the last decade repeating ad nauseam, they differ in terms of respect for their customers.

TOEFL Date of Birth Error

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The new TOEFL website has reset the birthdays of many (all?) users to January 1, 1970.  This cannot be fixed by the users.   You can see the error by accessing the “Profile Information & Preferences” screen in your user account.

Update:  ETS has told me that this is an UI error, and that the proper birthdate is stored in their system.  It should not cause any problems on test day.