Okay, so here’s my report on changes to the TOEFL Bulletin between July 2021 and October 2021.
I’m only going to list substantive changes (and ones that make me chuckle). Most of these relate to the new Paper Edition of the test, of course.
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Page 5: The TOEFL iBT is now accepted at 11,500 institutions (up from 11,000)!
Page 5: Test centers are no longer described as “ETS approved.” They are now described as “authorized.” This one made me chuckle a lot.
Page 5: The Home Edition is now in China!
Page 5: The Paper Edition exists!
Page 6: Instructions for getting a large-print copy of the Bulletin from ETS Disability Services were removed. This makes me sad.
Page 7: The Bulletin no longer recommends contacting ProctorU by email or live chat if you have problems immediately before the test. Wise.
Page 10: You cannot register for the Paper Edition on the app.
Page 11: The Bulletin no longer recommends getting “the most current information” in the app. Now they just tell you to use the website. Smart.
Page 12: More paper edition stuff. I can’t really summarize it all here, but I’ve blogged on it here and there. But note that there is no score review process for the Paper Edition. This is interesting. I am not totally sure why that is.
Page 13: The “returned payment fee” is now listed in the chart. But I think the amount is the same.
Page 13: It now lists Australia, Canada, Colombia, Nigeria, Turkey and the United States as jurisdictions where taxes are added to the price of the test at checkout. That matches what I reported in August.
Page 13: Fee increase! We have a fee increase! There’s a fee increase over here! The “declined payment” fee has increased from $20 to $30.
Page 16: There is a reminder to check your equipment before taking the home edition.
Page 18: In India you can use your Aadhaar card. But damn it, someone needs to tell all the proctors about this change. I’ve gotten too many reports about it being rejected on test day.
Page 21: A bunch of new ID notes for Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, India, and the EU.
Page 27: Score cancellation stuff for the Paper Edition.
Page 27: Note that refunds are now provided in the currency you paid for the test in. Previously, refunds were in US dollars.
Page 29: Important change! Important change! Score reports are sent to recipients “within 11 business days.” Previously this was done “within 11 days – or sooner.”
Page 34: The bulletin now says that scores can be cancelled by ETS “when, in its sole judgement, there is substantial evidence that the score is invalid. Scores can be cancelled as a result of test taker behavior or irregularities that affect testing integrity.” Yeah.
Page 35: There is a line about how frequent reuse of testing devices and locations could cause score delays and cancellations… and your eligibility to take future exams.