In recent weeks, some people have been prompted to enter their ID number in order to download their TOEFL score report PDF. They get a screen that looks like this:
The user is prompted to “Enter your ID information to complete your request and ensure your data stays secure.” I can’t explain it. Apparently entering the information does not make it possible to download the PDF right away. Instead, they must enter the information and then wait a few hours. After that, the download button will appear and work as it is supposed to.
Anyway, this is really weird. Leave a comment if you are experiencing it, and maybe let me know what country you are in.
Students often ask how to download their TOEFL score report. Just remember that you have to wait one or two extra days to download the PDF file of your score report. For instance, if you get your TOEFL scores on January 10, you have to wait until January 11 or January 12 to download the PDF.
Meanwhile, if you have already waited, here is how to get the score report:
Quite a lot of reports on social media lately about TOEFL score reports without pictures. That’s weird. They are supposed to have pictures. But apparently a few things are worth keeping in mind:
Apparently, your score is valid, even if you don’t have a picture.
Universities generally don’t care about the picture.
If you reach out to TOEFL customer support they might be able to locate the picture and add it to your test results. If not, you might be offered a free re-test.
Let me know if you’ve been affected by this. I assume it mostly impacts people who take the test at home.
Here are two images that have inspired me to write, again, about bad UX in English testing. First up is a section of the monthly “Search Performance” that Google sends me. It indicates that the top growing search query sending traffic to my site in November was “score not available TOEFL.” The second is a Reddit post from a guy who is “a bit freaking out” because his TOEFL score is “not available.”
Google Search Performance
Score Not Available
So where’s the bad UX? Well…
When a test taker has just completed the at-home TOEFL and logs in to their account to check their scores, they’ll probably see a message like “status – checked in.” That’s a bit weird, since they are no longer checked in. But whatever.
A few days after that, when they log in the status will be updated to something like “Score Pending.” This is useful. “Pending” might not be the best verb for the audience at hand, but it makes sense.
A few days after that, when they log in, the status will have switched to “Score Not Available.” This is when some test takers start to panic. Little do they realize that this status is the normal interregnum state between “score pending” and the actual reporting of scores.
Good UX might involve eliminating all three statuses, and replacing them with something concise like “Scores will be available December 7, 2025.” Then again, I’m just a guy on the Internet who went to a test optional university. Maybe I’m missing something here.
A few additional notes:
This has been the state of things since the introduction of the at-home TOEFL in early 2020.
My three-year old blog post about this topic was viewed 1461 times in November. Semi-related blog posts scooped up a few hundred additional views. If my obscure WordPress blog attracted more than 1500 perplexed test takers in a single month, I shudder to imagine the time ETS spends on customer support contacts re: this issue.
The Internet horde, which never fails to amuse, discovered long ago that if they right-click and use “inspect element” on a certain part of the “not available” box they can sometimes see what looks to be their scores in some sort of json structure before the official delivery from ETS.
Another frequent question is “how do I download the PDF of my score report?!”. For that, test takers must wait an additional 24-48 hours after the scores are first reported. Only then does the download link appear in their account.
Here’s the PDF version of my TOEFL score report. Interestingly, the PDF file was available the same day my scores were. Traditionally, there has been a 24-48 hour delay on the PDF file.
The overall score for my test was 119 out of 120 points. Let me know if you have any questions about how I responded to the speaking and writing tasks.
When I return home in a few weeks I’ll share the paper version. I believe that will be mailed from the hub in Seoul.
Yes. Unofficial TOEFL scores sometimes change when official scores are reported.
I’ve had some reports from TOEFL test-takers that their “official” reading and listening scores are different from the “unofficial” scores seen at the end of their test. I don’t know why this occurs, but it does. Perhaps score equating (for new test forms) is being done some days later due to the removal of unscored R and L questions.
If you have experienced this, please leave a comment below. If you haven’t experienced this, leave a comment as well!
TOEFL test-takers now receive much more detailed score reports than before. In addition to their scaled reading and listening scores, they’ll see that they are either “developing” or “demonstrating” in several categories of questions. They’ll get the same sort of feedback for “delivery,” “language use” and “topic development” for each of the four speaking tasks and for “grammar,” “usage,” “mechanics” and “organization and development” for the two writing tasks.
This data will be provided for tests taken moving forward (and retroactively for tests taken after October 28). I’ll see if I can get some screenshots in the next day or two.
Note that all of this is provided via the test-taker’s account on the ETS website. The PDF score report remains unchanged.
I’ve been advocating for this sort of change since the last time the score reports were changed (back in 2019), so I’m happy today. Actually, I wrote a few days ago about my displeasure with the movement toward test scores that are somewhat opaque. I think it is wonderful that TOEFL test-takers will now have a better idea of where their scores have come from and how the various items on the test have impacted their final results.
I read on the ETS Naver blog that express shipping of TOEFL score reports has been expanded to countries across Europe, the Middle East and the Americas. For a fee of $25, test-takers can get their paper score report in 2-3 days (more or less) with some kind of tracking. Reports sent via the regular mail are still free. This option can be selected during the registration process.
Note that for reports requested after the test is completed, the total fee is $45 for express mail and $20 for regular mail.
This is really great news because, inexplicably, a lot of people still need official paper score reports (and they generally need ’em RIGHT NOW). I don’t understand why that is the case in 2023, but the issue is raised quite often by test-takers I communicate with. Moreover, it seems like many young people nowadays don’t really grasp how the “regular mail” works and get frustrated when told that their score reports will arrive whenever their local letter carrier decides to swing by their place.
Students often ask me how long it takes for score recipients to get their TOEFL scores. The answer is that it takes eleven days for recipients to get the scores. You can find this information buried deep in the TOEFL Bulletin for 2023. Here ya go:
“Official score reports for the TOEFL iBT test will be sent to your designated recipients within 11 business days after your test (15 days for the TOEFL iBT Paper Edition). It could be sooner, depending on what score delivery method each specific institution uses. “
The scores are sent electronically, so this means the institutions should have them eleven days after you take the test. ETS does not provide confirmation that the scores have been properly received, but you can call the admissions department of your school to confirm if necessary.
Of course if you have chosen paper score reports this could take a lot longer. ETS says:
However, if we mail the score report, keep in mind that ETS has no control over mail delivery to various locations around the world. Allow another 7–10 days for mail delivery in the U.S., and 4–6 weeks for mail delivery to other locations. For information specific to your postal system, contact your post office for an estimated arrival time for mail from the U.S.
How Long Until Scores Appear in your ETS Account
In case you are wondering, scores appear in your ETS account 4-8 days after you take the test. The PDF score report can be downloaded two days after that.
Hey, ETS finally published the 2022 version of the “Score Reporting Dates” PDF that indicates when your scores will be reported (only from the test center version of the test). Click here for the PDF.
Students often ask me why their TOEFL scores were canceled, and how they can reinstate them. Here’s what you need to know.
When your scores are cancelled, you’ll see something like “Scores Canceled” in your ETS account. It will look like this:
There are several possible causes .
(Note that this is different from scores being “on hold” or “in administrative review.” If that is your problem, read this blog post)
Scores Canceled Accidentally
Sometimes, scores are canceled because the test-taker accidentally clicked the “do not report scores” button at the end of the test. This sounds silly, but I hear about it every week. Seriously. Scores will not be sent to score recipients if they are cancelled, of course.
If you accidentally canceled your scores you can pay $20 to reinstate them via your account on the TOEFL website. It might take up to three weeks for your scores to be reinstated (source).
Scores Canceled Because of Inappropriate Test-Taker Behavior
If you do something inappropriate during the test your scores will be cancelled. You will probably not be given the chance to appeal, and I have never heard of this decision being reversed. Rule violations might include touching your phone during the test (or break), running some inappropriate software in the background (see below), talking to someone, wearing jewelry, or even looking away from the screen too long. You’d better follow the rules.
Sometimes, ETS detects inappropriate software running on your computer during the test. Such software includes Microsoft Teams, Skype, Discord, Google Drive, Zoom… and many more. This is common on computers borrowed from an employer.
Sometimes, your scores will be canceled because the ETS Office of Testing Integrity thinks your scores are not valid for statistical reasons. There are a few reasons I’ve seen:
There is a big difference in your performance on the scored questions vs the unscored questions in the reading or listening section. This is called “inconsistent variable performance” by ETS.
There is a big difference in your performance in one of the sections vs one of the other sections. This is called a “section score inconsistency” by ETS.
Your overall score increased dramatically between attempts.
There is something inconsistent about your use of time on the test (you got a high score in a section even though you finished it way too quickly).
Usually more than one of these things needs to be detected at the same time to cause scores to be canceled.
If you took the test outside of the United States your scores will be cancelled and there will be no appeal. You will not be given a refund. This is a new policy.
If you took the test in the United States you can appeal the decision in this way:
Request a copy of the “Score Review Summary” for your test. Use those exact words. This document will summarize the statistical evidence against you.
You should ask ETS to assign an arbitrator from the American Arbitration Association to help with your case. Use those exact words. This person will help you challenge the case free of charge. Note that this will probably make it impossible to take legal action against ETS in the future.
Feel free to contact me for assistance after you have requested the score review summary. I will help you free of charge.
ETS often cancels scores if they detect plagiarism in the writing and speaking sections. Maybe they have a database of sample answers from the Internet, including the sample ones on this website. It seems like ETS has some software called “AutoESD” that determines if essays are copied. If ETS feels that you plagiarized your test will be cancelled and you will not get a refund. You cannot appeal.
The e-mail from ETS will look something like this:
I am writing to advise that the test scores issued in your name for August 21, 2022 have been canceled. In the quality control process, the ETS Writing staff noticed that your response(s) to the integrated/independent Writing task did not reflect a response to the assigned task. This was noticeable since the responses for which you receive a score should be your own original and independent work. Further reviews determined that a portion of your Writing response(s) contains ideas, language and/or examples found in other test taker responses or from published sources.
Strange little footnote on the ETS website: “Currently, MyBest scores for the TOEFL iBT Paper Edition includes only Paper Edition scores. They are not combined with scores from Home Edition or the TOEFL iBT tests taken at a test center.”
