How to Calculate TOEFL Test Scores

TOEFL test scores can be calculated in several simple steps.

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is an important test for foreign students wishing to study in the United States or at business schools internationally. However, in recent years, the scoring has changed drastically as the test has shifted from paper-based to computer-based to its current form as an Internet-based exam. Though the scoring can appear complicated, several simple steps can help you understand your score.

Instructions

1. Look at your section scores. The TOEFL is scored out of 120 points, with 30 points for each of the four sections (reading, listening, speaking and writing). Unlike other standardized tests, no points are subtracted for wrong answers; however, you will not earn points for these wrong answers. The majority of the questions in reading and listening will be multiple choice, with four possible responses. However, the drag-and-drop questions are exceptions to this pattern.

2. Examine your drag-and-drop responses. Drag-and-drop questions are scored differently than other TOEFL questions. For the summary questions with three blanks, three correct answers receive two points, two correct answers receive one point, and one or no correct answers receive zero points. For the table-completion questions, five correct answers on the shorter tables receive three points, four correct answers receive two points, and between zero and three correct answers receive zero points. Similarly, seven correct answers on the longer tables receive four points, six receive three points, five receive two points, and between zero and four receive zero points.

3. Calculate your raw score. The reading and listening sections are multiple choice, and the raw score will be equal to the number of questions answered correctly, with exceptions for the drag-and-drop questions. The speaking and writing sections are graded by human evaluators; the speaking is graded on a scale of zero to four and the essays between zero and five.

4. Convert your raw score to a scaled score. The Educational Testing Service (ETS), which administers the TOEFL, does not release the official conversion tables for changing raw scores into scaled scores. However, the scale is more or less proportional and can be roughly calculated without a table. Each section is scored out of 30; therefore, if the reading section had 40 questions and you answered 30 right, you can set up the proportion (30/40 = x/30; your score for this section would be 23, rounded up). Keep in mind that this is approximately what you would receive on test day; on the real test, there is an unscored experimental section, but you will not know which one this is.

References

• Educational Testing Service: TOEFL
• TOEFL Strategies: Course Book; Kaplan, Inc.; 2006