The Occupational English Test (OET) is a language test
designed to gauge the proficiency in English language in the four aspects
reading, listening, writing and speaking. The oet is designed to cater to
medical and allied fields only, the test uses medical information and scenarios
to assess candidate’s language.
English language competency is a requirement for
International Medical graduates planning to work in most of the English-speaking
countries, including Irish medical council, GMC UK and now for the USA too in the
usmle pathway.
Earlier, available option for English language
exam was the IELTS, the main difference between OET and ILETS lies in the
format, the ILETS is designed to assess general english while the OET tests the
English language skills required in medical workplace. Henceforth, most of the
candidates find the oet format easier and familiar.
Score requirement:
Most of the regulators require B grade minimum in all
components of the test, also all components must be from the same sitting. The
validity of OET is 2 years.
Availability:
OET is available worldwide with the facility of exam from
home too in some countries, in Pakistan there are centers in three cities
Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi.
Two options are available, OET on paper and OET on computer
(depending upon the centers, oet from home is not available in Pakistan as of
12/21)
OET Exam dates in Pakistan:
The exam has to be booked earlier, you can see the available
dates and slots after making an account on the OET website, so plan your preparation
and exams/ licensing applications as per the timeline of oet slots and result declaration.
OET Fee IN Pakistan:
The OET test cost is AUD 587 / USD $455 ~ PKR 130,000 (at exchange rate USD to pkr 1:284), the fee can be paid online
via debit/credit card, which also add up further charges.
Result:
OET declares result in around 16
business days ~ almost 3 weeks. You will receive email about result declaration
and can download the statement of result, including details of marks scored in
each component. After the result declaration you also have to allow access on the oet portal, to
relevant boards e.g. GMC Uk to access your result directly from OET.
How to apply for the oet exam:
Go to the official OET website occupationalenglishtest.org, head over to book
a test, on top right corner of the page, here you will be taken to oet account
creation.
You will need a digital photo with white
background.
Your National identity card /
Passport
Credit/ debit card for fee payment.
Create your account, taking care to
write your exact name and I.D details.
Once your account is created, you can
book your test, by selecting the centre and the desired day based on availability.
How to prepare for the exam:
As already mentioned the oet exam is
based on the health care settings, so the exam will appear familiar to most health
care professionals e.g. doctors, nurses and allied health staff as the exam is designed according to their work.
Another thing to clarify is the exam
will test your language, not your medical knowledge.
All you need to do is practice, to be
familiar with the exam which can be easily done along-with your job, though
some people proceed to coaching centers, this depends on your personal approach.
Listening :
The listening component will assess
your skills not only the spoken words but also the gist or ideas being discussed
in the conversation. The audio includes medical literature discussion, clinic
encounters with patients, conversations between colleagues etc, and you will be
required to listen as well as write down the responses to questions handed out
to you in the 45-minute test.
Reading :
The reading test has 3 sections, the first one is the skimming or fast reading, assessing how quickly you can extract the
required information. Second part may have hospital communication and medical
information text manuals etc, this section requires you to read the provided text and answer
the accompanying section. The third part contains 2 longer extracts e.g.
research articles followed by questions assessing your ability to understand
the text and the ideas or theme under discussion.
Writing:
The writing task consists of writing
a letter based on the information provided e.g. writing a letter to a
specialist to takeover care of your patient, you will be provided with the patient
notes and details on who you are writing too. The letter should consist of around
200 words.
Speaking:
In this part you will have 2 patient
related scenarios 5 minutes each, the interlocutor will take the role of a
patient or attendant and you will take the role of a doctor, you both will be provided
with cards having details about the
settings and the reason for consultation and the things which needs to
addressed during the consultation (You don’t require any prior medical knowledge,
the information is provided on the cards & the test only assesses your language
skills). There is a 3-minute warm-up session which is not marked, followed by
the 2 role plays. The audio of the encounters are recorded and marking is done
based on the audio, the interlocutor is just there for role-play.
Read more on Oet assessment criteria speaking
OET free preparation resources download {coming soon}
For preparation, the resources
recommended are:
- 1.
The official OET
sample papers - 2.
Join the OET
social media pages they regularly have preparation sessions led by oet
instructors. - 3.
The oet official preparation
books available online - 4.
For writing, you
can get your letters checked by online services e.g. benchmark etc which
provide feedback and sections which need improvement - 5.
YouTube has tons
of videos from orientation to oet to specifics e.g. writing etc which can be
helpful if you have limited time.
6.
For speaking its
best to first to practice role plays with your friends etc.
The important take home message is to
be familiar with the format, criteria and theme of the exam, take help from the
official resources e.g. the oet practice book (available for each component is
a must) it contains sample tasks with explanation, what aspects are tested etc.
If you need further personalized assistance head over to the contact us page.