PTE Academic: Strategies & Test Hacks

Learn the general grading rules for describe image tasks, and how pronunciation and oral fluency are scored from zero to five, detailing element coverage, interrelations, implications, and intelligibility.

Skim the text for 40 seconds, mark pauses at commas and full stops, stress main subjects, adjectives, and adverbs, then use rising and falling intonation to convey contrast.

Learn to perform the read aloud sample task by identifying commas, pauses, emphasis, and contrast sentences, using rising and falling intonation and read aloud twice, before and after the microphone.

Master repeat sentence skills by using strategic pauses and two-part chunking to memorize and repeat phrases with correct emphasis, boosting oral fluency for PTE Academic.

Master describe image tasks in PTE Academic by understanding the long-answer speaking format, timing, and note-taking strategies to describe graphs, charts, maps, pictures, or tables.

Learn image description strategies for PTE Academic: describe graphs with units and highs and lows, maps with places, pies with percentages, and processes with steps, highlighting main trends and patterns.

Analyze a bar chart by identifying its type and what it measures. Note high and low features, and Japanese elderly share rising from 16% in 2020 to 30% in 2040.

Describe a line graph sample by identifying the graph, its measurement, high and low features, and a conclusion, focusing on online gamers worldwide from 2000 to 2004 in millions.

Describe a map showing rainfall probability across Australia from August to October, identifying blue and brown areas, 85% coastal rain versus 15–45% inland, and conclude coasts receive more rain.

Practice retelling a short academic lecture by paraphrasing the main points within 40 seconds, while listening to three or four lectures of 60–90 seconds in the PTE exam.

Explore retell lecture grading in PTE Academic: strategies and test hacks, focusing on listening and speaking, pronunciation, and oral fluency, with a five-point scale detailing significance and conclusions.

Use the lecture image to gain context and identify the main idea and key points. Take notes on keywords—numbers, dates, times—and practice abbreviations; speak a 40-second, fluent summary without pauses.

shows how Frank Gehry moved from modernist rectilinearity to sculptural, curved architecture, enabled by computer visualization, culminating in the Guggenheim Bilbao as a key example.

Demonstrates how to note biology and mathematics as intertwined topics, cites DNA and viruses, neuroscience, and hallucinogenic drug effects, then retell clearly within 40 seconds in a coherent response.

Master crafting a single-sentence summary of a 200–300 word passage using linking words and punctuation, with a 50–75 word target, for two to three passages in 10 minutes.

Explore how the written text is graded, covering content points worth 0–2, form worth 0–1 for a single sentence, grammar 0–2, and vocabulary 0–2, totaling seven points.

Identify the main idea of each paragraph, distinguish main points from evidence, summarize each paragraph in a few words, and combine them into a concise single sentence using linking words.

Identify the main subject and omit supporting details to craft a concise summary. The passage defines a dowry, discusses identifying new subjects by paragraph, and notes ongoing use in some cultures.

Identify the subject at the start and omit details. Explain the difference between Internet and World Wide Web, and why hyperlinks and a user-friendly interface make the web useful.

Explore how to tackle PTE essay tasks by identifying essay types: opinion, specific question, and advantages/disadvantages, then plan with outlines, linking words, and strong conclusions to maximize scores.

Master the opinion essay structure: craft a three-part introduction with background, issue, and thesis statement; build two body paragraphs with reasons, examples, and results; conclude with your final opinion.