My PTE Experience

Hey Guys!! Hope you are finding my blog helpful and many of you are benefiting from it! Reading through the comments and feedback on this blog I thought of sharing my experience of the PTE Journey with you. I know, I know its already almost a year , but its never too late. So guys, here is my Story….

For me, it all started as a requirement for ENGLISH language competency for my profession as I come from India and my profession here requires a thorough assessment !! I had following test options available - IELTS, OET, PTE. I went through the details of each and sought guidance from friends and colleagues who had already gone through the procedure. Many said that IELTS was quite difficult to clear and the results were declared 2-3 weeks after your test. Most of them recommended PTE to me. I began searching for the PTE details on the internet. I realised that it was a computer based test and the results were out the very next day. This would help me apply for my registration sooner and start working! Hence I chose to give PTE  and began preparing for the same. I didn’t want to take coaching classes as they were quite expensive. So I searched on the internet for PTE materials to study by myself. But to my dismay, there was no much help! I had a lot of difficulty in writing Essays, Summarizing text, Speaking about the images, graphs, and rearranging text. I didn’t know what Essays to expect. I was disheartened but didn’t lose hope. I read through any kind of essay that was available on the internet and practised writing as well. I practised all the sections by preparing material myself and even answered a mock test based on that. Mock tests are paid test provided by PTE and can be answered online at home. I had scored well in all sections and this boosted my confidence. 
I booked my test date. 
The result was declared next day in the evening. I was devastated when I realised that I had scored well in all sections but had scored 58 IN SPEAKING!! I felt ashamed of myself as being from an English medium school, scoring less in speaking  was very much unexpected. The world began spinning around me and I thought I wouldn’t be able to pursue my career. I called my husband and asked him to come home from work immediately.
(He has been a big support in all paths of my life and its due to his encouragement and motivation that I have made this blog! Thanks a lot hubby.) We discussed what could have probably gone wrong in the speaking section. We even thought of applying for re-evaluation. But realised it wouldn’t be of much help since it was a computer based test, blunders were less likely to take place. During the discussion I realised that I may not have adjusted the mike properly as I was a bit nervous in the beginning of the test and panicked. 
VERY IMPORTANT TIP: Please adjust your mic really well so that your voice is loud and clear. Once you begin with the test there is a provision wherein you are asked to adjust your mike so that you are audible. If you have not done the adjustment well, only muffled voice is recorded and this can reduce your score drastically! So guys, please do pay attention to this part of the test. It is indeed a VERY IMPORTANT part of the test.
Furthermore, in the speaking section I clicked on the NEXT button before the time given for each question was over. I thought this would give me extra time in the next question. But this may not be true. 
IMPORTANT TIP: Please use the time given for each question completely. Do not hurry. I guess since I kept clicking the NEXT button my speech wasn’t recorded and I lost marks!! So guys be careful!!
After realizing my blunders, I thought of re-answering the test and make sure not to make the mistakes again. I booked a date for the test. I made sure of adjusting the mike and NOT clicking the NEXT button. When the result was declared the next day, I had again failed in the speaking section!! Now I didn’t know where I had gone wrong!! What could it possibly be? 
And again, my friend, my confidant, my hubby dearest came to my rescue. He set a timer ,showed me a graph and asked me to describe it as is done in the test. I did the same. And then it dawned upon us that I was talking too fast!! Since spoken English is different from that in other English speaking countries our pronunciation differs and sounds different when compared to them! So my hubby connected me to word to text application while describing the next image and I was shocked to see it translated completely different than what I was answering!  
IMPORTANT TIP: Guys while practising speech, try word to text application, easily available on internet! It does help a lot as you can understand your pronunciation mistakes and work on it. Speaking slowly helps as there is a pause in between words which makes the words sound clear.! So the mantra is “ Speak slow and loud”.
After this, I practised my speech and revised other sections as well for few weeks and set a test date. This time I scored 90 in ALL sections!! I immediately applied to the council and jumpstarted my career.  
So friends, what I learned from this experience was not to lose hope! Be persistent. I know how devastating it is to fail. I have failed too. But keep going, DO NOT GIVE UP. Learn from your past mistakes and improve yourself, success will be yours!

Let me know what you think about my story, I guess most people have a similar experience. Was yours any different?
Cheers!