On the test Day

#1: Get Enough Sleep and Eat Breakfast

In truth, test-day tips start the night before test day! To get a good TOEFL score, you must first and foremost take care of yourself. This means you should be getting a full night’s rest before test day—not pulling an all-nighter or packing for hours on end. What’s most important is that you rest your brain and avoid wearing yourself out.

eating a healthy, filling breakfast is very important for your body. Nervousness can make you loose your appetite, but in the end you’ll feel worse if you don’t eat at all because the TOEFL is around four hours long (with only one 10-minute break) and food and drinks aren’t allowed in the testing room, try to fill yourself with pumped up energy beforehand!

#2: Get Used to Noise

As I mentioned previously, the testing room can get loud, especially if many test takers reach the Speaking section at the same time. Therefore, as you study, try to prepare for the TOEFL in similarly loud environments.

I suggest going to a cafe, mall, or park and working through TOEFL practice questions on your computer. Focus on tuning out the noise as you listen to audio clips and answer Speaking prompts aloud. The more easily you can ignore background noise, the better you’ll do on test day!

#3: Pack Lightly

You won’t need much on test day, so try to pack as lightly as possible. After all, the fewer things you have to keep track of, the more you can focus on getting a high TOEFL score!

On test day, you MUST bring:

Two forms of ID

Your registration confirmation

Other things you might want to bring include:

Your wallet or purse

Your cell phone

Glasses (if you wear them)

A sweater or jacket

Any medications you need

You shouldn’t need to bring anything else on test day. As a reminder, you don’t need to bring pencils or paper, as a TCA will give you these at the test centre.

#4: Use the Process of Elimination

If you get to a Reading or Listening question you don’t understand, don’t guess before trying to use the process of elimination.

Here’s how the process works: instead of looking for the correct answer choice, you’ll look for the wrong answer choices. The more incorrect choices you can eliminate, the higher chance you’ll have of selecting the correct answer.

Wrong answer choices can be tough to find but will usually:

State the opposite of the passage or audio clip

Refer to something not discussed in the passage or audio clip

Mention something irrelevant to the passage or audio clip

Body taking notes computer

On the Test Day:

Before the test:

At the test centre, you’ll check in for the TOEFL with two forms of ID and your registration confirmation. You’ll then sign a confidentiality agreement (a document saying you will not speak about the test to other people) and complete a security check.

Only your ID is allowed in the testing room, so you’ll need to put your personal belongings, such as a purse, watch, or cell phone, in either a storage space or a plastic bag under your chair (you’ll only do this if storage space is unavailable). Sometimes, certain accessories or pieces of clothing, such as hats, scarves, and jewellery, are not allowed in the testing room. In these cases, you must store the item with your other belongings.

A test centre administrator (TCA) will take your photograph. This photograph will appear on your computer at your assigned seat in the testing room and later your official TOEFL score report. The TCA will also give you pencils and scratch paper as well as headphones and a microphone to use for the Listening, Speaking, and Writing sections.

Once at your assigned seat, you’ll confirm your identity on your computer (your photograph should appear on-screen) and then begin the test.

During the test:

There will be a digital timer for each section of the test. You’ll get instructions for each section and reminders to put on your headphones for listening- and speaking-oriented questions. (You may also simply wear your headphones throughout the test.)

You should expect the testing room to be somewhat noisy. Since other test takers may reach the Speaking section at the same time, you’ll likely hear talking during the test.

If you have a question or problem, raise your hand, and a TCA will come over to help you. For example, if you run out of scratch paper, you may raise your hand to ask for more. Note that TCAs cannot answer any questions about test content.

You may use the restroom or take an unscheduled break at any time. However, your test’s clock will continue to run while you are away. It’s better to use your mandatory 10-minute break after Listening to go to the restroom and access any food, drinks, or medications you have. You may not access your phone or other belongings while on break. Furthermore, you may only leave the testing room if you have received permission from a TCA.