Failed OET (Occupational English Test)? Here's Your Recovery Plan

Pro tip: If you re-sit one or more sub-tests rather than all four, you are not required to book all four, but this applies to OET on Paper only and depends on your recognising organisation accepting a single sub-test re-sit. Whether scores from two dates can be combined is decided by that organisation. The NMC, for example, allows combining across two sittings with published minimum scores in every domain of both sittings. Candidates holding duplicate bookings in one administration may lose their entitlement to a full refund.

• Booking the wrong profession version, for example sitting OET Medicine when applying to the NMC.
  Check the regulator page before you pay. The NMC tells applicants to choose the Nursing version, and the GMC will only accept a certificate showing the medicine version.
• Paraphrasing in Listening Part A instead of writing the words heard.
  Part A requires the same word or short phrase from the recording. Practise transcribing under pressure and accept that a shorter exact answer beats a longer accurate summary.
• Running Reading Part A over the 15 minute limit and expecting to finish later.
  Part A materials are collected after 15 minutes and never returned. Rehearse Part A as a standalone 15 minute drill until you routinely fill all 20 answers.
• Misspelling answers in Reading and assuming the meaning will still earn the mark.
  OET states that responses spelled incorrectly receive no marks in Reading. Copy answers letter for letter from the text and check them once before moving on.
• Using abbreviations in Reading answers that do not appear in the source texts.
  Abbreviations score only if they appear in the texts. Write the full form unless you can see the abbreviation printed on the page in front of you.
• Copying whole blocks of case notes into the Writing letter to look thorough.
  Content and Conciseness and Clarity are separate scored criteria. Use the 5 minutes of reading time to select only what the named reader needs, then summarise it.
• Writing far more than 200 words on the assumption that longer is safer.
  There is no automatic penalty for length, but OET says overlong letters usually contain irrelevant material or poor organisation, which the six criteria then penalise. Draft to 180 to 200 words.
• Treating the Speaking role play as a race to cover every bullet on the card.
  There is no penalty for not completing every element. Use the preparation time to identify which elements need explanation or clarification, and cover those properly.
• Ignoring the clinical communication criteria and focusing only on grammar in Speaking.
  Two separate criteria sets apply: four linguistic criteria marked out of 6 and five clinical communication categories marked out of 3. Practise rapport, shared decision making and checking understanding as deliberately as you practise vocabulary.
• Holding more than one booking in a single test administration to keep options open.
  The Test Regulations prohibit multiple bookings per administration across all delivery modes, and you may lose your right to a full refund. Book once and reschedule instead.
• Turning up with a different ID from the one entered at booking.
  The same ID presented at booking must be presented on test day and must pass identity verification. Check the passport or national ID number in your OET account well before test day.

• Book the profession version your regulator names
• Target at least 30 of 42 marks in Listening and Reading, the score that typically maps to Grade B (350)
• Practise Reading Part A against a 15 minute clock, since papers are collected after 15 minutes with no return
• Copy the exact word from the recording or text in Part A answers, because paraphrases and misspellings score zero in Reading
• Keep the Writing letter inside the 180 to 200 word range and spend the 5 minutes reading time selecting relevant case notes
• Choose OET on Computer or OET@Home if you need speed, because results can appear within 48 hours against 12 days for paper