How much practice do I need to do well in the TOEFL test?

It depends upon your level of English. If you already have good English language skills, you will just need to familiarize yourself with the kind of questions asked. If your English isn’t good, you will need more intense practice.

What do I need to know for the TOEFL?

The TOEFL is a difficult test. Worse still, it is getting harder and harder all the time. You can’t score well if you don’t have a good understanding of English. Generally speaking, you should be able to listen, read and write. If you are taking the paper based TOEFL, you will not need to speak. But note that the speaking section is included in the TOEFL iBT.

Will watching English films help?

It might. By watching English films you will be able to familiarize yourself with the various English accents. It could improve your score in the listening section. But note that TOEFL is more academic oriented. After all, the purpose of the test is to find students who can perform well in an English academic environment. That means watching a channel like Discovery is much more helpful than watching HBO or MTV.

What if I don’t have a large vocabulary?

The passages given for reading are usually taken from academic text books. That means you should have a good knowledge of academic vocabulary. Learn to figure out the meaning of unfamiliar words using context.

You don’t have to read the entire passages carefully. You won’t get the time either. What you need to do is to quickly scan through the passage so that you get a general understanding of what the passage is about and what information goes where. Once you have done this read the questions carefully and then go back to the specific part of the passage where you are most likely to find the answer.

While reading the passage, pay careful attention to the title and sub-headings.