Choosing a test type and level

Reference table of available levels and formats

Digital or Paper

PTE is available as either a digital or a paper test. 

Please note that any SEND accommodation requirements might affect our recommendation for which format of the test you take. See Testing SEND and EAL students for more details.

Digital

PTE is currently available as a digital test for levels 7-15 for both Form A and Form B, as well as Level 11T for Form A. 

The digital format is taken on our Testwise platform and all instructions and questions are fully incorporated into the digital test. 

Digital PTM tests can be taken on a laptop or PC, but are not currently available on tablets. 

NOTE: Level 15 is standardised for international schools only and is not recommended for use in the UK.

Paper

PTE is also available as a paper test for: 

• Levels 5-14 + Level 11T (Form A) 
• Levels 7-11 (Form B) 

This currently means that you can test twice a year with paper for Year Groups 1-6 (UK) if you would like to. 

Student booklets are accompanied by an 'At a Glance Guide' which contains all instructions necessary for the teacher or test administrator. 

Form A or Form B

There are two sets of tests available for PTE, Form A and Form B. They are based on the same standardisation and test the same skills at the appropriate ages, but contain different questions with different phrasings and specific scenarios. This means that, for most levels, there are two tests available to choose from. 

Please see the reference table at the top of the page for the available levels in each form and format. 

Annual administration

If you would like to administer the test once a year, you can choose either of the forms to administer. We strongly recommend that you do not randomly assign different forms to different students within the same cohort, but that you pick either Form A or Form B to administer to the entire cohort. 

Testing twice a year

You can use both forms to test twice in the year if you would like to measure a student's baseline at the start of the year, progress or effectiveness of intervention during the year, or retention of knowledge over the school break. 

We recommend testing in the first and third terms of the academic year (UK Autumn term and Spring/Summer term) as these are closest to the original standardisation window. 

IMPORTANT: If you are testing in the first term of the year you MUST use the level for the year below. For example, if you are testing at the beginning of UK Year 5, you will test with Level 9 in the first term of the year, and then with Level 10 in the third term. This is because students will not have learned all of the content covered in the Level 10 test in the first term of the year. 

This is still the same if you are wanting to measure in-year progress: the SAS scores and statistical analysis will allow you to compare a student's progress over the year even though they have taken two different levels of test. 

The table below demonstrates how this schedule works: 

This example shows the use of Form A (but the level below) at the beginning of the academic year, with Form B (of the correct age level) used for the end of the year. You can however use the forms in either order, as long as you remain consistent with your schedule and do not use the same form for the same students more than once. 

Please refer to the tables below to see the target year groups and age range covered for each test level. 

UK - Test level age guide

*Standardised with students in international schools

International - Test level age guide

*Level 11T should be administered at the beginning of the academic year with new Year 7/Grade 6 cohorts as a baseline assessment. PLEASE NOTE: Level 11T is not available in the UAE.