PTE listening is the third and final section of the test and will take approximately 45-60 minutes based on the combination of tasks you may be presented with.
In the initial Sections 1 and 2 are reflective of everyday and social situations.
You will be listening to the audio/video clip only once. Therefore, you have to carefully listen to that and you can take notes.
You will be allowed to adjust the volume for each question by moving the control bar right and left.
Here, you will be listening to a short recording in each task, all of which will relate to academic subjects like natural sciences, humanities, and social sciences.
Of course, you won’t need to be particularly knowledgeable about these subjects, as all of the information needed to answer the questions can be found in the recordings given.
PTE Listening Overview
| Question Type | Time allowed | No of Questions | Scoring | Communication skills, enabling skills and other traits scored |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summarize spoken text | 20-30 minutes | 2-3 | Partial Credit (for each correct response and deducted for each incorrect response) | Listening and writing grammar, vocabulary, spelling content, form |
| Fill in the blanks | 20-30 minutes | 2-3 | Partial Credit (for each correct response and deducted for each incorrect response) | Listening and Writing |
| Highlight correct summary | 20-30 minutes | 2-3 | Partial Credit (for each correct response and deducted for each incorrect response) | Listening and Reading |
| Multiple-choice, choose a single answer | 20-30 minutes | 2-3 | Correct/incorrect | Listening |
| Select missing word | 20-30 minutes | 2-3 | Correct/incorrect | Listening |
| Highlight incorrect word | 20-30 minutes | 2-3 | Correct/incorrect | Listening and Reading |
| Write from dictation | 20-30 minutes | 3-4 | Partial Credit (for each correct response and deducted for each incorrect response) | Listening and Writing |
Summarizing Spoken Text: You will listen to an audio recording ranging between 60-90 seconds. You are expected to write a 50-70 word summary regarding the content contained in the clip.
Fill in the Blanks: You will see a transcript of a text that has multiple keywords removed. Then, you will be listening to a 1-2 minute recording of the same text being read aloud in its entirety, and you will need to use the recording and fill in the blanks in the text.
Multiple Choice: You will be asked questions about specific information contained in recordings that are 30-90 seconds long. You will be presented with several choices and must select an answer to the best answers to the given question. The MCQs may contain only a single correct response, or you may need to select more than one answer.
Highlight Correct Summary: Candidates will listen to a 30-90 second recording and then read several passages that summarize the recording. Candidates will then select the summary that most accurately encapsulates the content of the recording.
Select Missing Word: You will listen to a 20-70 second sentence or paragraph with a keyword omitted and select the word that best completes the text.
Highlight Incorrect Words: You will read and text excerpts and listen to a recording of the same being read aloud. However, the spoken version will contain several changes. You will need to listen closely and identify any words that have been altered between the two variations. Each prompt lasts for 15-50 seconds.
Write from Dictation: You will listen to a recording and then type out a word-for-word transcript of what was spoken. Each prompt for this question type is 3-5 seconds long.