How to ace your OET

   Hello Dear readers. I'm going to be sharing simple tips that will guide and help you ace your OET. I'm going to be starting with a brief introduction.

OET stands for Occupational English Test. it is an English language test for healthcare professionals working in the healthcare sector, so from Doctors to Nurses, Physiotherapists, Dieticians, Pharmacists and Medical laboratory scientists are all eligible to take this test. An English language test is often required when you are working in most healthcare sectors abroad. If you are a health professional and want to relocate to the UK, US, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Qatar and other advanced countries you may want to consider writing this test. 

The OET has 4 components; Writing, Speaking, Reading and Listening. The minimum score in each of these components is 350, to be on a safe side, I would aim for much higher than that. The OET is unique in the sense that most of the information you will be tested on are not abstract, they are going to be related to your profession. There are different modes of taking the test, there is OET on paper, OET computer and OET at home. My OET test was on paper. There are so many test centers around the world and you get to choose depending on your geographical location. If you're writing in Nigeria, the only test center is in Lagos, Ikeja.

OET VS IELTS

The IELTS is quite similar to the OET exam, It is also an English language test with the same 4 components listed above, though you are tested on abstract information and anyone can take IELTS, it is not limited to people of a particular profession, students, people from different walks of life can take this test. To give some comparison, OET is much more expensive than IELTS. OET costs around 500 USD, while IELTS costs about 210 USD. OET does not really necessitate a rigorous study and is much easier compared to the IELTS. Depending on your needs, your bank account, you can make a decision on the test you will like to take.

Writing

I think this is the most challenging aspect of the test, but it is still very easy. You will be asked to write a letter of referral to another healthcare professional, or it could be a letter of discharge of a patient. you will need to pay close attention to your spelling, your punctuations as well as use of verbs and tenses. A lot of practice is needed to ace this aspect.

Speaking

 In the speaking aspect of the test, you may be asked to counsel a patient regarding a particular illness, give advice and recommendations about a particular health condition. You really have to pay attention to the action words here for example, you could be asked to give recommendations to patient A on ways he can prevent another heart attack vs explaining what caused the heart attack. You want to make sure you are answering the questions correctly. 

You need to pay attention to your pronunciation, your use of verbs and tenses. Make sure your speech is articulate and clear, and speak loud. You do not need to change your accent or make a fake one to sound impressive. You also need to be time conscious, no need to ramble on. Don't spend over a minute answering each question and be attentive to the patients concern, show empathy. Just act as though you are in Clinic seeing a regular patient. It is important to practice, time yourself, use a voice recorder and critic when you are done recording, you can practice with a friend too. You need to be confident as well.

Listening

In this aspect of the test, you will tested basically on your hearing and comprehension. This is not area of the test to allow your mind to wander. You need to be present in order to be able to follow conversations as you will need to answer questions about what you're listening to concomitantly.

You will need to fill in the gaps in some aspects, others you need to answer structured questions. Comprehension is really important in this aspect; and practicing is a good way to get a hang of it. This is usually the easiest aspect of the OET exam, not kidding.

Reading

This is the area you need your comprehension skills the most, you need to pay attention to details. You can read through the questions first and then go back to the excerpt you have been given to read through your answer. This aspect can be quite tricky, answer options may sound similar that is why understanding is very important.

Each area of these tests takes approximately one hour except the listening aspect which takes around 5 minutes, so use your time judiciously.

The key to acing your test is by PRACTICE. There are so many resources on the OET website to practice with. I will add a link below to the site. 

https://www.occupationalenglishtest.org/preparation-portal/

I hope I've been able to help.

Good luck ! Go ace your test. If you have further questions please do not hesitate to comment down below and I will be sure to answer as soon as I can.