Fortunately, there are many different resources on the web that can help. From practice tests and quizzes to vocabulary flashcards and other learning tools, test takers can find everything they need online to ace the test. As a follow up to our article “What is the TOEFL and how do I prepare for it” here is a list of 20 free TOEFL prep resources to try:

Learn4Good – This comprehensive language site offers a test overview, structured practice, and other prep resources for the TOEFL. Learn4Good’s TOEFL prep resources include 11 practice tests, 17 lessons, and a comprehensive vocabulary list.

Get TOEFL – Get TOEFL provides students with a daily practice quiz, sample TOEFL questions, a word wizard, and a free sample test.

TestMagic – This free test preparation site offers free online resources for GMAT, GRE, and TOEFL test takers. TOEFL resources include practice questions, test information, vocabulary lists, and classes.

Duber.com – This free teacher site provides a computer generated quiz that TOEFL takers can use for test preparation.

About.com – The About.com Guide to ESL offers a number of resources and tools that students can use to prepare and practice for the TOEFL. Throughout this site, EFL and ESL students can find links to practice grammar, listening comprehension, and vocabulary.

Good Luck TOEFL – The Good Luck TOEFL site gives an overview of the TOEFL as well as tools for practicing primary and secondary English skills. This study site also offers overviews of study questions, question types, and much more.

Exam English – This free preparation site offers online quizzes for the reading, listening, grammar, and vocabulary components of the TOEFL test.

Test Prep Review – Test Prep Review is a test preparation site that provides free materials for studying and reviewing several tests. This site can be used to review English grammar, reading comprehension, sentence correction, and writing.

English-Test.net – TOEFL takers at all levels can use this site to study English. English-Test.net is an especially good resource for beginner and advanced level students who want to practice grammar and listening skills.

Quiz-Tree.com – Quiz-Tree.com offers free vocabulary quizzes that can be used for studying purposes. Each quiz features 20 multiple choice questions.

Nonstop English – This site provides a database of free exercises specifically for the TOEFL. Nonstop English is an excellent place to find practice exercises and quizzes on vocabulary, grammar, reading, and writing.

Graduateshotline.com – The Graduateshotline.com offers free practice tests for the GRE, GMAT, and TOEFL. Each sample test features multiple choice questions.

Eduers.com – This site provides a free PDF model test, computer-based test, and sample writing topics for TOEFL. Eduers.com also offers several other resources that can be used for dates, scoring, preparation, and registration.

VerbaLearn – VerbaLearn is a great place for test takers to prepare for vocabulary on the TOEFL. This site uses several techniques for learning vocabulary, including MP3 review and video flashcards.

4 English Exams – 4 English Exams offers a large collection of preparation material. Within this site, test takers can find tips, computer-based tests, study material, and writing topics.

FlashcardExchange – The FlashcardExchange, a comprehensive flashcard site, offers preparation materials and quizzes for vocabulary, grammar, and word lessons.

Quizlet – This free vocabulary studying site offers 591 resources for studying vocabulary, reading, writing, and grammar.

TestYourEnglish.net – TestYourEnglish.net has listening and grammar practice for TOEFL test preparation. This site features three listening tests, two reading tests, and a grammar test.

TestPrepPractice.net – This site for online resources and test practice features practice tests for reading comprehension, sentence correction, and sentence completion.

4Tests – 4Tests offers a practice exam and resources that can be used to evaluate English skills. This site also features four sections of computer-based tests for listening, structure, reading, and writing.

Guest post from education writer Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes about online classes for OnlineClasses.org.

A quick look at the website of the Educational Testing Service (ETS), the developer of the TOEFL (http://www.ets.org), shows that the TOEFL is an important academic English test used by more than 6,000 universities in more than 130 countries to determine whether an applicant has the required level of English to enroll. It is also used to qualify for scholarships, and for graduation requirements.

CC License, Photo by SonnyandSandy

So how do students get a TOEFL certificate? Oops, remember, there isn’t a TOEFL certificate. The TOEFL is currently offered in two formats –Internet based (iBT) and paper-based (PBT) in some locales. The iBT is now the most common format in most countries and in North America. Both formats have similar questions in listening, reading and writing. The iBT also has a speaking section which the paper-based format does not offer except as a separate exam called the Test of Spoken English (TSE). Both formats offer a TOEFL score report, and the examinee copy usually arrives a few weeks after the exam.

There is no established passing or failing score. The TOEFL result simply indicates how proficient an individual is vis-à-vis other non-native speakers of English. Further, anyone at any level of English language learning can take the TOEFL; in fact, the more times you take it the more likely you are to improve. However, considering the cost, it makes sense to take the exam after you have completed several courses of English, and particularly when you are able to read and write at the university level in English with little difficulty (the TOEFL reading sections are passages are developed to reflect university-level readings in any field of study, for example).

“Okay . . . but isn’t there some kind of passing score?” Actually, there is no one, magical, passing number. Each institution that requires the TOEFL has its own admission requirements. Often the standard for a full admission into an American university is the iBT TOEFL score of 80 (paper-based test score of 550). However, a number of institutions have raised that score to 100 on the iBT (or 600 PBT), to qualify for programs that require a lot of writing or to qualify for financial assistance. You need to contact each institution that you are interested in to obtain information on its TOEFL requirements.

To meet most institutions’ TOEFL requirements, you need a lot of preparation. It is generally recommended that you get a strong base in academic English before you take the TOEFL and to do that you will probably need to invest both a significant amount of time and money. As you begin work on your academic English level, you should also look into test preparation materials to learn testing strategies. There are a number of reasonably cost resources available (books, CDs, DVDs, and cassettes) on preparing for TOEFL at most EducationUSA centers around the world. Some resources are created by ETS directly and others by companies which have a long experience in test preparation. There are also some free resources from ETS, test prep companies and others available on the Internet. Google the words “TOEFL Prep”, in under a second you will find thousands of links and resources to search from and use.

Of special interest, YouTube has made steps to provide relevant educational content at http://www.youtube.com/edu. Visit ETS’s new TOEFL channel at http://www.youtube.com/TOEFLtv for TOEFL preparation tips from students and instructors. Keep in mind that while TOEFL Preparation courses often help, it’s counterproductive to enroll in a prep course if your English is not yet at an advanced level.

Finally, if you don’t do well on your first go around, don’t despair. Go back get more English language training. Invest in your future with a solid base in English. Once you have taken one international exam, you will have a better understanding of the test strategies, so now you need to concentrate on perfecting your language skills. Good luck on your journey!

Ms. Sabrina Faber is an international education, development and training professional with a special interest in the Middle East and in particular Yemen. For nearly fifteen years, she has managed international exchange programs, including the prestigious U.S. Department of State Fulbright Foreign Student program for students from Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Mauritania, Morocco, Palestine, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen.  Ms. Faber has extensive experience working in Yemen and on consultancies in the Arabian Gulf states. She is the author of numerous articles on international education and training and maintains a blog, http://planetecole.blogspot.com. She is currently preparing research on Yemeni human resource in the 21^st century.