TOEFLTest of English as a Foreign Language

TOEFL iBT (the only version that matters today) takes about 2 hours total. Four sections, all on a computer: Reading (35 minutes, two passages, 20 questions), Listening (36 minutes, three lectures and two conversations), Speaking (16 minutes, four tasks recorded into a microphone), and Writing (29 minutes, two integrated and academic discussion tasks).

The current format launched in mid-2023 and is shorter than the older 3-hour test. Many older prep materials still cover the long version — make sure your study books are dated 2023 or later. Magoosh, ETS Official TOEFL Practice Online, and Notefull all updated promptly. Older locally-printed prep books in Kathmandu often still teach the old format.

TOEFL iBT Home Edition lets you take the test from home with online proctoring. ETS runs it in Nepal subject to system check (broadband stability and a quiet private room). Many Nepali candidates with reliable internet take it from home; the test feel is identical to the centre.

ETS-authorised TOEFL centres in Kathmandu run frequent test dates. The main ones are Prometric at Sanepa and the British Council Lainchaur centre (some weeks). Centres run Wednesday through Saturday for most weeks. Slots fill 4 to 6 weeks in advance during the September to November application peak.

Outside Kathmandu, TOEFL iBT is rarely available at physical centres. Candidates in Pokhara, Biratnagar, and Butwal usually either travel to Kathmandu or sit the Home Edition. Home Edition needs a desktop or laptop with webcam, a stable 1.5 Mbps+ connection, and a private room with no other people in earshot.

Payment is in USD via credit/debit card on the ETS website. You can also use a relative's foreign card if your local card is not enabled for international payment. NEPSE-linked cards from major Nepali banks (NIC Asia, Nabil, Standard Chartered) generally work for ETS payments.

US graduate programmes: 90 is the typical minimum, 100 is competitive at ranked schools, 105+ is what Ivy League and top-10 universities want. Engineering and CS programmes are sometimes more lenient on speaking; humanities and business programmes look harder at writing.

Section-specific minimums matter at many universities. Most US programmes want at least 22 in each section even if your overall score is high. Some programmes (especially MBA and law) want 25 or 26 in Speaking. Always check the programme-specific page, not just the graduate school page.

Canadian universities accept TOEFL widely. UBC, Toronto, McGill want 90 to 100 for most masters programmes. The Canada Student Direct Stream visa does NOT accept TOEFL — only IELTS Academic 6.0 in each band. If you plan to take TOEFL and use SDS, you cannot. This is a common and expensive mistake.

Australia accepts TOEFL but defaults to IELTS for visa purposes. The Subclass 500 visa lists TOEFL iBT 64 (now 60 with current section conversions) as the minimum. Universities themselves want 79 to 100.

Pick TOEFL if: you are applying primarily to US universities, you are comfortable speaking into a microphone with a computer interface, and you can type faster than 35 words per minute.

Pick IELTS if: you need the test for visa purposes (Canada SDS, UK visa, AHPRA registration), you would rather speak to a human examiner than a microphone, or you are taking the test in a partner centre outside Kathmandu where IELTS is more widely available.

For most Nepali applicants targeting both US and non-US universities, IELTS Academic is the more flexible choice because of the visa angle. TOEFL is the better choice if you are US-only and you would score better with the academic-style integrated tasks (where you listen to a lecture, then summarise it in writing).

ETS Official TOEFL Practice Online (TPO) is the only practice resource that matters. Real retired tests, real scoring algorithm. About USD 45 per test pack from the ETS website. Take 4 to 6 full-length TPO tests under timed conditions before your real test.

Speaking is where most Nepali candidates underperform on TOEFL compared to IELTS. The 45-second prep window followed by 45-second response is high pressure. Practice using your phone's voice recorder, transcribe your answer, and identify filler words you use under stress. Common Nepali fillers: 'ah', 'you know', 'so', overuse of 'actually'.

Writing the Academic Discussion task (the second writing task, replaced the Independent Essay in 2023) trips up candidates who prepared with old material. You read a discussion forum, then write a 100-word response that adds a new perspective. It is markedly different from the old 30-minute essay.

Free practice on YouTube: Notefull, Tst Prep, and TOEFL TV channel. Avoid 'tips and tricks' channels promising 110+ in 20 days — they are misleading.

TOEFL scores are valid for two years from the test date. After two years, ETS deletes them and they cannot be sent to universities. Most universities won't accept TOEFL scores older than 24 months even if they are technically still on file.

You can retake TOEFL after a 3-day gap. There is no maximum number of attempts, but applications start to look weak if you have sat the test more than 4 times. ETS introduced MyBest Scores in 2019: when you send scores to a university, you can opt to send your best section scores from across all tests in the past 2 years (not just one sitting). Most US universities accept MyBest, but a few (like MIT for some programmes) still require single-test scores.

You can send your scores to 4 universities for free as part of your test fee, if you choose them on test day. Additional reports are USD 25 each. Choose your 4 free recipients carefully — these are sent automatically to the universities after results clear.