Methods of Oral English Proficiency Certification

Students may be eligible for certification of oral English proficiency by one of these means: 

• Their score on the TOEFL iBT Speaking section;
• Their score on the IELTS Speaking section;
• Their score on Purdue’s Oral English Proficiency Test (OEPT);
• Their performance in SCLA 620 "Academic and Professional Communication for International Teaching Assistants," a language course exclusively for current and prospective TAs whose first language is not English. Only graduate students who have scored 40 or 45 on the OEPT are eligible for the course.

See this flow chart for Certification by Test Scores (TOEFL, IELTS & OEPT) and Consequences of OEPT scores.   

Purdue Test Score Cut-Offs for Graduate Admission and for Certification of Oral English Proficiency

The chart below shows the cut-off scores (minimum acceptable scores) for Graduate Admission and the scores accepted for certification of oral English proficiency.

It is important to note that the Graduate Admission TOEFL iBT cut-off score for speaking, 3.5, is significantly lower than the cut-off score required for certification of oral English proficiency for TAs, currently 5.5 on the TOEFL iBT. Likewise, the Graduate Admission IELTS cut-off score for speaking, 6, is significantly lower than the cut-off score required for certification of oral English proficiency for TAs, 8.