Education from universities abroad is gaining popularity as various countries like Canada, USA, UK, Australia, Singapore and others have made their visa policies more lenient. With goals to pursue masters and other programmes in a global and diverse environment, students these days are more willing to apply to universities abroad.
Almost all overseas universities, especially the top B-schools in the world and research institutes, require students to appear for at least one of the international exams. Therefore, CollegeDekho has prepared a list of study abroad entrance exams and their details to help you carve a career path for yourself.
Some of the most popular exams for admission to universities abroad are GRE and GMAT. Although both these exams are globally accepted, there is a lot of difference between GRE and GMAT. Apart from these, there are other English proficiency and field-oriented tests for students planning to pursue their education overseas.
List of Entrance Exams to Study Abroad
Here is the list of entrance exams that students wishing to study abroad may have to attempt:
|
Name of the Exam |
Conducting Body |
Score Validity |
Level |
|
Graduate Record Exam (GRE) |
Educational Testing Service (ETS) |
5 years |
Postgraduate |
|
Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) |
Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) |
5 years |
Postgraduate |
|
British Council |
2 years |
Undergraduate/Postgraduate |
|
|
Educational Testing Service (ETS) |
2 years |
Undergraduate/Postgraduate |
|
|
College Board |
5 years |
Undergraduate |
|
|
Law School Admission Test (LSAT) |
Law School Admission Council (LSAC) |
5 years |
Undergraduate/Postgraduate |
|
Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) |
American Association of Medical Colleges |
2 to 3 years (varies from university to university) |
Postgraduate |
|
ACT |
5 years |
Undergraduate |
|
|
Pearson PLC |
2 years |
Undergraduate/Postgraduate |
|
|
United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) |
Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) |
7 years (to complete all three steps) |
Postgraduate |
Also Read: Top 100 MBA Programs With GMAT/GRE Waiver in 2021
Study Abroad Exam Pattern and Score
The exam pattern and score range of the entrance exams that international students might need to take in order to get into foreign universities:
Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
GRE is possibly one of the most popular entrance exams conducted in online mode in India for admission to master’s courses in universities abroad. The exam comprises 2 Quantitative Analysis sections, 2 Verbal Reasoning sections of 340 marks and a section of Analytical Writing that is scored on a scale of 6. The exam is a basic requirement in order to apply for almost all universities abroad.
Scores:
|
Section |
Score Scale |
|---|---|
|
Verbal Reasoning |
130–170 |
|
Quantitative Reasoning |
130–170 |
|
Analytical Writing |
0–6 |
Exam Pattern:
| Section | Number of Questions | Allotted Time |
|---|---|---|
|
Analytical Writing (One section) |
2 | 30 minutes per task |
|
Quantitative Reasoning (Two sections) |
20 questions per section | 35 minutes per section |
|
Verbal Reasoning (Two sections) |
20 questions per section | 30 minutes per section |
|
Quantitative Reasoning (Two sections) |
20 questions per section | 35 minutes per section |
|
Research |
Varies | Varies |
|
Unscored |
Varies | Varies |
Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT)
Candidates seeking admission in MBA programmes offered by universities abroad have to appear for GMAT exam. It is a computer adaptive test and comprises four sections including analytical writing assessment, integrated reasoning, qualitative reasoning and verbal reasoning. The total score of the GMAT range from 200 and 800.
Exam Pattern:
|
Test Section |
Time Limit / Number of Questions |
No. of Questions |
Score Range |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Analytical Writing Assessment |
30 minutes |
1 |
0-6 |
|
Integrated Reasoning |
30 minutes |
12 |
1-8 |
|
Quantitative Reasoning |
62 minutes |
31 |
6-51 |
|
Verbal Reasoning |
65 minutes |
36 |
6-51 |
Scores:
|
Sections |
Scale |
|
Analytical Writing Assessment (Omitted for Online GMAT) |
0–6 |
|
Integrated Reasoning |
1–8 |
|
Analytical Writing Assessment (Omitted for Online GMAT) |
0–6 |
|
Quantitive Reasoning |
6-51 |
|
Verbal Reasoning |
6-51 |
International English Language Testing System (IELTS)
IELTS is a test designed to test the English ability of students applying to universities abroad. The exam comprises four sections, namely, Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. All the four sections are evaluated on a 9-point scale and the final score is the average of scores in all four sections. The test scores are globally accepted.
Exam Pattern and Scores:
|
Sections |
4 |
|
Total Duration |
2 hours and 45 minutes. |
|
Scores |
Bandwidth of 9 |
|
Number of Questions |
96-106 |
Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL)
This test is also conducted to check the level of English aptitude of students seeking admission in universities abroad. Like IELTS, there are four sections in this exam i.e. Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. Each section is of 30 marks and the total score is 120 to form the cumulative total of the students. TOEFL scores are accepted mostly by US Universities, however, some other countries also accept the score, to view complete list check ETS official website.
Exam Pattern:
|
Exam Duration |
3 hours |
|
Total Number of Sections |
Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing |
|
Total Number of Questions |
64-85 |
|
Mode |
Internet-based and paper-delivered |
Scores:
-
Each section has a score range of 0–30.
-
These are added together for a total score of 0–120.
Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT)
Universities in the US accept this test for admission to undergraduate courses. The test comprises Writing Analysis, Quantitative Analysis and Verbal Ability sections. The total score of the exam is 1600 (i.e. 800 for verbal and quants each) and writing analysis is evaluated on a 12-point score.
Exam Pattern & Scores:
|
Exam Duration |
3 hours |
|
Total Number of Questions |
154 |
|
Total Number of Sections |
3 |
|
Mode |
Paper-based |
|
Medium of Instruction |
English |
|
Score Range |
400-1600 |
Law School Admission Test (LSAT)
The LSAT exam is a requirement for candidates seeking admission in law courses in the USA. The exam comprises two sections of logical reasoning, one section each of analytical reasoning and reading comprehension. The score of LSAT is evaluated between a range of 420-480. The exam also comprises of two unscored sections i.e. the variable section and the writing section.
Exam Pattern and Scores:
|
Mode |
Remotely proctored online exam |
|
Duration |
2 hours and 20 minutes |
|
Type of questions |
Objective-type |
|
Sections |
Four |
|
Total marks |
420-480 score band and percentile |
|
Medium |
English only |
|
Total questions |
92 MCQs |
Medical College Admission Test (MCAT)
Candidates seeking admission in medical courses offered by universities in the US have to appear for MCAT in order to apply. The exam comprises four sections including Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems (59 questions), Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills (53 questions), Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems (59 questions) and Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior (59 questions). The total seating time of the exam is 7 hours, 33 minutes approximately.
Exam Pattern and Scores:
|
Total Duration |
7.5 hours |
|
Total Number of Sections |
4 |
|
Score Range |
118-132 |
ACT
ACT is a subject test that is mandatory for all students who seek admission in undergraduate courses offered by US universities. It is conducted for Mathematics, English and Science. The exam comprises a total of 215 sections. The exam pattern varies according to the subject that you intend to take in the ACT.
Exam Pattern & Scores:
|
Mode |
Computer-and Paper-based |
|
Number of Questions |
215 questions + 1 writing question (optional) |
|
Medium |
English |
|
Number of Sections |
4 Sections + 1 (Optional) |
|
Score Range |
1-36 |
Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic
PTE test was designed on similar lines of TOEFL and IELTS. The exam tests the aptitude of students in English on the basis of their reading, speaking, listening and writing skills. Each section comprises of a different set of questions based on images, audios and text to test the English proficiency of applicants.
|
Duration |
3 hours |
|
Number of Sections |
3 - Speaking and Writing, Reading and Listening |
|
Mode |
Computer-Based Test; Online |
|
Medium |
English |
United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE)
This is an 8-hour long exam comprising 310 multiple choice questions conducted for admission to medical courses offered by universities abroad. The exam is conducted for 8 medicine disciplines including Anatomy, Physiology, Behavioral Sciences, Pharmacology, Biochemistry, Pathology, Microbiology, Biostatistics and Epidemiology. It also comprises 5 inter-disciplines including Genetics, Immunology, Molecular and Cell Biology, Aging and Nutrition.
Also Read: SAT vs. ACT: Which One is Right For You?
If you are targeting universities abroad in order to pursue undergraduate or graduate programmes, you must check the exam requirement of the universities. Universities in different countries ask for different requirements, therefore it is important to check the official website of the university before applying for either of the international entrance exams mentioned above.
In case you have further queries, please reach out to us at abroad@collegedekho.com.
