{"id":2368,"date":"2015-11-05T09:00:31","date_gmt":"2015-11-05T17:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/?p=2368"},"modified":"2020-12-10T13:44:51","modified_gmt":"2020-12-10T21:44:51","slug":"studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The IELTS and TOEFL are both great tests to take if you want to get into an English-language study program. Both exams are very widely accepted at universities in Native English speaking countries. Sometimes students wonder which exam they should take. This is a <a href=\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/toefl-vs-ielts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">tough question<\/a> that depends on <a href=\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/toefl-tuesday-how-the-toefl-and-ielts-differ\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a lot of factors<\/a>. Other students decide to take <em>both<\/em> exams. Since some schools prefer IELTS while other schools prefer TOEFL, this route can increase a student\u2019s chances of getting accepted somewhere.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re studying for these two exams right now, there are some good approaches you can take to get the most out of your study time. These strategies can help you take advantage of both the differences and similarities between each test.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Reading and Listening<\/h2>\n<p>The biggest difference between Reading and Listening on the IELTS and the TOEFL is that the IELTS focuses less on multiple choice questions with just one correct answer. IELTS Reading and Listening focuses a lot more on activities that involve matching things and filling in tables and charts. In contrast, matching, tables, and charts are only a minor part of TOEFL Reading and Listening, which focus much <em>more<\/em> on standard multiple choice questions.<\/p>\n<p>Exercises involving matching and the visual organization of information can be kind of challenging on the TOEFL, because they\u2019re so infrequent. You can use IELTS\u2019 larger number of non-multiple-choice practice materials to boost your skills in these more complex questions. You\u2019ll build key IELTS skills, <em>and<\/em> you\u2019ll be more prepared for these questions when they pop up on the TOEFL.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Writing<\/h2>\n<p>Like IELTS Reading and Listening, IELTS Writing is more visual than its TOEFL equivalent. IELTS Writing Task 1 asks test-takers to interpret charts and data. Be sure to focus on this kind of \u201cvisual literacy,\u201d even though you don\u2019t need it in TOEFL Writing. Seeing English words organized visually can give you a deeper understanding of English, and this in turn can help you do well on both exams.<\/p>\n<p>IELTS Writing Task 2\u2014independent writing\u2014is very similar to TOEFL Independent Writing. But remember, IELTS gives you 40 minutes for independent responses, while the TOEFL only gives you 30. Because of this, your ILETS response will be more in-depth and detailed. As you study for both exams, you may want to expand on shorter TOEFL writing answers and turn them into slightly longer IELTS responses. This will help you understand the small but important differences between Writing Task 2 on both exams.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Speaking<\/h2>\n<p>IELTS Speaking is done <em>interactively<\/em>\u2014you will talk directly to an interviewer instead of just recording your voice into a computer. This is very different form the TOEFL in some ways, but similar in others. Both the interaction in IELTS Speaking and the TOEFL Integrated Tasks found in Speaking and Writing require English <em>multitasking<\/em>. In both cases, you need to use different language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) at the same time. As you study for these two assessments, make note of the similarities between Integrated TOEFL tasks and integration of language in IELTS Speaking.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Take-away<\/h2>\n<p>There are a lot of advantages to studying for both the IELTS and the TOEFL. The most obvious advantages are <em>practical<\/em> ones\u2014having qualifying scores in both tests increases your chances of being accepted into English language study programs all around the world. There are also some <em>learning<\/em> advantages. While the tests are similar, they measure your English ability in some noticeably different ways. This is a chance for you to study your second language more deeply and practice it in more contexts.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The IELTS and TOEFL are both great tests to take if you want to get into an English-language study program. Both exams are very widely accepted at universities in Native English speaking countries. Sometimes students wonder which exam they should take. This is a tough question that depends on a lot of factors. Other students [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":80,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13602],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[13630],"class_list":["post-2368","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-prep"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v21.7 (Yoast SEO v21.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time - Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The IELTS and TOEFL are both great tests to take if you want to get into an English-language study program. Both exams are very widely accepted at universities in Native English speaking countries. Sometimes students wonder which exam they should take. This is a tough question that depends on a lot of factors. Other students [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/MagooshTOEFL\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MagooshEnglishLearning\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-11-05T17:00:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-12-10T21:44:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/files\/2016\/09\/Facebook-SEO-Default.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"628\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Recine\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@MagooshTOEFL\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@MagooshTOEFL\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Recine\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/\",\"name\":\"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time - Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2015-11-05T17:00:31+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#\/schema\/person\/fa2be5405a605e37f4199c90e2236768\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/\",\"name\":\"Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test\",\"description\":\"Online TOEFL Preparation\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#\/schema\/person\/fa2be5405a605e37f4199c90e2236768\",\"name\":\"David Recine\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/de262e64bb4e3e488753d8c58ff3cc70\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b70c17ee6f3ef87dc4cc5dbdebda911d6dd30dfe15845e4b1d459a3e1b33ef98?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b70c17ee6f3ef87dc4cc5dbdebda911d6dd30dfe15845e4b1d459a3e1b33ef98?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"David Recine\"},\"description\":\"David is a Test Prep Expert for Magoosh TOEFL and IELTS. Additionally, he's helped students with TOEIC, PET, FCE, BULATS, Eiken, SAT, ACT, GRE, and GMAT. David has a BS and MA from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and an MA from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MagooshEnglishLearning\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/david-recine\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCra3KQoJlOP7RYwaCyH2qew\"],\"knowsAbout\":[\"TOEFL\",\"IELTS\",\"TOEIC\",\"PET\",\"FCE\",\"BULATS\",\"Eiken\",\"SAT\",\"ACT\",\"GRE\",\"GMAT\"],\"knowsLanguage\":[\"English\",\"Italian\"],\"jobTitle\":\"Content Creator\",\"worksFor\":\"Magoosh\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/author\/davidr\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time - Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time","og_description":"The IELTS and TOEFL are both great tests to take if you want to get into an English-language study program. Both exams are very widely accepted at universities in Native English speaking countries. Sometimes students wonder which exam they should take. This is a tough question that depends on a lot of factors. Other students [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/","og_site_name":"Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test","article_publisher":"https:\/\/facebook.com\/MagooshTOEFL","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MagooshEnglishLearning","article_published_time":"2015-11-05T17:00:31+00:00","article_modified_time":"2020-12-10T21:44:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":628,"url":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/files\/2016\/09\/Facebook-SEO-Default.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"David Recine","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@MagooshTOEFL","twitter_site":"@MagooshTOEFL","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"David Recine","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/","url":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/","name":"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time - Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#website"},"datePublished":"2015-11-05T17:00:31+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#\/schema\/person\/fa2be5405a605e37f4199c90e2236768"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/studying-for-the-toefl-and-ielts-at-the-same-time\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Studying for the TOEFL and IELTS at the Same Time"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#website","url":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/","name":"Magoosh Blog \u2013 TOEFL\u00ae\ufe0f Test","description":"Online TOEFL Preparation","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#\/schema\/person\/fa2be5405a605e37f4199c90e2236768","name":"David Recine","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/de262e64bb4e3e488753d8c58ff3cc70","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b70c17ee6f3ef87dc4cc5dbdebda911d6dd30dfe15845e4b1d459a3e1b33ef98?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b70c17ee6f3ef87dc4cc5dbdebda911d6dd30dfe15845e4b1d459a3e1b33ef98?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"David Recine"},"description":"David is a Test Prep Expert for Magoosh TOEFL and IELTS. Additionally, he's helped students with TOEIC, PET, FCE, BULATS, Eiken, SAT, ACT, GRE, and GMAT. David has a BS and MA from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and an MA from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MagooshEnglishLearning","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/david-recine\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCra3KQoJlOP7RYwaCyH2qew"],"knowsAbout":["TOEFL","IELTS","TOEIC","PET","FCE","BULATS","Eiken","SAT","ACT","GRE","GMAT"],"knowsLanguage":["English","Italian"],"jobTitle":"Content Creator","worksFor":"Magoosh","url":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/author\/davidr\/"}]}},"authors":[{"term_id":13630,"user_id":80,"is_guest":0,"slug":"davidr","display_name":"David Recine","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b70c17ee6f3ef87dc4cc5dbdebda911d6dd30dfe15845e4b1d459a3e1b33ef98?s=96&d=mm&r=g","user_url":"","last_name":"Recine","first_name":"David","description":"David is a Test Prep Expert for Magoosh TOEFL and IELTS. Additionally, he's helped students with TOEIC, PET, FCE, BULATS, Eiken, SAT, ACT, GRE, and GMAT.\r\n\r\nDavid has a BS from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and an MA from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. His work at Magoosh has been cited in<a href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar?hl=en&amp;as_sdt=0%2C50&amp;q=Recine+magoosh&amp;btnG=\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> many scholarly articles<\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/minds.wisconsin.edu\/handle\/1793\/65479\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> his Master's Thesis<\/a> is featured on the<a href=\"https:\/\/www.readingwithpictures.org\/2013\/09\/research-highlight-teaching-english-language-learners-with-comics\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> Reading with Pictures<\/a> website, and he's presented at the<a href=\"https:\/\/www.witesol.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/2014-WITESOL-Program-FINAL-10-28-14.pdf\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> WITESOL (link to PDF)<\/a> and<a href=\"https:\/\/issuu.com\/interoff\/docs\/nafsaregionv_2014conference\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> NAFSA<\/a> conferences. David has taught K-12 ESL in South Korea as well as undergraduate English and MBA-level business English at American universities. He has also trained English teachers in America, Italy, and Peru.\r\n\r\nCome join David and the Magoosh team on<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCra3KQoJlOP7RYwaCyH2qew\"> Youtube<\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MagooshEnglishLearning\"> Facebook<\/a>, and<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/magooshenglish\/?hl=en\"> Instagram<\/a>, or connect with him via<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/david-recine\/\"> LinkedIn<\/a>!"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2368","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/80"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2368"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2368\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2368"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2368"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2368"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/toefl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=2368"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}