Correlation Table
TOEIC
®
Listening and Reading Test Scores and the CEFR levels
*
TOTAL
minimum
scores
(10 to 990 pts)
TOEIC Listening
minimum score
minimum score
TOEIC Reading
CEFR levels
CEFR General Description
945 pts
490
455
Proficient user - Effective
Operational Proficiency
C1
Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise implicit meaning. Can express him/ herself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.
785 pts
400
385
Independent user - Vantage
B2
Can understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialisation. Can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party. Can produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.
550 pts
275
275
Independent user - Threshold
B1
Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. Can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken. Can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest. Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes and ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.
225 pts
110
115
Basic user - Waystage
A2
Can understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of most immediate relevance (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment). Can communicate in simple and routine tasks requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar and routine matters. Can describe in simple terms aspects of his/her background, immediate environment and matters in areas of immediate need.
120 pts
60
60
Basic user - Breakthrough
A1
Can understand and use familiar everyday expressions and very basic phrases aimed at the satisfaction of needs of a concrete type. Can introduce him/herself and others and can ask and answer questions about personal details such as where he/she lives, people he/she knows and things he/she has. Can interact in a simple way provided the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.
* CEFR: The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages outlines an ascending series of common reference levels for describing learner proficiency. This CEFR describes both knowledge and skills in positive “can-do” statements at six levels of proficiency for different language skills from A1 level (Basic User - Breakthrough) to C2 level (Proficient User - Mastery).
The benchmarking study of the TOEIC® Listening and Reading scores to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) was conducted by Tannenbaum, R.J., & Wylie, E.C-2006. The results of the standard setting are recommended minimum score requirements, or cut scores. The mapping of TOEIC test scores to each CEFR level in this particular study are presented as guidelines for minimum thresholds for each level. ETS does not recommend to use the minimum cut scores strictly.
For more information about this study please contact us at cef@etsglobal.org. N.B: For A1 to B1 levels ETS advises to take the TOEIC Bridge™ Test.
TOEIC® Listening and Reading scores are reported in 5-point increments.
t
Total minimum score frequently required by higher education and companiest
Turn the page to know more about your skills
Identify the TOTAL minimum score nearest to the achieved score
1
Translate the achieved score into the corresponding CEFR level*
2
Find the general description related to the achieved score
3
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For more information about the TOEIC
®Listening and Reading test:
Level Strengths Weaknesses
≈
450
points
Test takers who score around 450 typically have the following strengths:
■ They can infer the central idea and purpose of a written text, and
they can make inferences about details.
■ They can read for meaning. They can understand factual
information, even when it is paraphrased.
■ They can connect information across an entire text, and they can
make connections between two related texts.
■ They can understand a broad range of vocabulary, unusual
meanings of common words, and idiomatic usage. They can also make distinctions between the meanings of closely related words.
■ They can understand rule-based grammatical structures. They can
also understand difficult, complex, and uncommon grammatical constructions.
Test takers who score around 450 typically have weaknesses only when the information tested is particularly dense or involves difficult vocabulary.
≈
350
points
Test takers who score around 350 typically have the following strengths:
■ They can infer the central idea and purpose of a written text, and
they can make inferences about details.
■ They can read for meaning. They can understand factual
information, even when it is paraphrased.
■ They can connect information across a small area within a text, even
when the vocabulary and grammar of the text are difficult.
■ They can understand medium-level vocabulary. They can
sometimes understand difficult vocabulary in context, unusual meanings of common words, and idiomatic usage.
■ They can understand rule-based grammatical structures. They can
also understand difficult, complex, and uncommon grammatical constructions.
Test takers who score around 350 typically have the following weaknesses:
■ They do not connect information across a wide area within a text. ■ They do not consistently understand difficult vocabulary, unusual
meanings of common words, or idiomatic usage. They usually cannot make distinctions between the meanings of closely related words.
≈
250
points
Test takers who score around 250 typically have the following strengths:
■ They can make simple inferences based on a limited amount of text. ■ They can locate the correct answer to a factual question when the
language of the text matches the information that is required. They can sometimes answer a factual question when the answer is a simple paraphrase of the information in the text.
■ They can sometimes connect information within one or two
sentences.
■ They can understand easy vocabulary, and they can sometimes
understand medium-level vocabulary.
■ They can understand common, rule-based grammatical structures.
They can make correct grammatical choices, even when other features of language, such as difficult vocabulary or the need to connect information, are present.
Test takers who score around 250 typically have the following weaknesses:
■ They do not understand inferences that require paraphrase or
connecting information.
■ They have a very limited ability to understand factual information
expressed as a paraphrase using difficult vocabulary. They often depend on finding words and phrases in the text that match the same words and phrases in the question.
■ They usually do not connect information beyond two sentences. ■ They do not understand difficult vocabulary, unusual meanings
of common words, or idiomatic usage. They usually cannot make distinctions between the meanings of closely related words.
■ They do not understand more-difficult, complex, or uncommon
grammatical constructions.
≈
150
points
Test takers who score around 150 typically have the following strengths:
■ They can locate the correct answer to a factual question when not
very much reading is necessary and when the language of the text matches the information that is required.
■ They can understand easy vocabulary and common phrases. ■ They can understand the most-common, rule-based grammatical
constructions when not very much reading is necessary.
Test takers who score around 150 typically have the following weaknesses:
■ They cannot make inferences about information in written texts. ■ They do not understand paraphrased factual information. They rely
on matching words and phrases in the text to answer questions.
■ They are often unable to connect information even within a single
sentence.
■ They understand only a limited range of vocabulary.
■ They do not understand even easy grammatical constructions
when other language features, such as difficult vocabulary or the need to connect information, are also required.
Level Strengths Weaknesses
≈
400
pointsTest takers who score around 400 typically have the following strengths:
■ They can infer the central idea, purpose, and basic context of
short spoken exchanges across a broad range of vocabulary,
even when conversational responses are indirect or not easy to predict.
■ They can infer the central idea, purpose, and basic
context of extended spoken texts across a broad range of vocabulary. They can do this even when the information is not supported by repetition or paraphrase and when it is necessary to connect information across the text.
■ They can understand details in short spoken exchanges,
even when negative constructions are present, when the language is syntactically complex, or when difficult vocabulary is used.
■ They can understand details in extended spoken texts, even
when it is necessary to connect information across the text and when this information is not supported by repetition. They can understand details when the information is paraphrased or when negative constructions are present.
Test takers who receive a score at this level typically have weaknesses only when uncommon grammar or vocabulary is used.
≈
300
pointsTest takers who score around 300 typically have the following strengths:
■ They can sometimes infer the central idea, purpose, and
basic context of short spoken exchanges, especially when the vocabulary is not difficult.
■ They can understand the central idea, purpose, and basic
context of extended spoken texts when this information is supported by repetition or paraphrase.
■ They can understand details in short spoken exchanges
when easy or medium-level vocabulary is used.
■ They can understand details in extended spoken texts when
the information is supported by repetition and when the requested information comes at the beginning or end of the spoken text. They can understand details when the information is slightly paraphrased.
Test takers who score around 300 typically have the following weaknesses:
■ They have difficulty understanding the central idea,
purpose, and basic context of short spoken exchanges when conversational responses are indirect or difficult to predict or when the vocabulary is difficult.
■ They do not understand the central idea, purpose, and
basic context of extended spoken texts when it is necessary to connect information within the text or when difficult vocabulary is used.
■ They do not understand details in short spoken exchanges
when language is syntactically complex or when difficult vocabulary is used. They do not usually understand details that include negative constructions.
■ They do not understand details in extended spoken texts
when it is necessary to connect information across the text or when the information is not supported by repetition. They do not understand most paraphrased information or difficult grammatical constructions.
≈
200
pointsTest takers who score around 200 typically have the following strengths:
■ They can understand short (single-sentence) descriptions of
the central idea of a photograph.
■ They can sometimes understand the central idea, purpose,
and basic context of extended spoken texts when this information is supported by a lot of repetition and easy vocabulary.
■ They can understand details in short spoken exchanges and
descriptions of photographs when the vocabulary is easy and when there is only a small amount of text that must be understood.
■ They can understand details in extended spoken texts when
the requested information comes at the beginning or end of the text and when it matches the words in the spoken text.
Test takers who score around 200 typically have the following weaknesses:
■ They do not understand the central idea, purpose, or basic
context of short spoken exchanges, even when the language is direct and no unexpected information is present.
■ They do not understand the central idea, purpose, and basic
context of extended spoken texts when it is necessary to connect information across the text or when the vocabulary is somewhat difficult.
■ They do not understand details in short spoken exchanges
when somewhat difficult vocabulary is used or when the language is syntactically complex. They do not understand details that include negative constructions.
■ They do not understand details in extended spoken texts
when the requested information is heard in the middle of the text. They do not understand paraphrased information or difficult grammatical constructions.
R E A D I N G
TOTAL TOEIC
®Listening and Reading score (from 10 to 990 points) =
+
Listening part
(from 5 to 495 points)
t
Reading part
t
(from 5 to 495 points)LISTENING
TOEIC
®
Listening and Reading Test Score Descriptors
Copyright © 2016 by Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved. ETS, the ETS logo and TOEIC are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service (ETS) in the United States of America and other countries, used under license. TOEIC Bridge is a trademark of ETS. MAR089