Appraised by several regulatory bodies, the Occupational English Test (OET) is an English language proficiency exam for healthcare workers. In order to register and practise in an English-speaking workplace, it assesses the language communication abilities of healthcare workers.
The 12 professions for which OET is available are dentistry, dietetics, medicine, nursing, occupational therapy, optometry, pharmacy, physiotherapy, podiatry, radiography, speech pathology, and veterinary science.
The professions with the highest test-take rates are nurses (47%) and doctors (23%), dentists (20%), and chemists (6%).
OET is available in three different formats. OET at home, on paper at the testing site, and on a computer at the testing site All OET exams have the same format, tasks, and difficulty level regardless of how the exam is delivered.
For almost 30 years, the OET paper examination has been the exam delivery modality for OET students.
[requires citation] In general, there are four components to OET examinations (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening).
The format of the OET test on the computer (at test locations) is the same. The test will be graded by the same highly qualified examiners that grade the paper-based OET.
Candidates can take the OET at Home exam from the comfort of their own homes. The format, scheduling, and difficulty of the OET at home will be the same as the test in the classroom. The OET measures all four language abilities – listening, reading, writing, and speaking – with a focus on communication in medical and health-care contexts.
Candidates must show that they can follow and comprehend a variety of health-related spoken materials, including patient consultations and lectures.
Part A: Excerpts from consultations (about 5 minutes each) The capacity to identify specific facts during a consultation is tested in Part A. They must listen to two recorded health professional-patient consultations and fill out the health professional's notes based on what they hear.
Part B: Excerpts from the workplace (about 1 minute each) Part B tests candidates' ability to recognise the specifics, gist, opinion, or purpose of short extracts from the healthcare workplace. They are expected to listen to six recorded extracts (e.g. team briefings, handovers, or health professional-patient dialogues) and answer one multiple-choice question for each extract.
Part C: Extracts from the presentations (about 5 minutes each) Part C tests candidates' ability to follow along with a recorded presentation or interview on a variety of healthcare issues. They must listen to two separate extracts and respond to six multiple-choice questions for each extract.
Candidates must demonstrate their ability to read and comprehend various forms of text on health-related topics.
Part A - a quick reading task (15 minutes) Part A measures candidates' ability to quickly and efficiently retrieve specific information from four short paragraphs. The four short texts each cover a particular topic in healthcare, and they must respond to 20 questions in the time allotted. Matching, sentence completion, and short answer questions make up the 20 questions.
Parts B and C – tasks requiring careful reading (45 minutes) Part B tests candidates' ability to recognise the main point, pitch, or detail of six short texts derived from the healthcare workplace (100-150 words each). Extracts from policy documents, hospital rules, manuals, or internal communications, such as emails or memos, could be found in the texts. There is one three-option multiple-choice question for each text. Part C tests applicants' ability to decipher specific meaning and express opinions in two texts on areas of interest to healthcare practitioners (800 words each). Candidates must answer eight four-option multiple choice questions for each text.
Writing a letter, usually a referral letter, is the task. A different type of letter is sometimes necessary, especially for certain professions, such as a letter of transfer or discharge, or a letter to counsel or inform a patient, caregiver, or group.
Individually, the candidate takes part in two role-plays in the Speaking sub-test. In each role-play, the candidate plays a patient, a client, or a patient's related or carer, while the interlocutor plays a patient, a client, or a patient's relative or carer. In veterinary science, the interlocutor is the animal's owner or caretaker.
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