OET Exam Pattern 2026: Section-wise OET Format & Marking Scheme

The OET exam consists of four sub-tests: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking, with each assessing a different English skill in a healthcare context. Healthcare professionals applying to work in any of the OET Accepted Countries must clear all four sub-tests to prove their English proficiency.

The table below provides an overview of the OET exam pattern.

The OET Reading test is a 60-minute examination consisting of 42 questions across three parts designed to evaluate how quickly and accurately healthcare professionals can read and understand medical texts.

The table below provides an overview of the OET Reading test structure.

OET Writing is one of four sub-tests and lasts around 45 minutes. The job is industry-specific and based on a real working scenario.

The assignment is to compose a letter. This letter is often a referral letter, and it may include the following:

• It might be a letter advising or informing a patient.
• It may also mean guiding a caregiver or group in Veterinary Science, Pharmacy, Occupational Therapy, and Speech Pathology.
• Another objective can be to write a response to a complaint.

This writing activity will evaluate your English abilities as well as your competence.

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The OET Speaking Subtest takes roughly 20 minutes for each student separately. This OET exam pattern uses materials explicitly designed for the appropriate profession. Each time a role-play is performed, the applicant plays a professional role (for instance, a nurse or a chemist), and the interlocutor plays a patient, client, or relative of the patient or carer. In veterinary science, the interlocutor is the animal's owner.

A short warm-up talk about the interlocutor's expertise, identification, and professional checks is included in each Speaking exam. The applicant is then given three seconds to prepare for each round. Each role-playing session lasts about five minutes.

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The OET exam pattern of the listening test is divided into three sections. There are various points that you must follow before taking the exam.

• These three sections deal with real-life healthcare scenarios and workplace discussions.
• You must answer 42 questions in total.
• The Listening audio is forty minutes long, including breaks to enable you to type your responses.
• Each recording can only be listened to once.
• Note-completion tasks & multiple-choice questions are examples of question types.

The table below displays the Listening Exam Tasks & Duration.

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The OET computer-based and paper-based formats share the same difficulty level, timing, and recognition by healthcare regulators, differing primarily in how you interact with the test materials and the delivery of the writing and speaking sections.

The OET exam syllabus consists of four sections: Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. Each section has a different format and duration, testing different skills and healthcare topics.

• The Listening section has three parts: consultation extracts, short workplace extracts and presentation extracts. It has a total of 42 questions.
• The Reading section has three parts: a summary task, multiple-choice questions and a matching task. It also has 42 questions.
• The Writing section requires you to write a letter based on a case note. You can choose from 12 different areas of healthcare, such as medicine, nursing, dentistry, etc.
• The Speaking section involves two role-plays where you interact with an interlocutor who plays the role of a patient or a client. You can also choose from 12 different areas of healthcare for this section.

The OET exam pattern tests different skills at different stages of each sub-test. In Reading, you need to work quickly in Part A to locate key information, while Parts B and C require you to focus more on understanding details and viewpoints. Listening also progresses from patient consultations to shorter workplace extracts and longer presentations. Understanding this structure can help you tailor your preparation to the demands of each part. 

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