PTE-A Strategy: How Nitika Scored 87 With Tips & Tricks

PTE Academic

September 27,2019

Preparing for the PTE Academic exam is more challenging for working professionals. Taking out time for PTE preparation after work and other tasks can be difficult.

To the first-time test-taker, PTE-A looks like a straight forward test of English. No sweat, right? Nitika Gairola was under the same impression.

But soon, she got a reality check, for the better, and achieved her desired PTE score of 87.

First, A Little About Nitika's Background

She is from Delhi, India. A working professional with Accenture, Nitika had applied for Australia PR. She wanted to move abroad with her daughter.

Now, Nitika thought she could take the test without any guidance the first time. She planned to seek coaching, depending on how well she does in the exam.

Nitika was confident she would sail through the PTE-A test. She was well-versed in English.

She had grown up speaking English in her childhood, school, college. Even now in her professional life, English is the go-to language.

Nitika's PTE-A Preparation Journey

A friend of Nitika's, who had endured through repeated PTE-A attempts, impressed upon her that it was a bad idea. The friend explained that many attempts are a drain on money and time.

Repeated attempts are also frustrating for the test-taker. Based on her friend's advice, Nitika decided to take online coaching from PTE Tutorials. She opted for Weekend Coaching and our tutor Sushma worked together with her.

As Nitika started her preparation, she understood what the pain-points were:

Little to no time for preparation
No idea where to start

As Nitika browsed through the various resources on our portal, she felt overwhelmed. In her own words, "I did not know where I should start from."

Time was an issue for her, given that she also had to take care of her daughter. PTE-A coach Sushma simplified things. She advised Nitika to start with the Exam Memories materials for May and June.

So, Nitika began practising with the exam memories materials. These materials consist of repeated questions asked in PTE-A. Along with that, she improved her time-management with mock tests.

Whenever she had a doubt or a question, Nitika would post it on the PTE Tutorials Telegram group.

She would readily receive responses in the 17K+ member group. Either tutor Sushma, other tutors or aspirants were there to answer queries.

Nitika could also call her tutor up to get her doubts cleared whenever the need arose. For a test-taker who was always short of time, this proved to be a blessing.

Nitika's PTE-A Test Experience: Why Tips and Tricks Are Critical

So we asked Nitika about the test experience and suggestions for other test-takers.

Here's what she said:

The test room is going to be very noisy during the Speaking Module
Don't get distracted by the noise
Remember that 3 seconds of silence means that the mic will get turned off
Practice for Speaking Module in a noisy environment, where a lot of people are talking at the same time
The PTE-A is not only a test of how well you speak English. A lot depends on how you perform in the test
It is best when you depend on tips, tricks and strategies to know how to perform the best
During the test, even if you have made a mistake, move on to what's next.
Don't lose time overthinking the error, as the PTE-A is a timed test

Need help?

No matter what stage of PTE-A preparation you are at, we can help solve your doubts or queries. For one-to-one guidance, feedback, and proven strategies, reach out to us.