TOEFL(R) and TOEIC(R) Programs Set Global Standard for English-Language Assessment

PRINCETON, N.J., June 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Educational Testing Service( http://www.ets.org ) (ETS) last year administered approximately eight million English-language assessments through its TOEFL(R)( http://www.ets.org/toefl ) and TOEIC(R)( http://www.ets.org/toeic ) assessment programs. The assessments are used by more than 22,000 organizations in 150 countries.

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With almost two billion English-language speakers around the world English has become an increasingly important international language used by people from different geographic, cultural and linguistic backgrounds to communicate with each other. As such, the need for assessing English-language proficiency for the global workplace and educational institutions continues to grow. As the world leader in English-language assessments, ETS's TOEFL and TOEIC tests meet this demand.

"Global businesses, educational institutions and government entities need to recruit highly qualified candidates that will be able to perform in a competitive environment," said David Hunt, ETS Vice President and COO of ETS's Global division. "The TOEFL and TOEIC tests help these institutions make well-informed decisions regarding applicants' abilities to effectively communicate across borders."

The TOEFL test is the international standard -- used by more than 8,500 colleges, universities and agencies -- for measuring academic English proficiency at the university level. Moreover, the TOEFL test measures how well an individual is able to combine listening, reading, speaking and writing skills to perform academic tasks. The assessment offers a comprehensive and reliable tool to measure the English proficiency skills of individuals from around the world.

The TOEIC tests are the international standard for assessing an individual's English-language proficiency level for the workforce, measuring how well a potential employee can apply their English-language skills in a practical working environment. Currently, nearly 14,000 organizations use TOEIC scores to build a stronger workforce. In addition, job seekers trust TOEIC scores to differentiate themselves in a competitive job market. TOEIC assessments measure all four language skills and provide descriptions of a test taker's strengths and weaknesses that can be used to inform critical hiring and placement decisions. Furthermore, the TOEIC testing process is standardized, so organizations can use TOEIC test scores to place, develop and promote employees from and within any country or region in the world.

For more information about the TOEFL program, please visit http://www.ets.org/toefl. For more information about the TOEIC program, please visit http://www.ets.org/toeic.

About the TOEFL Test

The TOEFL test of academic English is the most widely accepted English-language assessment worldwide, recognized by more than 8,500 institutions in more than 130 countries, including Australia, the U.K., Canada and the United States. To date, more than 27 million students have taken the TOEFL test. For more information on the TOEFL test visit the TOEFL website at www.ets.org/toefl.

About the TOEIC Tests

For more than 30 years the TOEIC test has been the global standard for measuring workplace English-language communication skills. The TOEIC assessment family, including the TOEIC Listening and Reading test, the TOEIC Speaking and Writing tests and the TOEIC Bridge(TM) test are used by nearly 14,000 businesses, organizations, and government agencies in 150 countries. In 2012, almost seven million TOEIC tests were administered worldwide, solidifying the TOEIC Program as the largest and most widely used English-language assessment for the workplace. For more information on the TOEIC tests and other services provided by the TOEIC Program visit www.ets.org/toeic.

About ETS

At ETS, we advance quality and equity in education for people worldwide by creating assessments based on rigorous research. ETS serves individuals, educational institutions and government agencies by providing customized solutions for teacher certification, English language learning, and elementary, secondary and post-secondary education, as well as conducting education research, analysis and policy studies. Founded as a nonprofit in 1947, ETS develops, administers and scores more than 50 million tests annually -- including the TOEFL(R) and TOEIC(R) tests, the GRE(R) tests and The Praxis Series(TM) assessments -- in more than 180 countries, at over 9,000 locations worldwide. www.ets.org

SOURCE Educational Testing Service