How does PTE Academic mark different accents?

PTE Author
PTE Author
Image- Two Asian man in a cafe setting- 800px
Reading time: 2 minutes

Your accent will not stand in the way of success!

Everyone has an accent. You might even be a proficient or fluent English speaker, but with an accent, other people find hard to understand.

So how does your accent affect your score when you take PTE Academic?

Because PTE Academic is marked by a computer, it can cut out potential obstacles, such as a human examiner being unfamiliar with your particular accent.

When the automated scoring program was being designed the computer was trained using candidates from over 126 countries, speaking more than 90 different languages, so it recognizes accents from around the globe. As a result, PTE Academic’s automated scoring technology recognizes and marks everyone’s speech equally and with equal accuracy, regardless of where they are from. What the PTE Academic scoring engine looks for is intelligibility and clarity of response (not which accent you are speaking in) – did you answer in a clear and understandable way that any international speaker of English would understand?

To hear more on this, listen as one of our leading independent advisors, Dr Alistair Van Moere, a member of Pearson’s Technical Advisory Group, explains how it works.

Play
Privacy and cookies
By watching, you agree Pearson can share your viewership data for marketing and analytics for one year, revocable upon changing cookie preferences. Disabling cookies may affect video functionality. More info...

About Dr. Van Moere

Dr. Alistair Van Moere is the Chief Product Officer at MetaMetrics Inc. where his role is to drive innovation in assessments and learning and to help individuals and organizations make sense of measurement and test scores. Through the Lexile® Framework for Reading, Alistair’s work extends to over 35 million learners in 180 countries, who get connected with learning resources at their level and have their progress monitored against standards. 

Learn more about the PTE Technical Advisory Group

Ready to book?

Check availability and book your test today.

Book PTE Academic now

Related Content

  • [Asset] Girl looking out over cityscape background
    Convenience matters: how to pick an English test that works for you
    By PTE Author

    When your schedule is packed and deadlines are approaching, choosing an English test that works around your life can make all the difference. You need a test that fits your timeline without creating extra admin, travel, or waiting around.

    A convenient English test isn’t just “short.” It’s a test you can book quickly, take in a way that suits your life, and get results fast while still meeting the requirements of your university, employer, or visa pathway. PTE is designed around that real-world need: fast, fair, and simple.

    Five practical questions to guide your choice

    Before you book, ask yourself:

    1. Will my score be accepted where I want to apply?

    2. How easy is it to book a test date that works for me?

    3. Can I take the test in a location that fits my life?

    4. Is the test design simple and intuitive?

    5. How long will I wait for results?

    Use these questions to compare your options and choose a test that fits your timeline, not one that forces you to change it.

  • Higher-Education-Students-in-the-UK
    New DHA visa requirements for PTE Academic
    By PTE Author
    Reading time: 5 minutes

    The Australian Department for Home Affairs (DHA) recently updated their score requirements for all accepted tests of language proficiency. The new score requirements take effect from 7 August 2025.

    What are the new score requirements? 

    From 7 August, anyone who takes the test for DHA visa purposes will need to meet updated score requirements.

    The table below shows the old and new score requirements for each score.

    We have also created a more accessible version of this table at the end of this article.

  • PTE changes 2025: everything you need to know
    By PTE Author

    We’ve made a few updates to the PTE Academic and PTE Academic UKVI tests. To make sure you’ve got the facts, we’ve created a short video that walks you through everything you need to know.

    Hosted by Jarrad, one of our product managers, this video covers what’s being updated, what’s staying the same, and how it all benefits you as a test taker.

    What’s covered in the video? 

    • The original 20 question types are still in the test.

    • We are adding two new speaking question types to give you even more chance to demonstrate your skills.  

    • Tips on how to prepare for the new speaking question types.

    • There are no changes to pricing, ID requirements, or score delivery time.

    • There are no changes to the way the test is taken (including the Speaking section).