OET Practice Test: Free Sample Questions for Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking

Looking for an OET practice test you can try right now, without signing up or downloading a PDF? This page gives you one free sample from each of the four OET sub-tests — Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking — taken from OET Bank Practice Test Vol.01, with the answers and a short explanation. You will also find the format and timing of each sub-test, so you know exactly what to expect on test day.

Every sample on this page comes from a full practice test that you can take online, with audio, timing and automatic marking, on the OET Bank practice app. Vol.01 is free.

OET test format at a glance

Sub-test	Parts	Time	Questions / tasks
Listening	Part A, B, C	about 40 minutes	42 questions
Reading	Part A, B, C	60 minutes	42 questions
Writing	1 task	45 minutes	1 letter (180–240 words)
Speaking	2 role-plays	about 20 minutes	2 role-plays of 5 minutes each

Listening and Reading are the same for every profession. Writing and Speaking are profession-specific: a nurse writes a nursing letter and plays a nurse in the role-play, a doctor a medical one, and so on.

The passing score for most registration bodies is Grade B, which is a scaled score of 350 out of 500 in each sub-test. You can read more in our guide to OET scores and passing requirements.

OET Listening practice test sample

Format. Part A (24 questions): two consultations; you complete the notes with the words you hear. Part B (6 questions): six short workplace extracts, each with one multiple-choice question. Part C (12 questions): two presentations or interviews, each with six multiple-choice questions. The audio is played once only.

Sample question — Part B (Question 25)

Play the recording once only, as in the real test, and choose the best answer before you open the transcript.

You hear a doctor speaking with the son of an elderly patient.

What is the doctor’s main purpose?

• A. outlining the next steps in managing the patient’s condition
• B. informing the son that a diagnosis has been confirmed
• C. discussing ways to improve the patient’s emotional wellbeing

Show the transcript and answer

Doctor: Hello, Mr Carter. Please, come in.
Mr Carter: Thank you, doctor.
Doctor: As you know from our last meeting, we confirmed that your father has early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. What I’d like to do today is talk through what happens from here.
Mr Carter: Right. Yes. It was hard news to take in.
Doctor: Completely understandable. Now, the memory difficulties, the disorientation, the low mood at times — these are all consistent with what we’re seeing. There are medications that may slow the progression, and I’d strongly encourage keeping him involved in regular activities at the aged care home. We’ll start him on medication and review in a few weeks to see how he’s responding.
Mr Carter: Whatever helps him. Thank you, doctor.

Answer: A. The diagnosis was confirmed at the last meeting, so B is wrong. The doctor says “What I’d like to do today is talk through what happens from here” and then describes medication and a review — in other words, the next steps. Low mood is mentioned as a symptom, not as the subject of the visit, so C is wrong too.

Tip: In Part B, the answer is almost always a paraphrase. “Talk through what happens from here” becomes “outlining the next steps”.

Try the full Listening test (free): Part A · Part B · Part C — with audio and automatic marking.

OET Reading practice test sample

Format. Part A (20 questions, 15 minutes): four short texts on one topic; you find specific information quickly. Part B (6 questions): six short workplace texts, one multiple-choice question each. Part C (16 questions): two longer articles, eight multiple-choice questions each. Parts B and C share 45 minutes.

Sample question — Part B (Question 1)

Hand Hygiene in Infection Control

Healthcare-associated infections are a major but largely preventable source of harm. Staff must clean their hands at critical moments, including:

• Before any patient contact
• After possible exposure to blood or body fluids
• After touching the patient’s surroundings

Alcohol-based hand rub is preferred for its speed and broad antimicrobial activity; however, whenever dirt or organic material is visible, soap and water are required because rubbing alone cannot mechanically remove contamination. Effective practice also depends on access to sinks and dispensers, training on technique, and a culture that supports reminders between colleagues. Compliance should be audited regularly; if rates fall, targeted feedback and brief refresher sessions should be implemented. In high-risk procedures — such as venous line insertion or dressing changes — hand hygiene must precede donning gloves; gloves do not substitute for clean hands. Visitors should be encouraged to use hand rub on entry and exit from the ward to reduce environmental transmission.

When should staff use a cleaning solution instead of alcohol-based rub?

• A. Before they come into physical contact with a patient.
• B. After leaving the clinical environment entirely.
• C. In circumstances where contamination is apparent on the hands.

Show the answer

Answer: C. The text says soap and water are required “whenever dirt or organic material is visible”. A names a moment when hands must be cleaned, but not which product; alcohol rub is in fact “preferred”. B is not one of the critical moments listed at all.

Sample question — Part A (Questions 1–3)

In Part A you have four texts (A–D) on one topic — here, peptic ulcer — and 20 questions in 15 minutes. Text A is shown below.

Text A

A peptic ulcer is an open sore or break in the lining of the stomach, the first part of the small intestine (duodenum), or occasionally the oesophagus.

Causes: infection by Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) bacteria; long-term use of NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), such as aspirin or ibuprofen; smoking cigarettes, which increases ulcer risk and impairs healing; excess stomach acid (rarely due to Zollinger-Ellison syndrome).

Key points: ulcers may be silent or cause burning pain, especially when the stomach is empty or at night; pain may improve with eating or antacids; untreated ulcers can lead to bleeding, perforation, or obstruction; diagnosis typically involves endoscopy and testing for H. pylori.

In which text can you find information about…

1. the infection and the type of medication that can cause the condition?
2. how an ulcer can create a hole through the stomach or intestine?
3. diagnostic methods such as endoscopy and the urea breath test?

Show the answers

1 — A. Text A’s “Causes” list names both H. pylori infection and NSAIDs. 2 — B. Only Text B explains the mechanism of perforation; Text A lists it as an outcome without saying how it happens. 3 — C. Text C describes the diagnostic work-up. (Texts B–D are in the full test.)

Tip: Part A is a speed test. Scan for the key words in the question (here “infection”, “medication”, “hole”, “endoscopy”) rather than reading each text from the top.

Try the full Reading test (free): Part A · Part B · Part C — timed, with automatic marking.

OET Writing practice test sample

Format. You read a set of case notes (5 minutes) and then write a letter — usually a referral, discharge or transfer letter — in 40 minutes. The body of the letter should be 180–240 words. Your letter is assessed on purpose, content, conciseness and clarity, genre and style, organisation and layout, and language.

Sample task — Nursing (Vol.01)

Assume that today’s date is 24 March 2026. You are Nicola Illingworth, a registered nurse working on Ward C24, St Clement Hospital. Ms Carol Lindqvist is a patient in your care and is ready for discharge today, provided home nursing support is arranged.

Patient: Ms Carol Lindqvist, DOB 17 May 1953. Single age pensioner; recently moved to a small flat in a new suburb; lives alone; feels increasingly lonely and isolated.

Admission (23 March 2026): Fall at home — slipped while descending stairs to put out garbage. X-ray confirmed a fractured right wrist, immobilised in a plaster cast. Laceration to left hand from broken glass.

Medical history: hypertension, currently controlled; insomnia.

Current medications: Karvea 150 mg orally each morning; Normison 10 mg at night as required; Panadol 500 mg, 1–2 tablets every 4–6 hours as required for pain.

Current condition: medically stable and suitable for discharge today; pain on movement, especially right wrist, shoulder and lower back; reduced ability to manage personal care because of the right wrist fracture.

Writing task: Using the information in the case notes, write a letter of referral to the Director, Ellenby Home Nursing Service, 1334 Echidna Place, Taralga Ridge ACT 2611, requesting home nursing support for Ms Lindqvist following her discharge. Expand the relevant notes into complete sentences. Do not use note form. Use letter format.

How to approach this task

• Purpose first. Your opening sentence should say who the patient is and why you are writing: a request for home nursing support after discharge following a fall and a fractured right wrist.
• Select, don’t copy. Not every note belongs in the letter. The home nursing service needs to know about the wrist fracture, the wound, her pain relief, her medications, that she lives alone and feels isolated, and what support you are asking for. Details that only explain the background (for example why she moved) can be left out.
• Group the notes into paragraphs: reason for referral → relevant history and current condition → medications → social situation → the specific requests.
• Stay in range. 180–240 words in the body. Going well over costs marks for conciseness.

The full task in the app includes the complete case notes, a model answer and a line-by-line note on which case notes were used and which were omitted, and why.

Try the full Writing task (free): Nursing · Medicine.

OET Speaking practice test sample

Format. After a short warm-up, you do two role-plays of about five minutes each, with three minutes to prepare for each one. The examiner plays the patient (or a carer). You are assessed on clinical communication (relationship building, understanding the patient’s perspective, giving information, structure) as well as language (intelligibility, fluency, appropriateness, grammar and expression).

Sample role-play — Nursing (Vol.01): Blood transfusion

Setting: Hospital casualty (emergency) ward.

Nurse: The patient is a 35-year-old man who was in a road accident. He is stable but has lost blood and needs a blood transfusion. He feels weak, has a headache, and is anxious because he read online about HIV transmission in the past. You are seeing the patient to explain the transfusion procedure, address concerns, and obtain consent.

Task:

• Greet the patient and ask how they are feeling.
• Explore their concerns and encourage them to explain what they are most worried about.
• Reassure the patient clearly that the risk of HIV today is extremely small (donors are screened carefully and all donated blood is tested for infections).
• Explain the transfusion procedure in simple terms (a new, sterile needle and tubing; a needle inserted into a vein, usually in the arm, to set up an IV line; usually one to four hours).
• Explain the risks (low risk of infection; possible allergic reactions such as itching or hives despite correct matching; possible fever) and the need to report any unusual symptoms.
• Emphasise that the transfusion is important for recovery because he lost a lot of blood.
• Check whether the patient feels ready to go ahead, and reassure him that you will stay with him during the procedure.

What the patient will do, and useful language

The patient will tell you he feels weak and worried, express his fear of HIV or other infections, ask how the blood is checked and whether it is safe, and ask what will happen during the transfusion (Will it hurt? How long does it take?).

Useful patterns from the full material:

• How are you feeling right now?
• It’s normal to feel worried after an accident. Can you tell me what is making you feel most anxious?
• I can reassure you that… / What happens is… / The whole thing usually takes…

In the app, the patient’s lines are recorded, you record your own replies turn by turn, and then you compare your answer with a model response.

Try the full role-play (free): Nursing · Medicine.

How to use these practice tests

1. Do each sub-test under test conditions once — timed, no pausing the audio, no dictionary — to find your real starting level.
2. Mark your answers and read every explanation, including for the questions you got right. OET questions are built on paraphrase, and the explanations show you the paraphrase each time.
3. Keep a list of the medical vocabulary you missed. Many Listening and Reading errors are vocabulary errors. Our Medical English Body Parts A–Z and the Word of the Day posts cover the terms that come up most often.
4. Repeat with a new volume. OET Bank has more than 25 full practice tests for Listening and Reading, plus Writing and Speaking by profession.

Frequently asked questions

Is this OET practice test free? Yes. Practice Test Vol.01 — Listening, Reading, Writing (nursing and medicine) and Speaking (nursing and medicine) — is free on the OET Bank practice app, with audio, timing and automatic marking. No payment details are needed.

Can I download the OET practice test as a PDF? The free tests are designed to be taken online so that the audio, timer and marking work as they do in the real test. If you need a printable version for a class, contact us.

How many questions are in the OET test? Listening has 42 questions, Reading has 42 questions, Writing is one letter, and Speaking is two role-plays.

Is OET easier than IELTS for healthcare professionals? Not easier, but more relevant: the tasks are the ones you already do at work. See our comparison of OET Grade B and IELTS 7.

Which professions can take OET? Twelve: medicine, nursing, dentistry, dietetics, occupational therapy, optometry, pharmacy, physiotherapy, podiatry, radiography, speech pathology and veterinary science. Listening and Reading are the same for all of them.