<p>Hi everyone! I'm new in the forum! I'm currently having this huge problem regarding the TOEFL preparation, more exactly i don't even know how to better prepare for this test! I already speak english fluently and i aim to score really high at the test! I tried some courses in my home country but to be honest they were awful! Classes were overcrowded, the teacher was not good at explaining what we gotta do, he simply read from the book and then we did exercises that were not realistic and so useless for my preparation (but no suprise, since i live in Italy and here courses are all like that, horrible!). So after this bad experience i have decided to attend some courses in the US, my choice would be Kaplan or ELS, both in NYC. I have no problem in understanding, speaking or wrinting in english, but i would like to be more familiar with the test in order to score higher, so i think that regardless the level of your english a course is required, am i wrong? Also teachers can give you tips. Does anyone have any experience with the TOEFL prep of these schools? Any better alternative or suggestion? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you!</p>
<p>If your English is good, all you need is 1° a good prep book 2° a set of OFFICIAL practice tests. Work consistently on your own - good prep books will have tricks to teach you but that’s not as important as simply being familiar with the testn format. No need to go to the US for that, although of course spending some time here would help you with fluency. Finally, it’s not important to score super high on the TOEFL. That’s not where they look. All you need is the score they want. Then, they look at your SAT or ACT score, and THAT is where you’re ranked/measured against others. So SAT/ACT is where you want to score really high.</p>
<p>Thanks MYOS1634! So what kind of students apply for these courses? What do they learn? Is it a wast of money? I think that maybe a small course of a month in the US won’t hurt me. I mean if i do the prep all on my own, something i’m not familiar with, i will never know if i’m doing anything wrong, a teacher will notice that.</p>
<p>Though there is nothing wrong with aiming to score high on the TOEFL, making such a fuss about it is redundant. The TOEFL is simply a testimony to your English fluency. There is no cut-off in many universities, but once you’ve scored above 100 they just don’t care about it anymore. Some schools even help you rid the burden of paying an awful lot of money to send in the TOEFL scores if you score above 720 in the CR section of the SAT. So what I suggest is that you should chill, buy some Barron’s prep books, and save the money to pay for your SAT courses.</p>
<p>PKMGSoledad i will take your advice and save some money. Thank you!</p>
<p>MYOS1634 thank you too!</p>
<p>I’m preparing for the TOEFL in Italy too! I know that courses here are awful! I didn’t even try to attend one of them. I’m followed by a native English speaker. She has already prepared other teens for this exam and they passed with high scores. I have the Barron’s preparing book and it’s very helpful. If you want to share your experience with me, PM me!!</p>
<p>I had a toefl preparation problem, too. My reading, writing, speaking skills bad. People said not that kind of bad. But for me its awful. Because my knowledge so messy.</p>
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<p>Yes i had a Barron’s book, too. it so worthful. Especially writing book.</p>