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OET Preparation: Format, Scoring and Practice
OET is the healthcare English test used for health professional licensing. It has four sub-tests, is scored 0 to 500, and most regulators require Grade B, which is 350, in every sub-test, not on average. Eight questions below on the format and the scoring rule that catches people out.
This page covers how the test works and how UAE licensing fits around it. It is not affiliated with OET, and every figure here should be confirmed on the official site before you book.
The four sub-tests
Listening and Reading are the same for every profession. Writing and Speaking use material from your own field, which is why you book OET for a named profession rather than in general. Each card links to related practice in our English quiz section.
Listening and Reading you can drill on your own. Writing and Speaking are profession specific and marked on clinical communication as well as language, which is why those two are the ones we work on in one to one online classes (fees in AED).
Where OET fits in UAE health licensing
Licensing in the UAE is handled per emirate. Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates each run their own authority, portal and licensing exam, and a licence is generally not transferable between them.
OET is an English requirement that sits alongside that process, not a replacement for it. You will still sit the licensing exam for your authority, and you will still go through credential verification. What OET does is satisfy the English evidence element where that authority accepts it.
- Confirm with your authority first. Accepted tests, minimum grades and validity periods are set by the regulator, not by OET, and they change.
- Apply to the emirate you will work in. A licence for one does not automatically let you work in another.
- Check whether sub-test results can be combined across two sittings. Some regulators allow it, some do not, and it decides whether a weak sub-test means retaking one paper or all four.
Worth being blunt about the order. English evidence is the one piece you can start on today; credential verification and the licensing exam run on the regulator's clock rather than yours. If you are not yet sure Grade B is reachable this year, a CEFR level test takes ten minutes and tells you more than a booking confirmation does. Some authorities list IELTS as an alternative to OET, so check what yours accepts before you commit: IELTS fees and centres in Dubai are set out separately. And the writing sub-test rewards the same discipline as ordinary work email, selecting what matters and cutting the rest, which is what the workplace writing set drills.
Licensing rules change and differ by profession. Confirm the current requirement with the relevant UAE health authority and with OET directly. Nothing here is a substitute for checking your own case.
OET or IELTS?
If you work in healthcare and your regulator accepts both, OET is usually the more natural fit, because the material is clinical. If you also need a score for a visa or a university, IELTS is accepted more widely outside healthcare.
| OET | IELTS | |
|---|---|---|
| Content | Healthcare throughout | General or academic |
| Scale | 0 to 500, grades A to E | Bands 0 to 9 |
| Writing task | A referral letter from case notes | An essay, plus a report or letter |
| Speaking | Role plays as the clinician | Interview and long turn |
| Accepted for | Health regulators that list it | Study, work and migration broadly |
If you need one test to cover both a licence and a visa, check whether your visa route accepts OET before assuming it does. Many do not, and that is the usual reason healthcare candidates end up sitting both. Our IELTS in Dubai page covers fees and centres if you need that route too.
All questions, answers and explanations
8 questions · every answer explained
The full set is below, so you can read it without taking the quiz.
How many sub-tests does OET have?
- ATwo
- BThree
- CFour correct
- DFive
Why: Four: Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. Listening and Reading are common to all professions; Writing and Speaking are specific to yours.
What score is Grade B, the level most regulators ask for?
- A300
- B350 correct
- C400
- D450
Why: 350 on the 0 to 500 scale. Most health regulators require at least 350 in every sub-test, not an average across them.
You score 380, 360, 355 and 340. Do you meet a Grade B requirement?
- AYes, the average is above 350
- BNo, one sub-test is below 350 correct
- CYes, three of four is enough
- DIt depends on the profession
Why: No. The requirement is normally 350 in EVERY sub-test. An average does not help you, and this is the single most expensive misunderstanding candidates have.
What makes OET different from IELTS?
- AIt is shorter
- BIts content is healthcare specific correct
- CIt is computer only
- DIt has no speaking test
Why: OET uses healthcare material throughout: patient notes, case histories, a referral letter, and role plays with a patient. IELTS uses general or academic material.
What is the OET Writing task for most professions?
- AAn essay
- BA referral or discharge letter correct
- CA report on a graph
- DA personal statement
Why: You write a letter, usually a referral, based on case notes provided. You are marked on selecting the relevant information, not on writing everything you were given.
What happens in OET Speaking?
- AA presentation
- BTwo role plays with an interlocutor correct
- CA group discussion
- DA recorded monologue
Why: Two role plays in your professional role, with the interlocutor playing a patient or carer. You are assessed on clinical communication as well as language.
Which sub-tests are the same for every profession?
- AListening and Reading correct
- BWriting and Speaking
- CAll four
- DNone
Why: Listening and Reading are shared across professions. Writing and Speaking use materials specific to your profession, which is why you book OET for a named profession.
If you need to raise one sub-test, what should you check first?
- AWhether your regulator accepts sub-test results combined from two sittings correct
- BWhether you can appeal
- CWhether OET is easier in another country
- DNothing, retake everything
Why: Some regulators accept results combined across sittings and some do not. Confirm with your regulator before booking, because the answer decides whether you retake one sub-test or all four.
Frequently asked questions
What is OET and who needs it in the UAE?
OET is the Occupational English Test, an English exam built around healthcare communication. In the UAE it is commonly accepted as evidence of English for health professional licensing, alongside the licensing exams run by the health authorities.
What OET score do I need?
Most regulators ask for Grade B, which is 350 on the 0 to 500 scale, in each of the four sub-tests. Requirements differ by authority and profession, so confirm the exact figure with the body you are applying to before booking.
Is OET easier than IELTS for nurses?
Not easier, but usually more familiar. The vocabulary, the case notes and the role plays are all clinical, so a nurse or doctor is reading and talking about work they already know. Candidates outside healthcare often find IELTS more straightforward.
How long are OET results valid?
Commonly around two years, though the body accepting your result sets its own validity period. Check with your regulator rather than assuming, particularly if your licensing application may take months.
Which UAE authority licenses me?
It depends on where you will work: Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates each have their own health authority, portal and exam. Licences are generally not transferable between emirates, so apply to the one for your intended workplace.
Can I prepare for OET online?
Yes. We teach OET preparation one to one online at AED 1,038 a month, focused on the two sub-tests that fail most candidates, Writing and Speaking. The AED 30 demo assesses whether Grade B is realistic in your timeframe.
More practice
Writing and Speaking are where Grade B is lost
Listening and Reading improve with practice you can do alone. The referral letter and the role plays need someone to tell you what a marker will take off for. OET preparation is AED 1,038 a month, one to one, and the AED 30 demo tells you whether Grade B is reachable before your test date.
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Every WizMantra UAE course, and every emirate we teach in
Every WizMantra UAE course runs the same way: live, one to one, online, scheduled around your week in Gulf Standard Time. Pick a course to see what it covers and what it costs, or pick your emirate.
Not in one of these emirates? Every class is online, so the fees are the same everywhere in the UAE.
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