My previous post talks about IELTS and best IELTS courses on Udemy to help you prepare for the test. Now let’s tackle another bad-
But first, let’s clear the most obvious question: What the heck is TOEFL?
TOEFL is short for Test Of English as a Foreign Language. The main TOEFL website says it’s a standardized exam to measure the English language ability of non-native speakers wishing to enroll in English-speaking universities.
Now that its importance is clear, let’s look at the 9 best TOEFL courses on the Udemy platform.
1. The Complete TOEFL iBT Success Course
Length: 10 hours
Total students: 2.300+
Includes: 1 article, 25 downloadable resources, 2 practice tests, assignments
Requirements: a minimum of intermediate level of English
Instructor
Maria Guryeva – Private Coach on Applying to US Universities
Maria Guryeva is a private consultant on applying to Ivy League and other top American schools. She prepares students for international exams such as TOEFL, SAT, GRE, GMAT, IELTS, and revising their application materials, advising them on polishing their applications and helping them get financial aid.
What You’ll Learn
The aim of this Complete TOEFL iBT Success Course is to fully prepare you to the TOEFL iBT test so that you receive a score of 100 points or more. This course will get you ready for all parts of the TOEFL test.
- It focuses on how to read the text in the Reading section so that you can save time and keep your concentration. It will also analyze question types and discuss the test makers’ favorite traps that you need to watch out for.
- In the Listening section, Maria will show you what to pay attention to while you listen, what question types to expect and what traps to avoid.
- In the Speaking section, you will get some word-by-word templates that you can use in each of your speaking tasks.
- Ready-made templates for your Writing section, which will make composing your essays super easy, will also be offered.
After the course, you can expect to pass TOEFL for the score sufficient to enroll the most prestigious American universities.
Why Choose This Course
What I like about this Udemy course is that it’s a practical course. Along with step-by-step explanations with good examples, you will also learn about tactics and secrets to succeed on the TOEFL test.
The instructor knows the test completely and she helps you feel that it is not as difficult to pass them as you have probably thought. She has a lot of energy and transmits them really well.
But what impresses me is that at the end of the course, you can submit two of your essays and Maria will revise it for you as a good-bye gift. That “Submit your essays” button is exactly what I was looking for when I learned Writing.
This course is suitable for anyone who wants to succeed in the TOEFL iBT exam.
2. TOEFL iBT Complete Online Preparation Course!
Length: 31 hours
Total students: 5.000+
Includes: 7 articles, 30 downloadable resources, assignments
Requirements: a minimum of intermediate level of English
Instructor
Keino Campbell – TOEFL iBT and IELTS Specialist
Keino Campbell is an IELTS and TOEFL specialist who has developed courses for international exams for 10 years. He has lived and taught in multiple countries, including China, Brazil, The Ivory Coast, Kazakhstan, and Georgia. This experience provides him with a true insight into the needs and viewpoints of all of his international students.
What You’ll Learn
This TOEFL iBT complete online preparation course is organized by skills: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking. Each skill area has four key components:
- Starting out: introducing the strategies and tactics for each area, explaining task types and providing hints not only on how to prepare but also on how to achieve the best marks on each test section.
- Advice and tutorial videos: Our experts explain the application of tactics and strategies.
- Practice zone: candidates practice tackling the various question types.
- Test practice: candidates simulate the test experience with mock tests.
After the course, you can expect to
- be familiar with all parts of the TOEFL test;
- have some useful tips to help you achieve your TOEFL goals;
- understand how the TOEFL test is assessed.
Why Choose This Course
Learning the TOEFL iBT is a challenge because it is not simply about knowing English, but actually requires test strategy and tactics that have proven results. The TOEFL iBT is a completely online exam and so your taking this online course will allow you to study in the format that is best for the exam.
This course is very well organized and full of content to be used in the real exam. The instructor is very experienced, the methods and materials provided are excellent for TOEFL IBT.
International students, nurses, pharmacist, dentist, and physical therapist will be most likely to benefit from this course.
3. TOEFL iBT 120 | Vocabulary Course to Score a 120
Length: 6.5 hours
Total students: 4.000+
Includes: 106 downloadable resources, assignments
Requirements: a minimum of intermediate level of English
Instructor
For Your English – English Language Coach
Kallan is the founder of English Language Coach, where you Learn how to improve your English grammar, speaking, listening, pronunciation, business English, American slang, idioms, phrasal verbs and how to master the IELTS and TOEFL iBT exams.
What You’ll Learn
TOEFL iBT 120 | Vocabulary Course to Score a 120 combines vocabulary from the 3 most popular TOEFL prep books, to teach only the TOEFL vocabulary you must know for a 90-120 score!
After the course, you can expect to
- have a native level (C2) of English vocabulary required for a 120 score
- improve your vocabulary for general conversation, business English, and school
Why Choose This Course
One of the easiest ways to memorize vocabulary is to learn and organize them according to their own themes. Lucky for you, there are nine different topics included in this course:
- Family & Growing Up
- Mental & Physical Development
- Health & Fitness
- Hobbies & Interests
- Habits & Lifestyle
- Education & Student Living
- Effective Communication
- Travel & Accommodation
- History & Time
So, you don’t need to worry about having enough English vocabulary to thrive in the exam.
This course is suitable for anyone who wants to attain:
- a TOEFL score of 90-120;
- level C2 (native) vocabulary to understand 100% during the TOEFL
4. Advanced English Grammar Course (TOEFL and IELTS)
Length: 2 hours
Total students: 2.500+
Includes: 1 article, 16 downloadable resources
Requirements: a minimum of intermediate level of English
Instructor
Annamária Ibos – English Grammar Expert with students all over the world
Annamária Ibos has been teaching English for more than 10 years. As a non-native speaker from a very different language family, Annamária knows how hard it is to understand and use English grammar.
She also has a bachelor degree in the field of English philology and C2/Proficiency English Language certificate so she has a deeper look into English grammar, which enables her to give you a simple and clear explanation.
What You’ll Learn
The 10 lectures contain common grammar structures such as:
- had better/would rather
- it’s time
- used to/to be/get used to
- enough, too
- linking verbs
- inversion
- advanced “if” (had it been for, supposing, even if…)
- and other basic English grammar topics that occur at TOEFL and IELTS for sure.
All sections include 2 parts: a short video explaining the English grammar rules you need to know for TOEFL and IELTS exams, and then practice activities which help you practice the given English grammar rules. You also get a key to each question, so you can learn from your own mistakes as well and you will be able to use these structures at TOEFL or IELTS as well.
After the course, you can expect to
- create better essays at TOEFL or IELTS exams;
- reach higher scores at the speaking section of TOEFL and IELTS exams;
- acquire a comprehensive knowledge of the essential advanced English grammar parts for TOEFL or IELTS exams;
- fine tune your English grammar knowledge and sound more like a native speaker;
- use the trickiest English grammar parts up to the advanced level of English grammar.
Why Choose This Course
I truly believe that if you love a language, you are capable of learning it and speaking it correctly. The key is to make it fun and efficient.
With this course, the most difficult English grammar parts will turn out to be easy. You will face no obstacles at TOEFL or IELTS exams.
This course is assembled for those who:
- need TOEFL or IELTS language exam for their work or going to university abroad
- have passed the intermediate level but would like to improve their English grammar knowledge
- prepare to work or learn abroad and getting high scores at TOEFL or IELTS exam is essential
5. Avoid 150 Common Mistakes in IELTS, TOEFL, SAT, FCE, and CAE
Total students: 1.000+
Includes: 6 practice tests
Requirements: none is listed
Instructor
Amin Ali – Data Scientist cum Instructional Designer
Amin Ali has been in the teaching profession for the last eighteen years to almost fourteen nationalities in the field of Computer Science, Mathematics and English Language. His teaching experience also includes the following:
- Assessing and monitorring student progress.
- Planning, preparing and delivering lessons to classes.
- Encouraging students to actively contribute throughout the class.
- Using an up-to-date and dynamic teaching methodology which allows students to learn easily.
- Researching and devising entertaining, amusing, interesting, creative, productive lessons for students.
- Teaching and training specialized designed courses.
- Designing and developing curriculum for coursework and examinations.
What You’ll Learn
It has often been found that learners of English as a second language commit some errors frequently in the use of grammar. This course will help in understanding such errors. And make them confident to use of language a fairly error-free one. The course has been designed for test takers of IELTS, TOEFL, SAT, FCE, and CAE.
After the course, you can expect to
- audit your spoken and written grammar knowledge;
- realize mistakes you frequently make in international exams like IELTS, TOEFL, SAT, FCE, and CAE and how to avoid them.
Why Choose This Course
This course provides 6 different quizzes, each with 25 questions. In total, you get up to 150 exercises to practice with. After finishing with these homeworks, you’re bound to remember the grammar rules or errors whether you like to or not.
Learners of English Language who want to control and rectify mistakes of their spoken and written English grammar, learners who wish to check their grammar and vocabulary knowledge, learners who are getting ready for the tests of IELTS, TOEFL, SAT, FCE, and CAE would find this course beneficial.
6. Improve Your English with TOEFL Speaking Success
Length: 6.5 hours
Total students: 2.700+
Includes: 55 downloadable resources
Requirements: a basic understanding of the TOEFL test
Instructor
Josh MacPherson – TOEFL and ESL Instructor
Josh MacPherson is the Academic Coordinator of the Intensive English and TOEFL programs at a community college in midtown Manhattan. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education and a master’s degree in ESL Curriculum and Instruction. Over the past ten years, Josh has taught English, American History and TOEFL test prep in New York, Korea, and Japan. In his free time, he utilizes the same advice he gives to his students to study Japanese.
What You’ll Learn
This course will walk you through every single part of the TOEFL speaking section by reviewing and analyzing each of the six speaking questions. Josh will model answers and show you all the necessary elements you need to include in your response on test day.
Besides teaching about the content of the exam, Josh also focuses on you, the English language learner. Our goal should not just be to improve our TOEFL speaking score but to become more competent English speakers in general. For you to speak English with more confidence, he’ll talk about mindset, culture, personal values, and emotional connection.
After the course, you can expect to
- gain a deeper understanding of the structure of academic English, American culture, your personal values, and the power of a growth mindset.
Why Choose This Course
The instructor is very professional and knows how to relate to problems and difficulties of learners of English.
He is also a great motivator. When he encouraged students to be relaxed, saying what matters is to get yourself communicative as opposed to being right, I felt relieved and comforted.
Intermediate and advanced English language learners and international students preparing for the TOEFL exam are the targeted audiences of this course.
7. TOEFL iBT (The Complete Course)
Length: 4 hours
Total students: 3.400+
Requirements: a minimum of intermediate level of English
Instructor
Jane Cui – Teaching over 20,000+ students worldwide!
Every course I teach is delivered from the heart with honesty and experience. I like to speak really slowly and say things that are easily understood.
I used to be a teacher, AND a student. A lot of the things that I teach, I have learned recently. So I know what it’s like to be a student and what things students have difficulty with.
What you’ll learn
There are 110 videos, most of which are less than 3 minutes long. The course covers every section of the TOEFL (Reading, Listening, Speaking, Writing) with practice questions, answer keys, and an explanation of answers.
You will also learn how to take notes on every section and get a list of things you should memorize.
After the course, you can expect to
- speak with confidence in the Speaking Section;
- pick more correct answers in the TOEFL Reading Section;
- use test-taking tactics to eliminate wrong answers in a flash;
- read passages faster and identify key concepts to answer multiple-choice questions;
- take fast notes that help you pick the right answers in the TOEFL Listening Section.
Why choose this course
The course videos are short. Most videos are less than 3 minutes long. Each video focuses on one thing, so it’s quite easy to remember.
This entire course is short. Only things that appear on the TOEFL will be referred to.
Anyone who needs to take the TOEFL English Test will find this course useful.
8. TOEFL English Vocabulary
Length: 1.5 hours
Total students: 14.000+
Includes: 2 articles, 1 downloadable resource
Requirements: basic reading and listening skills
Instructor
This is another course by Jane Cui, so I’m gonna skip this part.
What You’ll Learn
You will learn 100 TOEFL vocabulary words with cartoon pictures in this course.
After the course, you can expect to
- read and understand words from the TOEFL reading passages;
- remember 100 commonly used Intermediate level English words.
Why Choose This Course
This course is presented with cartoon pictures so it looks a lot like Memrise, but with a teacher. In short, it’s fun, pleasant, comprehensive, and informative.
People who need to learn English for work or school, or those studying the TOEFL, SAT, or ACT tests and want to get a high score.
9. TOEFL Speaking 2019: A Smart System For Busy People
Length: 1 hour
Total students: 1.100+
Includes: 6 downloadable resources
Requirements: a minimum of intermediate level of English
Instructor
John Healy – TOEFL Strategist
John Healy is the founder of Study With It – home of the best online TOEFL prep tools.
He’s an English assessment and training professional with a Master’s Degree in TESOL and 15 years of ESL/EFL teaching experience, whose basic line is “I help people achieve their English-related goals.”
He considers himself to be a detail-focused, error-correcting, strategy-obsessed high-energy, content-structuring test-prep nerd.
What You’ll Learn
TOEFL Speaking: A Smart System For Busy People will teach you a simple system to get a high score on the TOEFL Speaking section. Each simple lesson demonstrates how to answer each question. Each lesson also comes with a downloadable PDF.
After the course, you can expect to
- plan and organize high scoring answers
- create time-boxed notes quickly
- manage time inside each task
- transition fluently between ideas
- structure answers clearly
- ace the TOEFL Speaking section!
Why Choose This Course
There are lots of great, free, TOEFL prep materials out there; lots of stuff lying around the internet. Some of it is even pretty good. While there’s a glut of TOEFL stuff online, there is no clear tactical approach that handles the Speaking Section – task by task – like this course.
This course shows you exactly how to answer each question perfectly with a template approach that combines time cues with a simple structure called TEE, that, with practice, will transform your TOEFL Speaking responses into something beautiful.
Anyone who wants a laser-focused TOEFL Speaking system, who is struggling with the TOEFL Speaking section, and who needs a high score in the TOEFL Speaking section will benefit from this course.
Bonus Information About the TOEFL Exam
1. Who Needs to Take the TOEFL Exam?
TOEFL aims mainly for students who want to pursue their education in a university or graduate school program in English-speaking countries.
As time rolls by, the TOEFL has also been taken for other purposes like job seeking, immigration requesting, or simply assessing their English language skills in a formal setting.
2. What does the TOEFL Exam Consist of?
There are 2 types of TOEFL tests for you to choose from:
- the Internet-based test
- and the paper-delivered test.
Whichever kind of TOEFL test you prefer, online or paper, you still have to go through four hours of examination consisting of 4 sections: Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing.
However, the timing and format of each section vary depending on the test type you’ve decided on. But let’s not worry about that right now. There’s a more pressing matter to take care of: finance.
3. How Much Does It Cost to Take TOEFL?
The price to take TOEFL is 170 US dollars.
In addition to the official cost, other charges may apply in certain circumstances:
- For late registration, an additional charge of $35 will apply
- For rescheduling, a charge of $60 will apply
- Reinstating a canceled score costs $20
The TOEFL exam fee is subject to change without notice. The above amounts are exclusive of the Value Added or similar taxes. Those taxes are payable in addition to the amount quoted.
4. Why Should You Take the TOEFL?
Academic language, one often used in universities, is complex and formal. As a result, even long-time English learners can struggle to survive in an academic environment. Before a university even accepts you into an academic program, the admissions board wants to make sure you can handle the course load of an English-based program.
The best way to do that is to base on your TOEFL score as a metric for your English capacity. TOEFL AND IELTS are the two most widely-accepted English proficiency exams worldwide.
5. Who Accepts TOEFL Score?
More than 10,000 universities and other institutions in over 150 countries now accept TOEFL scores as a standardized metric.
The TOEFL test is:
- preferred in the United States.
- more popular in Canada.
- 100% accepted in Australia and New Zealand.
- preferred in France and Germany.
- widely accepted in the U.K.
6. What Resources Can Help Me Prepare for the TOEFL iBT Test?
There are thousands of resources out there to help you before the test day, with the most official being
ETS Home > TOEFL > TOEFL iBT > About the Test > TOEFL Video Library
You can also come to your local language centers to take a placement test and register a course there. Unfortunately for me, traffic jams happen every day in my city, making going to class not an ideal option. So, usually, I just stay at home and learn online instead.
If you’re like me, these best TOEFL courses on Udemy listed below will benefit you.
Before we bite into the delicious creamy stuffing inside the chocolate cake, let’s point out the huge elephant in the room: the structure of my post.
7. What’s Different in This List?
In this post, 12 Best TOEFL Courses on Udemy, and probably in all the posts followed it, I’ve decided to drop the CONS section because, and I say this with all my dear heart, it’s damn too hard to focus on the negatives. I remember playing the course videos for the umpteenth times trying to figure out what went wrong in the lessons and why. It’s way too exhausting.
Instead, I want to spend my energy on the positive. So, I think it’s a good idea to add an INSTRUCTOR part, in which basic information about the course instructor will be mentioned, just so you can know more about who’s teaching the course and whether they’re your favorite.
Some Final Words
Phew!
There goes another list, this time shorter than the others.
As for the time of posting this, Udemy’s New Year sale (the biggest sale season of the year), in which you can get the most popular courses for just $9.99, is still on. That’s a pretty good price if you ask me, especially when their 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee policy is still up and running.
But, if you’re short on budget, or want to experience before you officially register and spend money on any specific course, you can always try out these free ones first.
Free TOEFL Courses on Udemy
- TOEFL Speaking Section Introduction
- TOEFL vs. IELTS: Differences btw TOEFL & IELTS
- Better TOEFL Writing Techniques for ESL Speakers
- TOEFL iBT Free Speaking Course for Questions 1, 2, and 3
Happy learning!