What is the Duolingo English Test? How is the DET score calculated and how do universities evaluate Duolingo results?

For students who want to study abroad, proving their English language proficiency is one of the main language exams. For many years, the IELTS and TOEFL exams were the most commonly used for this purpose. In recent years, the Duolingo English Test has been added to this list, thus becoming one of the more convenient alternatives for students.

The Duolingo English Test is an online, computer-based and adaptive English language exam. This exam measures the candidate's Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking skills and displays the result with a score system from 10 to 160. Another reason why this exam is more convenient for students is that they can enter from home without going to the test center.

In this article, as Hesabla.com, we will explain in detail what the Duolingo English Test is, how Duolingo English Test scores are calculated, how the DET score system works, and how universities approach Duolingo results.

# What is the Duolingo English Test?

The Duolingo English Test is an international online exam designed to measure the English language skills of people whose native language is not English. This test evaluates the student's reading, writing, listening and speaking skills and presents the results to students in the range of 10–160.

The main difference between this exam and other tests is that it is computer-based and even computer-adaptive. That is, the questions during the test can become easier or more difficult according to the candidate's answers. According to Duolingo's official explanation, the adaptive system helps the test measure the candidate's real language level in less time and with fewer questions.

# Who is the Duolingo English Test for?

Duolingo English Test is mainly useful for students who want to study abroad. Many universities and programs can also accept DET results in addition to IELTS and TOEFL. However, admission rules vary from university to university and from program to program.

A special “Accepting Institutions” page is provided on the official Duolingo English Test website to search for accepting universities and institutions. Through this page, the student can check whether the university they want to apply to accepts DET.

# How is the Duolingo English Test conducted?

The Duolingo English Test is conducted completely online. The candidate takes the exam from their own computer. For this, a stable internet connection, camera, microphone and suitable testing environment are required. This exam takes approximately one hour and the official results are usually available within 2 days.

One reason why the Duolingo English Test is convenient for students is that they can enter the exam at any time under suitable conditions without going to the test center and the exam results can be obtained within 2 days. This exam is a great alternative, especially for students who do not have time for exams such as IELTS and TOEFL. However, this convenience offered to you also has serious requirements. It is important to be alone in the room during the exam, not to look at the screen, not to use unauthorized materials and to fully follow the test rules.

# How is the Duolingo English Test different from IELTS and TOEFL?

The Duolingo English Test measures English language proficiency like IELTS and TOEFL. However, it differs from them in terms of format. IELTS is more known for its Speaking format with separate sections and examiner. TOEFL is a computer-based test that focuses on an academic environment. DET is online, shorter and has an adaptive format.

The main difference is that this test is adaptive. That is, not every candidate may see the same set of questions. The system adjusts the difficulty level of the questions based on the candidate's answers. Thus, according to Duolingo's official statement, the value of the points that the question will earn the candidate changes not only based on the correct and incorrect answers, but also based on the difficulty level of the question the candidate answers.

# What does it mean that Duolingo English Test is adaptive?

An adaptive test means that the test changes according to the candidate's performance. If the candidate answers the questions correctly, the test presents more difficult questions, and if the candidate answers the questions incorrectly, the questions may become easier.

Therefore, in the Duolingo English Test, the question "How many questions do I answer correctly, how many points will I get?" cannot be answered simply like in IELTS Listening or Reading. Because the score in DET depends not only on the number of correct answers, but also on the level of the questions and the overall quality of the answers.

# What skills does the Duolingo English Test measure?

This test, like other language tests, evaluates your level in four main skills: Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking.

Here is another feature that distinguishes it from other types of tests. IELTS and TOEFL test each skill separately, but the Duolingo English Test tests these skills through different question types. For example, some tasks can measure both reading and writing, and some tasks can measure both listening and speaking skills.

As Hesabla.com, we would like to share with you which question type and which skill it measures:

- Read and Complete -> Reading and vocabulary
- Read and Select -> Word recognition and vocabulary
- Listen and Type -> Listening and writing
- Read Aloud -> Reading and pronunciation
- Write About the Photo -> Writing and description skills
- Speak About the Photo -> Speaking and description skills
- Interactive Reading -> Text comprehension and logical connection
- Interactive Listening -> Listening and response construction
- Writing Sample -> More extensive written response
- Speaking Sample -> More extensive oral response

# What is the Duolingo English Test score system?

Duolingo English Test results are given in the range of 10–160. Scores are shown in 5-point increments. For example, results such as 95, 100, 105, 110 are possible.



# What are Duolingo subscores?

Duolingo English Test does not only show the overall score. At the same time, it also presents subscores. Subscores tell you how a candidate performs across different skill combinations. Duolingo offers four integrated subscores:

- Literacy: Reading + Writing
- Comprehension: Reading + Listening
- Conversation: Speaking + Listening
- Production: Speaking + Writing

These subscores help you better understand which skills a student is strong or weak in. For example, an overall score of 120, but a low Production subscore, could indicate that the student needs to work on Speaking and Writing skills.



# How is the Duolingo English Test score calculated?

When we calculated the overall score for IELTS and TOEFL, we used an arithmetic calculation. That is, to get the overall score, we divided the score we got from the skills by the number of skills, and the resulting score became our overall score.

For example, in IELTS, the Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking bands are added together and divided by 4. In DET, the adaptive test system, the difficulty level of the questions, the correctness of the answers, and the quality of the answers are taken into account together.

In Duolingo, most of the reading and listening tasks are evaluated based on the correct answer or partially correct answer. Speaking and writing answers require more complex evaluation and factors such as the content, sequence, vocabulary, grammar, fluency, and pronunciation of the answer are taken into account. For this reason, there is no fixed calculation rule such as “30 correct answers out of 40 questions = specific score” in DET.

# Validity period of Duolingo English Test results

In our previous articles, we said that we can view IELTS and TOEFL results even after the validity period has expired. However, this is not the case with Duolingo, the results you get from the Duolingo English Test are valid for two years and after two years it is not possible to share the results or even view the certificate itself.

# Our recommendations as Hesabla.com for those who will take the Duolingo English Test

In general, in language exams, your comprehensive language knowledge is measured, so just your grammatical knowledge is not enough. Especially in Duolingo, since the exam type is adaptive, you need to develop your general English language skills.

So, if you have a problem with "Reading", practice reading short texts quickly and finding the main idea. If you have a problem with "Writing", practice by writing picture descriptions and short essay-type answers. If you have a problem with "Listening", practice by listening to short audios and dialogues in different accents. If your problem is with "Speaking", practice to give short, clear, fluent and structured answers. Similarly, practicing tests according to the exam format can have a positive effect on your exam results.

Hesabla.com wishes you good luck in your exam!