How to Write Email Task in PTE Core Exam: Expert Guide

The PTE core exam is specifically for students who want to immigrate or get residency in Canada. It is a fairly recent addition to the PTE exam types which is only two hours long. Many students from India are taking this PTE core test that further checks the four language skills of the test takers. Each of these skills is tested by various tasks. One such type is the “write email” question from the writing part. In this article, experts will discuss the format and scoring criteria for this task.

Format of Email Writing Task in PTE Core

In the question to write an email, examinees get a prompt of around 100 words. It further contains three-pointers that test takers need to include when drafting the email. In addition, you must follow the correct format for writing the email. If the structure is incorrect, you can lose marks because of this. The following is a format that you can follow in the PTE core exam to write your email:

Email Address

Read the question carefully to know the person to whom you need to address your email. This will be mentioned clearly in the prompt.

Subject Line

After the addressee, pay attention to the subject of the email. In addition, also read the pointers given to know what you need to write an email about.

Salutations

Start your email with greetings to the sender. Further, this should be as per the email type. For example, using terms like hi or hello in informal emails.

Body Paragraphs

In the first paragraph of your email, mention the reason for writing it. In the next ones, you can explain the details about the issue or concern.

Conclusion

Depending on the type of email you are writing in the PTE core exam you can use one line or a few lines to conclude your email.

Sign Off

Lastly, end the email with phrases like regards, thanks, etc. After that, write your name and designation.

Next, let’s look at the scoring system of this task.

Scoring Criteria of Write Email Question

In the ‘write email’ question, you will get nine minutes to write an email containing around eighty to hundred and twenty words. Further, you need to address all the different parts of the question given to you. In addition, there are several other criteria that you need to take into account when attempting this task. So, the following are such criteria that can impact your scores in this writing task:

Content

When you include all three points from the PTE core exam question in your email, then you are awarded three points. If you do not include these, you will score less.

Form

If the word limit is not met, then the marks you get will be less than two points. So, make sure to stay within the count.

Email Conventions

If you are not using the proper salutations at the end and start of your email you will not get two points. So, remember to greet and sign off using suitable phrases.

Organisation

When you follow the correct structure for writing an email then you get two points. An email in this test usually follows the four paragraph format: introduction and three paragraphs with each theme.

Grammar

If you make minor grammar mistakes, you will lose one point. However, for major ones, you will get zero out of two.

Vocabulary

Instead of repeating the words, try to use different terms. In addition, add key terms from the question in your email to receive two points.

Spelling

This is a crucial parameter. Even one major mistake can cost you one point. So, you score two points by preventing spelling errors.

Next up are some topics that you can get to write an email on.

Common Topics in Write Email Task

There are a range of topics that you can encounter in this PTE core question. However, the following are some of the commonly occurring ones:

• Email to boss or co-worker updating about work or an issue.
• Answering customer questions or complaints.
• Informing a bunch of people about an event.
• Emails to professors or peers, usually related to projects or school work.
• Personal emails to family members or friends.

Conclusion

To sum up, if you understand the scoring method for the email task and practice accordingly, you will be able to score higher. Moreover, practice with different topics to become familiar with the task format. Other than that, to learn more about the core exam type in PTE, contact mentors at Gradding.com. They will resolve your doubts and provide personalised feedback to improve your performance. In addition, you can make use of their resources, like online PTE coaching classes and free mock tests.