ALCE™ Scoring & Results
ALCE™ Scoring
Candidates’ scanned responses on the Listening and GVR (Grammar, Vocabulary, and Reading) sections are forwarded to the University’s New Hampshire campus for scoring. The compositions are also forwarded to the New Hampshire campus, where they are marked by international raters. Candidates’ speaking tests are rated by local examiners and the recorded interviews sent to New Hampshire. The following sections describe how each section of the test is graded.
Listening & Grammar, Vocabulary, and Reading (GVR) sections
The listening section and the grammar, vocabulary, and reading (GVR) section of the ALCE™ are scored using Item Response Theory (IRT). IRT scores allow each administration of the examination to be equated with one another.
The IRT scores for the Listening and GVR sections are converted into scaled scores, each out of 30. To pass the Listening or GVR section of the ALCE™, examinees must have a scaled score of at least 19 out of 30 for the section.
Writing Section
A pass on the ALCE™ writing section meets the criteria of at least a 3 (low pass) on all four descriptors of the ALCE™ writing section scoring rubric. The writing scores are converted into scaled scores out of 30. To pass the Writing Section of the ALCE™, examinees must have a scaled score of at least 18 out of 30.
Speaking Section
A pass on the ALCE™ speaking section meets the criteria of at least a 3 (low pass) on all four descriptors of the ALCE™ speaking section scoring rubric. The speaking scores are converted into scaled scores out of 30. To pass the Speaking Section of the ALCE™, examinees must have a scaled score of at least 18 out of 30.
Section Scaled Scores
| Section | Minimum scaled pass score for section (out of 30 points) |
|---|---|
| Listening | 19 |
| GVR | 19 |
| Writing | 18 |
| Speaking | 18 |
| Total Scaled Score | 74 out of 120 |
The scaled scores above show the minimum score an examinee needs to pass each section of the ALCE™ examination.
Examinees who pass three sections of the examination and have a total scaled score of at least 74 are awarded an ALCE™ Certificate.