I didn't mean the test result suggests superiority. I was referring to the comment before mine

Anyway, I know what you mean. You have a very good understanding on the way MUET is structured and all.

Are you trying to put the blame on MUET since those who did not have a good command of the language managed to pull through MUET with Band 6 but you and your English-speaking friends only managed to get Band 5?

In case you have forgotten, MUET does not consist of Speaking ONLY. So even if you and your friends have fluent spoken English it does not mean that you will get Band 6. MUET does not work that way. You still have to listen, understand and write well.

You made a pretty sweeping statement here: "You'll see those that got band 5 wanting to resit and they still end up getting band 5". In my school, nearly all of those who resit MUET after getting Band 5, ended up with Band 6 in their second attempt.

Hello there!

It would be lovely if you could explain these magical standards and formats which give automatic Band 6's, you know, for the benefit of future MUET takers.

I sat for the mid-2008 MUET paper and the format was:

Reading/Comprehension: Objective (Choose the best answer, shade it in with a 2B pencil)
Listening: Objective (Choose the best answer, shade it in with a 2B pencil) << I heard there's a new format, but it still sums up to the same thing)
Speaking: They give you a topic, you have very limited time to elaborate your topic individually and then debate it among your group and agree with the best opinion. Marks given not only on content and eloquence but also body language, active communication (they minus marks if you dominate the conversation) and eye contact.
Writing: (1) Read the essay, understand it and summarize it based on what you think the key content is. (2) Write an essay on a given topic - Content, Elaborate, Example + Creativity.

I personally feel that yes, this format is useful for students to know exactly what they look for in the marking scheme. Yet, I highly doubt that there is a step-by-step guide to teach students the "format" of getting a band 6. This is not SPM's EST paper..

As far as my understanding goes, MUET is not judged by the flamboyance of one's vocabulary nor their creativity with the language. MUET judges a person's ability to use the English language to carry a subject/point across clearly and accurately.

I agree with ISFJ that it is a sweeping statement to say that MUET is just a format based question which 'english speakers' can't score in.

My personal observation is that most 'natural English speakers' underestimate the MUET paper .This thread alone is proof (from earlier comments) that MUET is not as important as STPM etc to aim for the highest possible result. Most people are content with anything above band 3 to get inside a University. So they would do their best, but would not go through the hassle of many practices, exercises and exposure to MUET questions and work extremely hard for their band 6.

Most of these good-command-in-English Band 5'ers also mostly loose marks in the Objective section. Mainly out of carelessness because the objective answers are quite tricky if you don't do it slowly and carefully enough. I base this fact after comparing my friend's MUET results, all of whom speak English on an everyday basis.

This is just a general statement - and oh sometimes they just have bad luck too (fierce looking examiner, nerves etc)

My 2 sens

hai.. i am studying at ipta right now.. i have ielts, but the university still want me to take the muet.. so is there any way i can use my ielts to replace the muet?

I have known several international students who are taking IELTS or TOEFL, but most of them have to sit for MUET -The compulsary english test if you want to step your foot to study in IPTA.

owh god. i hate to attend the language class again.

i have taken already for my MUET in MID-Year 2009 but i did not achieved any band..i got "X" at my slip result and what suppose it means?Previously..i had not been seated for MUET exam in part of "Speaking" and yet i'll rather confused..is it that i have failed..?But now in process i have to take back for my MUET and will be seated on this October for speaking.Now, i'm just self-study for preparation taking MUET exam that will be running on October..started with "Speaking" papers.So my question is, what a minimum band should i obtain that qualify a person to enroll at local university?i have intended to continue my study at local university next year..i hope.Because i had reads so many times admission on local university, it says the student should has a muet at least band 1.Now, i'm just waiting for my diploma convocation but has been postponed for H1N1 disease.I am taking diploma in engineering..and many of my friends and colleague talked that for engineering courses, the person should obtained at least band 3 because a lot of references in university mostly in english..i'm not deny about it.so..plzz help me!

hey, i heard band 1 will be accepted.. huhu.. that's what i know after googling whether ielts can replaced muet..

is it true?i heard if we achieved below than band 3..maybe certain subject must be taking while studying in university..

Hello all. I took MUET 2008 paper, and sorry to say, I like it very much. Really.

Maybe Im just one of the lucky students who like to read English novels and my class was fortunate enough to have a bright, bubbly young graduate as our English teacher. Some of my classmates hate MUET, others natural, a few like me doesnt mind it much. I especially like our Speaking practices because it gave me opportunity to hold a mini debate with my friends. Since Im not exactly an outspoken person, this gives me the chance to think fast and speak out my mind, while being fair to others by listening to their POV as well.

Im one of the better English user in my class, even though I have to admit my grasp of the language is not as good as I hope it is. As pinknotebook pointed out, sometimes students, especially natural English speakers, tend to underestimate MUET. I did, too. After all those extra exercises and practice, I went for all 4 papers feeling nervous and came back a happy person. I though I scored them for sure!

I thought wrong. In my result paper it seems Id made a lot more mistakes than expected. Really burned a hole in my heart, but I moved on anyway.

Taking MUET makes me a better English thinker. I can think and speak fluently in the language amongst my friend, but when it comes to formal speaking (interviews, speech etc) my mind turned mushy and my words are not very coherent. I blame it on my nerves.

P/S If you squint your eyes carefully you might find some mistakes in my little 'speech'. Care to correct it?

I won't go too long on this one, but it is inaccurate to say that students who use English as their First Language would be under-rated in MUET, thus getting a Band 5 or so.

The trick is simple, use simple English. Let's make a simple comparison with Tolkien's "Lord of The Rings" and Rowling's "Harry Potter" Series. How many people would spend the time to really read Tolkien's work Word by Word? How many who do it for Rowling? This does not mean that those who read Harry Potter has a poor command of the language! People who read and understand what the author is saying has a certain level of English that enables him or her to survive in an English Speaking community!

You speak well. Good. You write well. Good. But are you sure the other person who is reading your work or listening to you understands what you are saying? The main purpose of a language is communication, and if what you say appears to be garbled messages to the other party, a language has failed its purpose. MUET is there to test whether English is used as a language efficiently, not a benchmark of your vocabulary.

At this juncture, if I have offended anybody, please don't be as it was not intended.

------

Dear TS, to answer your original question, it would be advisable to get a Band 4. That would mean you have a standard of English which is more or less acceptable for normal use.

I agree though that MUET has its shortcomings and can be a better gauge of a person's mastery of the language, but there is no need for it to be replaced. After all, if you get a Band 5 or 6, you have shown a good command of the language, and it IS recognised in other countries, even though IELTS and co. would be way more prestigious, no doubt.

~Cheers!

I think there is a corruption happening in Majlis Peperiksaan. Most of my friends good in speaking and writing. Today we check our MUET result, we only got band 2. MPM lowering the grade so, student will have to retake again muet. Hence, money masok poket lorrrrrrrr !! Can u imagine one student RM 50 for private registration how about 100000 candidates?? 50 x 100000= RM 5 millions each exam!

Nah. I don't mean you, but I personally think that some M'sians speak so darn fast and smooth in English, but sometimes forgot to use the correct grammar and such (or adding slangs or "lah" at the end).

And remember, speaking and writing are not the only components in the exam.

depends as well some are good speaking casually and this way of speaking may not be right grammatically or your points didn't make sense when speaking and just being good in writing doesn't cut it in MUET there are certain ways the essays must be written as and don't forget there are also reading that can be quite confusing and listening with the usually bad sound system used in MUET.

what cn i do to improve my muet within a year?

u have to do more practice, for all the 4 parts to score a better band ...
muet isn't testing ur language only but also ur maturity of thought .
dun think that u can write well then u should get band 6 ....
if u write all rubbish with bombastic grammar , u will get a lower band too ... plz follow the format , dun be stubborn

definitely practice. language is not something u can master over a day like maths, it needs to be nurtured and instilled inside slowly. last minutes practice doesn't yield good results as u will speak/write more unnatural. any experienced examiner can detect this i think.

take it slow day by day and if u practice constantly on all skills (listening, writing, reading) I'm sure you can be better in one year. here's some of my way in improving english:

speaking: talk aloud by yourself everyday. if got a partner is better. this will make u less nervous and more confident when speaking in public. sometimes i feel myself nuts because i spoke aloud to myself too much. but the result is great i tell u

listening: doesnt have to be formal. just watch some english movies without subtitles and try to catch up to what they say. preferably british-based movies or dramas as we commonly use british english. american also can but choose ones with a quite proper language

writing: i can't say much, but i think a lot of reading can help. in fact, reading can help in all three skills mentioned here.

don't forget to buy books on muet too to help u with the formats and other stuff. hope this can help. i just taken muet last year's october. got band 5.

imma trying to achieve muet band 6 on my first go next year. kinda sucks they change the format of listening. no more fully objective question on that section. any idea what the difference between "false" and "not stated" in the reading. i get confused with that.

which is easier to pass band 3 ?

taking Muet exam by uni or by self ?

I don't think there's any difference. MUET is still MUET, in the end. And why are you only aiming for Band 3? Aim higher, kona.

I got band 5 (2008).