It is important to measure your English level before you start studying and then regularly throughout the learning process. Otherwise, you can’t tell how much progress you’re making. There are many different ways of measuring progress. The best way of establishing a benchmark is to test yourself against the goal you are trying to reach. For example, if your goal is to be able to make presentations at work in English, then you need to try and make a presentation at work in English and see how it goes. Take some notes afterwards about how you felt and what you need to work on. This will be your benchmark. After 6 months of learning English and working towards this goal, make another presentation and see how much you’ve improved.
If you’ve got a more generic goal, taking a standardized English test is a good way to get a benchmark of your current level and keep track of your progress moving forward. The EF SET tests reading and listening comprehension skills and is built to the same standards as the TOEFL or IELTS. But it’s free. The test takes 50 minutes. Take it now and then again after several months see how much progress you’ve made. It includes a free English certificate that you can add to LinkedIn or share with your school or employer.
