Michigan English Test (MET) scores: the 0–80 scale, the CEFR bands, the one-section retake, and the Australian visa scores

Every section and the overall score are reported from 0 to 80. The handbook maps them to the CEFR: 0–26 below A2, 27–39 A2, 40–52 B1, 53–63 B2, and 64–80 C1, which Michigan labels "advanced and higher".

The overall score is the average of the four section scores. So, as on the Oxford Test of English and Cambridge, a strong section can pull up a weak one. The score report shows the overall score and each section score, each with its CEFR level, so anyone with a per-skill requirement can still see the weak one.

MET does not certify above C1. If you need C2 on paper, you need a different test. Michigan's paper-based B2 exam, the ECCE, works differently: it passes on an average of 650 out of 1000.

Writing: 45 minutes, two tasks. Listening: 35 minutes, three parts. Reading: 65 minutes, reading comprehension and grammar. Speaking: 10 minutes, recorded on screen, with no examiner in the room.

Listening and reading are scored by computer, and points are not taken off for wrong answers. Writing and speaking are scored by certified raters. Results usually arrive within five days, with a digital score report and certificate.

If one section went badly, you can retake just that section, but only writing, listening or reading. Speaking cannot be retaken on its own. You may retake one section, and you must order it in the customer portal no later than three days after your results are published.

If the retake scores higher, you get a new report with an (R) next to the retaken section. If it scores the same or lower, your report stays as it was, with no mark.

There is a trap in the timing. You have to accept your results to make them final, and the handbook says not to accept them if you intend to retake or ask for a rescore. Accept too early and you lose the option.

A rescore is possible only for writing and speaking, since listening and reading are machine-marked. It is allowed once per section, within three days, by a different set of raters. If the score goes up, the fee is refunded; if not, it is not.

Before you use a retake, check that the organisation reading your result accepts section retakes. The handbook tells you to.

Michigan's MET 2025 Test Report gives the spread of results by CEFR level. Speaking was the weakest section: 38.68% of test takers reached B2 or above in speaking (27.68% B2, 11.00% C1), against 61.01% in listening, 51.26% in reading and 57.05% in writing. 14.00% were at A2 in speaking, more than in any other section.

On the overall score, 37.79% were B1, 39.46% B2 and 12.41% C1.

Our reading: the section where most candidates score lowest is also the one section MET will not let you retake on its own. If speaking is your weak skill, prepare it before the test, because the retake will not rescue it.

The report also shows who sits it: test takers from 61 first-language backgrounds, with Spanish the most common, mostly aged 16 to 39. The most common stated purpose was nursing credentials (26.68%), followed by employment (13.72%); only 0.38% gave an Australian visa as the reason.

Michigan's page says Australia's Department of Home Affairs accepts the four-skill MET taken at a test centre on or after 7 August 2025, and accepts it including a single-section retake. On 31 October 2026 it listed these scores:

Functional: 38 overall. Vocational: listening 49, reading 47, writing 45, speaking 38. Competent: listening 56, reading 55, writing 57, speaking 48. Proficient: listening 61, reading 63, writing 74, speaking 59.

Our reading of that table: the bar is not even across skills. For Proficient, writing needs 74, deep in the C1 band, while speaking needs 59, which is B2. For Competent, the speaking score of 48 sits in the B1 band, while writing at 57 is B2. If you are aiming at Australian points, writing is usually the section to work on. Check the Department's own page before you book; Michigan's page points there for the official figures.

For how MET sits beside IELTS, PTE, TOEFL, Duolingo and TOEIC, see our comparison. Australian citizenship is different again: there is no separate English test, and the citizenship test itself checks your English (our guide).

No. The handbook says MET results do not expire, but each institution decides how old a result it will accept. You can share results with as many organisations as you like through the customer portal at no charge.