uzolexis:


Even native English speakers have different accents. Australian accent is different from American, or Irish or British. Even within native English countries accents vary from place to place. TOEFL does not care about your accent.

Sure. But I don't think that these English language proficiency testing companies will ever agree to let Nigeria off. The number of Nigerian students abroad is frightening. It's very big business for these guys.

Gerrard59:



Same I thought until I became more active on Nairaland. Truth is: We don't write and speak proper English. I read a thread sometime ago where the Chinese were looking for English teachers in Africa and listed Ghana, Kenya and either Zimbabwe or South Africa as the countries where prospective teachers should be chosen from.


That said, this GRE, is it only for entry into schools in the US? Can someone use it (GRE) for non-US schools (say Singapore, Japan or South Korea)?

Thanks.

By proper English you mean being as close to the colonial master as possible? There has been serious corrosion of culture in all those countries you mentioned. Nigeria still remains the Beacon for black culture the world over. It's not going to change soon. Anyway I wish we would throw away our inferiority complex and adopt Nigerian pidgin full time. Use it to code and teach, etc.


As for the GRE part, I think checking out the admissions requirements for the institutions you want to apply to is usually the best idea. Maybe contact them if their contact information is available.

dossylvanus:



By proper English you mean being as close to the colonial master as possible? There has been serious corrosion of culture in all those countries you mentioned. Nigeria still remains the Beacon for black culture the world over. It's not going to change soon. [/b]Anyway I wish we would throw away our inferiority complex and adopt Nigerian pidgin full time. Use it to code and teach, etc[b].


As for the GRE part, I think checking out the admissions requirements for the institutions you want to apply to is usually the best idea. Maybe contact them if their contact information is available.

It's not possible. It has no standard form.

https://www.nairaland.com/3212730/why-pidgin-english-not-taught

Thanks for the GRE tip.

Gerrard59:


It's not possible. It has no standard form.

https://www.nairaland.com/3212730/why-pidgin-english-not-taught

Thanks for the GRE tip.

Guy abeg remove the English from pidgin. It stopped being English a long time ago. No Nigerian academic even wants to do research on it.


You're welcome.

happyday:


Nairaland doesn't notify me of new posts or mentions, I just come here anytime I want to touch base with my roots, always soothing. Generally, schools would want you to direct all of your inquires to the admissions committee and not the faculty members, so you might see some of them explicitly telling you not to contact those lecturers.

But, if you feel you've deep interests in a Prof's research group, send them a short and quick email, hinting briefly about your background, and focusing more on your perspective of his research works. You might gently add a PS that you've applied, and would be interested to wok with him. Bottom line, is don't put him under any pressure to get you into his lab. And don't set your expectations too high; if the adcomms thinks your app is good, you'll be admitted, when you'll get to choose which lab you wanna go.

So, I'll say send the mails, even though there's every chance they don't reply. Or if they would.

Cheers!

Yeah true about the email, most top-rated schools state it clearly on their websites.

Would try to check-in here as often as I can as well. Thanks a lot.

dossylvanus:


Sure. But I don't think that these English language proficiency testing companies will ever agree to let Nigeria off. The number of Nigerian students abroad is frightening. It's very big business for these guys.

I think it's more of the schools than the company. I mean, the schools are the ones that set the requirements.

sirRiddy:
Bintbello
Thanks for sharing your experience and all the best in the GRE.
Happyday nice work sir.

Thank you sir

I am a yoruba boy and I understand why I said that.
Because of the way our accent is, some words are not pronounced well.
At the same time, many words were pronounced wrongly for us by our
first teachers in primary school. The English speakers are native speakers
even though they have different accents. Their pronunciation are definitely
closer to the British English than ours.
Yes, the test is for non-native speakers. Nevertheless, your accent matters in TOEFL especially
if it distorts you from pronouncing some words on the Speaking section. I wrote the
test myself and had a 24S.

uzolexis:


you know accent does not matter in TOEFL right Everyone has an accent even native English speaking people have different accents.

I agree with you. Our English is way better than many countries.
But the speaking is where the challenge lies.

dossylvanus:


Maybe our accents are unique. But that's what you get from so called non native speakers. Seriously though Nigerians string better looking sentences than the average native speaker.

I honestly don't know how Jamaica happens to be classified as a native speaking country while Nigeria isn't

uzolexis:


I think it's more of the schools than the company. I mean, the schools are the ones that set the requirements.

Lol. You think?
It is a freaking racket sis.. dem no go gree..

sirRiddy:
I agree with you. Our English is way better than many countries.
But the speaking is where the challenge lies.

sirRiddy:
I am a yoruba boy and I understand why I said that.
Because of the way our accent is, some words are not pronounced well.
At the same time, many words were pronounced wrongly for us by our
first teachers in primary school. The English speakers are native speakers
even though they have different accents. Their pronunciation are definitely
closer to the British English than ours.
Yes, the test is for non-native speakers. Nevertheless, your accent matters in TOEFL especially
if it distorts you from pronouncing some words on the Speaking section. I wrote the
test myself and had a 24S.

My brother don't let inferiority complex kill you o. Have you heard an Italian speaking English? Or a French person speaking English? Or even a hungarian? Their English is heavily accented with their native tongue as a result they don't pronounce some of the words well. Yet they write TOEFL and they pass and they don't laugh at each other cos of their accent. There is nothing wrong in having an accent, everybody has an accent.

Contact [url]sssl-edu.com[/url] for more educational, overseas admission support programmes..... Trust my word for it

uzolexis:


My brother don't let inferiority complex kill you o. Have you heard an Italian speaking English? Or a French person speaking English? Or even a hungarian? Their English is heavily accented with their native tongue as a result they don't pronounce some of the words well. Yet they write TOEFL and they pass and they don't laugh at each other cos of their accent. There is nothing wrong in having an accent, everybody has an accent.

Or one can even fake an accent there. It's just for 45 seconds right? Not too difficult if you ask me.

towbaynah:


Or one can even fake an accent there. It's just for 45 seconds right? Not too difficult if you ask me.

abi o my brother.

Good afternoon everyone, please I've been trying to download the gre prep books from the previous links provided and it is proving difficult, I'll be really glad if anyone can help me with the ebooks, I'll really appreciate it, thank you.

uzolexis:


My brother don't let inferiority complex kill you o. Have you heard an Italian speaking English? Or a French person speaking English? Or even a hungarian? Their English is heavily accented with their native tongue as a result they don't pronounce some of the words well. Yet they write TOEFL and they pass and they don't laugh at each other cos of their accent. There is nothing wrong in having an accent, everybody has an accent.

There is no inferiority complex, aunty. I am proud of my accent
You have totally misconstrued me unfortunately. I have tried to explain my point to you but you seem not to get it. Never said other non native speakers don't have accents. My initial assertion was that it is harder for us to score the 26 in the speaking section because of our accent which is reality. All these your irrelevant points about Italian is what I don't get. I am sorry you don't get humor and took it too seriously.


https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/94227_unlweb.pdf&ved=0ahUKEwjX67T-y9jRAhXhylQKHdLoDKEQFggaMAA&usg=AFQjCNHb4I75VDuyanvaQD7CG16BBUeAYw

PS: look at the statistical report from ets on speaking. Look at sweden, norway and denmark. There is a marked difference from yoruba and igbo even though they are all non native speakers. What would you ascribe to this?

godG:


Try UW-Madison.

Thank you godG.
I checked but their Fall 2017 deadline was December 1st 2016. I'm still grateful, am happy to have known about the school. God bless you real good.

Scholastica16:
Thanks to everyone who kept asking and showing concern. My TOEFL was released today.

(R 29 L 29 S 26 W 28) composite: 112

Nothing earth-shattering. The highlight of my score is my speaking of 26 (which I didn't expect as I had informed the house earlier that I barely ever finished explaining myself when the time elapsed. One other time I meant to say 'dilemma' (someone was stuck between choices) and I ended up saying 'debacle'. Quickly changed it to predicament which is a good synonym for dilemma. I felt it would come-out imprecise to whoever was scoring me sha but it is whatever. Lowlight will be the writing joor. I expected a full 30 as I constantly compared myself to the Indians and Russians online that got 115-118 with perfect Writing scores.

I want to accuse ETS of malfeasance and demographic bias in scoring but I don't have empirical evidence.

I know this is a GRE thread but if anyone is preparing for TOEFL especially the speaking aspect do not panic if you are talking and you see the seconds ticking away. The evidence shows that one's overall score is not affected by this. Do not also panic if you finish talking way before the time. I don't think it hurts one's overall score as well. Try to pronounce your words slowly (many don't know this but Nigerians are accused of talking too fast).

Cheers.

Wowwwww!!! Congratulations Scholar! Great Scores! Get ready for better testimonies because God is planting your feet on higher grounds. Wish you greater heights dear.

tuffpuff:





Wowwwww!!! Congratulations Scholar! Great Scores! Get ready for better testimonies because God is planting your feet on higher grounds. Wish you greater heights dear.

Thanks mate. AMEN. Wish you the same.

uzolexis:


My brother don't let inferiority complex kill you o. Have you heard an Italian speaking English? Or a French person speaking English? Or even a hungarian? Their English is heavily accented with their native tongue as a result they don't pronounce some of the words well. Yet they write TOEFL and they pass and they don't laugh at each other cos of their accent. There is nothing wrong in having an accent, everybody has an accent.

I think I agree with SirRiddy. There is obviously a bias in the scoring of the TOEFL for non-native speakers whether they admit it or not. It is like an unwritten rule.

ETS pretends they are fair in the marking but they are probably just better prepared or more receptive to accents of some other countries than some others. For example, because an ETS instructor can predict how a french man will pronounce the world "Foible" (foy-ab) as against (foy-e-bul) that English demands, he would be understood and still scored well compared to an African (in this case Nigerian) who might say (foy-e-blay).

Their excuse will be that the word was borrowed from French but the reality is it should have made no difference.

What amused me is inferiority complex she said. Nigerians have aced speaking in Toefl but I was talking of the average. She obviously has issues with superiority between languages which is totally irrelevant in the conversation. If we had test of yoruba or igbo, maybe other African languages which are closer would have an edge. No need living in alternative reality.
Our accents, even though present, get less pronounced when we use another language more frequently.

Scholastica16:


I think I agree with SirRiddy. There is obviously a bias in the scoring of the TOEFL for non-native speakers whether they admit it or not. It is like an unwritten rule.

ETS pretends they are fair in the marking but they are probably just better prepared or more receptive to accents of some other countries than some others. For example, because an ETS instructor can predict how a french man will pronounce the world "Foible" (foy-ab) as against (foy-e-bul) that English demands, he would be understood and still scored well compared to an African (in this case Nigerian) who might say (foy-e-blay).

Their excuse will be that the word was borrowed from French but the reality is it should have made no difference.

Scholastica16:


LOL. Thanks chief. Are you done with your applications? UofH's deadline should be February 1 or 15? I applied there too.

Not yet done, putting finishing touches. Deadline is February 1 for my course and 15th for yours. Documents can be submitted up to 2 weeks after the deadline in both cases. How many schools did you apply to 7, 8? I envisage a situation where you will have a hard time selecting where to attend when they all bombard you with admission and funding.

Time2Smile:
Not yet done, putting finishing touches. Deadline is February 1 for my course and 15th for yours. Documents can be submitted up to 2 weeks after the deadline in both cases. How many schools did you apply to 7, 8? I envisage a situation where you will have a hard time selecting where to attend when they all bombard you with admission and funding.

GUYS PLS HELP WITH THE LINK TO CHK 4 D DEADLINE OF UNI OF HOUSTON. A SCHOOL I INTEND APPLYING TO.

Please all,which is better for me to write this exam,through ets or b.y mafit?i want to take the exam next month so i can get ready for spring2018.

iCool:


For Materials, read 10 pages back.
For guides, read from page 100. The most recent experiences of test takers is available therein.




Use this link and search for electrical as a major, then proceed to your specialization from there.

http://www.findengineeringschools.org/Search/Majors/

Bro, thank you for replying that guy promptly. I need your help also.. I'd like to get a link for schools for Statistics major.
By God's grace, I'll take my application to the US very serious this year. So help me God!

Tunmise100:


GUYS PLS HELP WITH THE LINK TO CHK 4 D DEADLINE OF UNI OF HOUSTON. A SCHOOL I INTEND APPLYING TO.

Go to the your Dept Graduate admission site, The deadline would be there.

andradaeze:


Did you write the TOEFL? If you want a GA position in Mathematics which is usually in teaching, endeavor to write the TOEFL.

Also, based on your quant score, what you are seeking will be difficult because you are expected to score high as a mathematics graduate.
From my observation, you have two options, either you rewrite the GRE and score high in the quants or you have tuition for your first year. You might be lucky to get a GA in your second year if you work hard.

In fact, most graduate programs in Maths require the subject test. Hence for schools that do not require the Subject test, you need to score high on the Quant Section. If you really need funding, please rewrite the General GRE and write the TOEFL and score high on the speaking section.

Please, this time around, do not do a "crash GRE exam".

The gurus in the house will add their knowledge later. All the best.

Is this IELTS result good enough bro? R7 S6 W6.5 L6 Overall 6.5. Thanks

Guys you doing a great job on this thread as we galvanize each other may God continue to bless you all.Please guys what is best way to search for schools that can provide me with fundings either GA or TA in IT related courses.I reschedule my GRE exam till May.Wishing every one best of luck in all our endeavors.

Bolisticbond026:
Guys you doing a great job on this thread as we galvanize each other may God continue to bless you all.Please guys what is best way to search for schools that can provide me with fundings either GA or TA in IT related courses.I reschedule my GRE exam till May.Wishing every one best of luck in all our endeavors.

A Google search would be a good start. Keywords; "Your course", "US schools" (I'm assuming you're gunning for those), "PhD or M.Sc", "Teaching Assistantships". Hit search.

Evening friends... I understand the primary purpose of this group is to provide necessary information that will help members ace the GRE and we av done well in this regards. However, the main goal is to secure admission (with funding) . Please I suggest we discuss our admission applications, efforts we av made in reaching out to faculties n possibly the status of ouuur application if any yet. I believe we can learn one or two things from each other's experience so far. I also understand individuals can want to be discreet with their applications until fruition, it's fine.


I applied to UofH n KSU for fall 2017. I completed both applications last year. I had admission for MS Mech Engr Fall 2016 in SDSM&T and SIT last year but I didn't pursue further since neither came with funding option, I deferred SDSM&T to fall 2017 n m still hopeful of securing the service of a faculty for a potential GA. The few times I have gotten replies to my email is when they want to explain that they r not taking new research students.

How is it going from ur end Sirs & Mas?
Cc: Scholastica16, drhopeful, Time2smile, the whole house.

SirRiddy, thanks 4 d support always ... God bless bro

Any of them is fine.

BY MAFIT is cheaper. I registered with them. No issues
For ETS site, make sure your card can allow the $205 limit.

Slymonster:
Please all,which is better for me to write this exam,through ets or b.y mafit?i want to take the exam next month so i can get ready for spring2018.