ACADEMIC READING SKILLS

Academic Reading Skills
The Reading section measures the test taker’s ability to understand university-level academic
texts and passages. In many academic settings around the world, students are expected to
read and understand information from textbooks and other academic materials written in
English. The following are three purposes for academic reading:
Reading to fi nd information
effectively scanning text for key facts and important information
increasing reading fl uency and rate
Basic comprehension
understanding the general topic or main idea, major points, important facts and
details, vocabulary in context, and pronoun references1
making inferences2 about what is implied in a passage
Reading to learn
recognizing the organization and purpose of a passage
understanding relationships between ideas
organizing information into a category chart or a summary in order to recall major
points and important details
inferring how ideas throughout the passage connect



Length of Passage Number of Passages and Questions Timing
Approximately 700 words 3–5 passages
12–14 questions per passage
60–100 minutes