OET Preparation Courses For Healthcare Employers & Trusts
Courses for international nurses, doctors, AHPs and pharmacists who need OET to register and practice
Courses for international nurses, doctors, AHPs and pharmacists who need OET to register and practice
Thousands of overseas trained healthcare professionals apply – or would like to apply – to join the NHS every year. However, they need evidence of their English level as set out by the GMC, NMC, GPhC and HCPC to show they can practice safely.
Thousands of overseas trained nurses (OTNs) are currently working in the UK, often in health and social care support and not the roles they are qualified to do. Not having the required English level stipulated by the regulators is one of the key barriers holding them back.
The OET international English for Healthcare test is the most popular test of choice for international nurses, doctors, pharmacists and, following the recent decision of the HCPC, AHPs.
OET is the only test accepted by regulators which has an explicit emphasis on the language used in healthcare.
Having a high score in OET reassures employers, colleagues and patients that they can practice safely and effectively. The test covers a very wide range of English used in healthcare, from consultations to on-the-ward communication to understanding research papers and medical talks.
OET also requires candidates to write and speak as their profession, so an OET Medicine candidate would write a letter as a doctor and an OET Nursing candidate would role play as a nurse in their speaking paper.
Many candidates’ English is close to the level they need to pass the test, but they need expert support to achieve the scores required for registration. Some may have taken the test already and not passed. Others may need to learn more healthcare-related English before they are ready to focus on test preparation.
SLC provides programmes for both types of candidates – in small groups and for individuals. For all candidates, we provide a level assessment and needs analysis, so you know how much study is required before taking the test.
Candidates who have a high level of English, typically a high B2 or C1 on the CEFR, work primarily on test strategies and techniques. They learn about the individual paper formats, the different question types and the marking criteria.
For some candidates, this may only be a matter of 5 or 10 hours of individual tuition with a test specialist, tailored to specific needs and providing targeted input and feedback alongside test practice. This is often the case with those who have already taken the exam.
Other candidates need to build their healthcare-related English before sitting the test. This may include medical terminology, hospital vocabulary, writing skills, and healthcare communication skills such as gathering and giving information, managing patient concerns, and building relationships.
Once these have been developed, candidates are then ready to focus on learning test strategies and techniques.
Speak to us directly and get instant advice. Please complete the form, or call or email using the details provided. One of our team will go through what you’re looking for and guide you through the training options available to you.
OET preparation courses cover OET paper by paper, question by question. They systematically give candidates the language, the skills and the exam techniques and strategies needed for them to achieve a high score.
Lessons take place on Zoom and are taught by highly experienced and qualified exam teachers. The schedule is agreed beforehand and shared with everyone involved.
Candidates all have access to SLC’s Reach OET B courses, used worldwide by OET candidates. The Reach OET B materials are all online and available on all devices. Learners receive an access code with clear instructions. There is well over 100 hours of expert content for candidates to support their lessons. Reach OET B also includes four open live lessons every week that candidates can attend to strengthen their progress.
Yes. We create your space on the Learning Management System with your branding and colours, so your students see the courses as an integral part of the training you provide.
As courses are digital, units can be rearranged and adapted to meet your candidates’ specific profiles. We can add company documents such as staff handbooks should you wish.
Lessons are tailored to the specific needs of the participants attending group or one-to-one courses.
The Progress Promise is our commitment to candidates and their sponsors to give everyone studying with us ongoing input and support as they work towards OET, even after their course has finished.
So, after a tutored lessons have come to an end, or a subscription to Reach OET B has expired, all candidates still have access to our four live lessons every week. This means they can continue to study, review and revise with our expert teachers and fellow OET students. And all for free.
We want you to know that we’re with candidates and their sponsors all the way to achieving success in their OET test.
Yes. The courses are all accredited by the CPD Standards Office in the UK. CPD accreditation is recognised internationally as a mark of quality for courses around the world. Each student receives a CPD-stamped certificate on course completion.
OET is accepted as proof of English language skills by regulatory healthcare boards and councils around the world, including the UK, US, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and Canada. In the UK, for example, candidates can use OET as proof of English language competency to register with the GMC or the NMC.
The training outlined on this page is for closed group training for candidates from your organisation. SLC does not offer open groups but all users of Reach OET B may attend the four open group online classes per week as part of their package.
Yes, no problem. We often work with individuals (or small groups) with specific needs, who may not be able to attend group lessons, or who need additional coaching if they don’t achieve the scores they need on first sitting, failing for example in one or two papers.
If you have candidates who would benefit from the targeted attention that one-to-one lessons offer, just get in touch to talk through.
For lessons, we use Zoom – it’s simple and intuitive to use, has excellent teaching features and works well on relatively low bandwidth connections.
For the Reach OET B study materials and the online practice OET tests, we work with Avallain AG, the industry-leading educational technology company working with global language publishers such as Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press and National Geographic Learning. The platform is constantly updated to give students the best learning experience.
The courses are taught by highly experienced and qualified English language teaching professionals. They are all exam tuition experts and have received extensive OET-specific training from SLC’s academic team. We monitor feedback and results carefully and build this into their ongoing CPD programme. Meet the team.
All online self-study courses are available on subscription for anyone to sign up to, including Reach OET B Medicine and Reach OET B Nursing.
For tuition, we provide this to closed groups and individual students being sponsored by employers and healthcare recruitment companies.
Many OET preparation courses are delivered to closed groups of students. This allows for courses to target their specific level and needs, to be taught on convenient schedules and map to specific training budgets.
Reach OET B has four open lessons given every week that anybody can attend to support their progress towards OET.
OET course sponsors are given access to dynamic reporting tools, so they can view lesson attendance and engagement with study materials at any time. Progress reports include the results of any practice OET tests given. Reviews are also scheduled with the academic team to keep you up to date with the progress candidates are making and how test ready they are.
SLC works with NHS Trusts and Health Boards, NHS England and international healthcare recruitment companies to prepare doctors and nurses from around the world to pass OET and work in the UK, Ireland and other English-speaking countries.
