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Rohini wanted opinions on:
>How much weightage would taking TOEFL exams carry in the field of tech
>writing?
Well, Rohini, as an Indian who took the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign
Language) a few years back , I found the exam was at a fairly basic level
when compared to the standards of English in Indian schools. The only
difficulty was in the voice comprehension part, but that is simple if you
use the "Barron's Guide" study material. The guide has cassettes to attune
you to the pronunciation and pace of a typical American accent. Most Indians
obtain decent marks, enough to qualify for studies abroad.
( On a personal note, I wrote the TOEFL test when I was in Hong Kong and
found it was much
easier for Indians than for other Asians. )
TOEFL is not only required by universities in the USA, but also by some
prospective employers to assess the communication skills of anyone whose
native language is not English.
I would not know if it would add a lot of weight to your technical writing
profile, but if you
are applying abroad and they have misgivings about how well you understand
the way they speak, I guess your score might come in use. (Jenise Cook put
it well in her post)
In India, I don't think it would help much, especially in the software
industry where IT professionals routinely write TOEFL to go abroad for
studies/ work.
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