ScoreFluentMET Speaking, task by task.
Five recorded tasks in about 10 minutes: describe a picture, talk about an experience, give an opinion, weigh advantages and disadvantages, then persuade someone. No examiner is in the room, and certified raters score the recording afterwards.
Five tasks, two parts, one microphone.
| Task | What you do | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Task 1 | Describe a picture — a situation with lots of detail to talk about | 60 s |
| Task 2 | Talk about a personal experience related to the picture | 60 s |
| Task 3 | Express and support a personal opinion on a topic related to Tasks 1 and 2 | 60 s |
| Task 4 | Explain the advantages and disadvantages of a situation | 90 s |
| Task 5 | Explain and justify an opinion to a person in authority, and convince them | 90 s |
Part One is Tasks 1–3, which share one general topic. Part Two is Tasks 4–5, each unrelated to the others. Each prompt appears on screen and is read aloud; a timer counts down as you speak, recording starts automatically, and anything you say after time is up is not recorded or scored.
No interviewer — so speak to the silence.
There is no live speaking examiner on MET. You record your answers on the computer microphone as the last section of the same sitting, and trained, certified raters score them later against Michigan’s published scale.
That changes what to practise. Nobody will nod, prompt you or ask a follow-up, so the skill is filling a fixed window with a structured answer and stopping when the clock does, not when the other person looks satisfied.
Three criteria, each rated 0–4.
| Criterion | What it looks at |
|---|---|
| Task Completion | Whether you do what the prompt asks, with enough relevant, supported content |
| Language Resources | The range and accuracy of your grammar and vocabulary |
| Intelligibility / Delivery | How easily a listener can understand you: pronunciation, pacing, flow |
The criteria names are Michigan’s; the one-line glosses are our paraphrase. Read the full 0–4 descriptors in the Speaking Resource Pack, linked below.
A plan for each task.
The task facts are Michigan’s; the technique below is ours.
Task 1 — build a picture in an order
Pick a route through the scene and stick to it: setting first, then the main action, then background detail, then small things such as clothing or objects. Sixty seconds is long enough that running out of things to say is the real risk.
Task 2 — one experience, told with detail
The prompt connects to the picture, so choose a single real or plausible experience and tell it: when, who, what happened, how you felt. Tasks 1–3 share a topic, so let the vocabulary from Task 1 carry forward.
Task 3 — a position, then reasons
The prompt usually sets out two opposing sides and then asks which you prefer. State your side in your first sentence, give two reasons, and add an example for the stronger one. There is no right opinion, only a supported one.
Task 4 — give both sides real time
With 90 seconds, split the answer: advantages, disadvantages, then a one-line judgement if time remains. A common slip is spending the whole window on one side.
Task 5 — speak to the person you are persuading
You are told who you are addressing and asked to convince them. Address them directly, open with your decision, and answer the objection you expect them to raise. Register matters: you are speaking to someone with authority.
Every task — use all the time
Michigan’s own advice is to say as much as you can. A confident answer that ends early leaves marks on the table; practise with a visible timer until 60 and 90 seconds feel natural.
Straight from the test maker.
ScoreFluent is an independent practice platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to Michigan Language Assessment. The format facts here come from Michigan’s published documents:
- MET Speaking Resource Pack (PDF) — the five tasks, timings, delivery and the three rating criteria.
- MET Test Taker Handbook, July 2025 (PDF) — section length and the five task descriptions.
Exam details change — the test maker revises its documents during the year. If a decision hangs on a detail here, check it against the official pages above first; they outrank this page.
Keep going: the full format guide, how scoring works, Reading, Listening, Writing, the practice-test guide.
Speaking questions, answered.
What are the five tasks in MET Speaking?
Task 1 describes a picture (60 seconds), Task 2 is a personal experience related to the picture (60 seconds), Task 3 is a personal opinion related to Tasks 1 and 2 (60 seconds), Task 4 is the advantages and disadvantages of a situation (90 seconds), and Task 5 is explaining and justifying an opinion to a person of authority (90 seconds).
How long is MET Speaking?
The section is 10 minutes, made up of three 60-second tasks and two 90-second tasks. It is completed in the same digital administration as the other three sections.
Is MET Speaking a live interview?
No. There is no live speaking examiner. Each task appears on the screen and is read aloud, you record your answer with the computer microphone, and certified raters score the recording.
How is MET Speaking scored?
By trained, certified raters on three criteria, each rated 0–4: Task Completion, Language Resources, and Intelligibility / Delivery. The result is reported as a 0–80 section score with a CEFR level.
What happens if I stop talking before the time is up?
Nothing is added for the unused time. The recording runs for the full time allowed for the task and Michigan advises saying as much as you can. Anything said after the time limit is not recorded.
Can I retake just the Speaking section?
No. The single section retake covers Writing, Listening or Reading, not Speaking. Speaking can be rescored by a different set of raters for a fee, but only once.
Does ScoreFluent offer MET Speaking practice?
MET practice is live on ScoreFluent, free to start. Results are practice estimates, not official MET scores. All five Speaking tasks are available, scored against Michigan’s published three-criterion scale. ScoreFluent has a full MET mock plus Reading, Listening, Writing and Speaking section mocks; Michigan’s free official samples provide another full-length timed run.
The best YouTube teaching on each task, cut into one lesson.
Each lesson is 8 to 11 minutes from several creators: how the task is scored, the method, a worked example and the common mistakes. Free on Mixie, no sign-in.
Start practising MET today.
MET practice is live on ScoreFluent — all five Speaking tasks, scored against the published scale, free to start.
Start practising MET free →Not sure MET is the right test? Which English test should I take? →