Duolingo English Test (DET)

The Duolingo English Test is a modern, online English proficiency test that has grown rapidly in acceptance.

Key Features

Fully online, taken from home
Shorter test time (around 1 hour)
Results available within 48 hours
Generally lower cost than IELTS or TOEFL
Acceptance
Accepted by many universities in the USA, Canada, the UK, and Europe

Especially common for:

Undergraduate admissions
Conditional offers
Alternative pathways
Not accepted by all universities or all courses. Some competitive programmes do not accept
Duolingo

Typical Duolingo Requirements

Undergraduate: 95–115
Postgraduate: 105–125
Medicine, law, and Education often require higher scores or exclude Duolingo entirely

Important Things Students Often Miss

Each course can have different requirements; even within the same university, universities may require:

  • A higher writing score
  • A minimum score in speaking for healthcare or education courses
  • English test requirements are separate from visa requirements
  • Tests usually expire after 2 years
  • Universities may accept one test but not another
  • requirements, not just university minimums
  • Identify when UKVI IELTS is required vs standard IELTS
  • Help students plan test timelines alongside application deadlines
  • Advise on alternatives and pre-sessional English routes where appropriate