Read Aloud · Part 1: Speaking & Writing

A university is not a business. More precisely, a not-for-profit…

53 students marked "I sat this"Added 14 Mar 2020Question #010121
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Read the text aloud.

A university is not a business. More precisely, a not-for-profit college or university is significantly different than a for-profit business. A university has no owners; it is a public trust. Without owners it has no one to pay dividends to, and no one for whom it must maximize its profits. A business has a single overriding goal: the maximization of return for the owners. A university has a multiplicity of goals: to foster learning, to create knowledge, and to serve its community.

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Opens question #010121 in the RealPTE practice screen.

How to read it

A university is not a business.|More precisely, a not-for-profit college or university|is significantly different than a for-profit business.‖A university has no owners;|it is a public trust.‖Without owners it has no one to pay dividends to,|and no one for whom it must maximize its profits.‖A business has a single overriding goal:|the maximization of return for the owners.‖A university has a multiplicity of goals:|to foster learning,|to create knowledge,|and to serve its community.

| short pause   ‖ breathe

Aim for 32–37 seconds.

Words to stress correctly

significantlysig·NIF·i·cant·ly/sɪɡˈnɪfɪkəntli/
maximizationmax·i·mi·ZA·tion/mæksɪmɪˈzeɪʃən/
multiplicitymul·ti·PLIC·i·ty/mʌltəˈplɪsɪti/
universityu·ni·VER·si·ty/junəˈvɝsəti/
communitycom·MU·ni·ty/kəˈmjunəti/
for-profitfor-·PROF·it/fɔˈprɑfət/

82 words in 32–37 seconds; no numbers. Breathe after the first business (end of sentence 2), trust, profits, owners; the list to foster learning, to create knowledge, and to serve its community closes it.

Where marks are usually lost

Stress sig·NIF·i·cant·ly, max·i·mi·ZA·tion, mul·ti·PLIC·i·ty, u·ni·VER·si·ty, com·MU·ni·ty, for-PROF·it. Hesitating at not-for-profit or multiplicity is the big risk. Keep -s on owners, dividends, profits, goals.

General tip: At each colon, make a short pause and then drop your pitch slightly for the explanation—it signals structure without breaking fluency.

What it means: 中文 · हिन्दी · नेपाली · Tiếng Việt

中文: 大学不是企业。更准确地说,非营利的学院或大学与营利性企业有显著不同。大学没有所有者,它是一种公共信托。没有所有者,它就不必向任何人支付股息,也不必为任何人实现利润最大化。企业只有一个压倒一切的目标:为所有者实现回报最大化。大学则有多重目标:促进学习、创造知识、服务社区。

हिन्दी: विश्वविद्यालय कोई व्यवसाय नहीं है। अधिक सटीक रूप से, एक गैर-लाभकारी कॉलेज या विश्वविद्यालय लाभकारी व्यवसाय से काफ़ी अलग होता है। विश्वविद्यालय का कोई मालिक नहीं होता; यह एक सार्वजनिक न्यास है। मालिक न होने से उसे किसी को लाभांश नहीं देना और किसी के लिए मुनाफ़ा अधिकतम नहीं करना। व्यवसाय का एक ही सर्वोपरि लक्ष्य है: मालिकों के लिए अधिकतम प्रतिफल। विश्वविद्यालय के अनेक लक्ष्य हैं: सीखने को बढ़ावा देना, ज्ञान सृजित करना और अपने समुदाय की सेवा करना।

नेपाली: विश्वविद्यालय व्यवसाय होइन। अझ स्पष्ट भन्दा, गैरनाफामूलक कलेज वा विश्वविद्यालय नाफामूलक व्यवसायभन्दा निकै फरक हुन्छ। विश्वविद्यालयको कुनै मालिक हुँदैन; यो सार्वजनिक न्यास हो। मालिक नभएकाले कसैलाई लाभांश दिनुपर्दैन र कसैका लागि नाफा अधिकतम गर्नुपर्दैन। व्यवसायको एउटै सर्वोपरि लक्ष्य हुन्छ: मालिकका लागि अधिकतम प्रतिफल। विश्वविद्यालयका धेरै लक्ष्य हुन्छन्: सिकाइ बढाउनु, ज्ञान सिर्जना गर्नु र आफ्नो समुदायको सेवा गर्नु।

Tiếng Việt: Đại học không phải là doanh nghiệp. Nói chính xác hơn, một trường cao đẳng hay đại học phi lợi nhuận khác biệt đáng kể với doanh nghiệp vì lợi nhuận. Đại học không có chủ sở hữu; nó là một quỹ tín thác công. Không có chủ sở hữu, nó không phải trả cổ tức cho ai và không phải tối đa hóa lợi nhuận cho ai. Doanh nghiệp có một mục tiêu bao trùm: tối đa hóa lợi nhuận cho chủ sở hữu. Đại học có nhiều mục tiêu: thúc đẩy học tập, tạo ra tri thức và phục vụ cộng đồng.

More Read Aloud questions

Read Aloud format (Pearson)

PromptText up to 60 words
Preparation30–40 seconds
Time to answerDepends on the length of the text
Skills assessedSpeaking
Scored onContent; Pronunciation; Oral fluency

How it is scored

  • Content is scored by counting the correct words in your response.
  • If you stay silent for more than 3 seconds, the recording stops.
  • You can record your response only once.

Source: Pearson, PTE Academic & UKVI test format, Part 1: Speaking & Writing, checked 9 October 2026.