Sample answers · Respond to a Situation
PTE Respond to a Situation · Speaking section
New Aug 2025PTE Respond to a Situation sample – Band 79.
A worked RTS: a real-world roleplay scenario (a friend asking you to promote her new café), the 4-part response frame a Band 79 candidate uses (acknowledge, address, offer, close), a 94-word 40-second spoken reply, and a trait breakdown across all three scored traits. RTS was added in the August 2025 format update and is one of 7 task types where Content is marked by both an AI model and a human reviewer.
Last verified 17 July 2026 · Written for PTE Academic post-August 2025 format · Verified against Pearson's July 2025 Score Guide.
The stimulus scenario
A friend asks you to promote their new café online
Scenario appears on screen AND is read aloud · 53 words · inside Pearson's ≤ 60 word window.
Your friend Nadia is opening a small café next month and has asked you to help promote it on your social media accounts. You are happy to help, but you have not visited the café yet, and you would prefer not to recommend a business you have not personally tried. Respond to Nadia.
Your job is not to summarise this scenario. Your job is to actually respond to Nadia, in a way a real person would. The 4-part response frame below is how a Band 79 candidate structures the 40-second reply.
The 4-part response frame
Acknowledge, address, offer, close.
1. ACKNOWLEDGE (5 to 10 seconds)
Address the person by name, warmly. Register-match: friend = casual, colleague = semi-formal, customer = polite-formal. Confirm you heard the situation clearly.
"Hey Nadia, thanks so much for asking, and congratulations on the café opening. That's really exciting."
Registered the relationship (friend), used the name, and reflected the emotional weight of the moment. Human reviewers grade Content on whether the response reads as a real human reply, not a template.
2. ADDRESS THE SITUATION (10 to 15 seconds)
State your position on the specific thing the scenario is asking. Do not just describe what you would do abstractly – actually address the person's request or problem.
"I'd genuinely love to help promote it, but I want to make sure I'm being honest with the people who follow me."
Directly addresses the request (promote the café) and states the specific constraint (haven't tried it, honesty with followers). Content depends on responding to the actual scenario, not a generic version.
3. OFFER A CONCRETE ALTERNATIVE (10 to 15 seconds)
Real replies don't just decline – they propose a workable path forward. This is the difference between a Band 65 and a Band 79 response on RTS.
"So could I stop by next week, actually try the coffee and a couple of the pastries, and then post about it based on my real experience? That way the recommendation carries a bit more weight."
Concrete offer (visit next week, try the menu, then post) with a rationale ("carries a bit more weight"). Shows the response is a real conversation move, not a refusal wrapped in polite phrasing.
4. CLOSE THE INTERACTION (5 to 8 seconds)
Every real conversation has a close – a next step, a warm sign-off, or both. Ending mid-sentence or trailing off costs Oral Fluency and reads as unnatural.
"Send me the address and I'll come by after work on Wednesday. Really looking forward to seeing what you've built."
Two-part close: concrete next step (address + day) followed by warm sign-off. Uses the 40-second window fully without padding, and the natural warmth demonstrates register control.
Delivery version · Band 79
94-word reply in 39 seconds.
94 words · 39 seconds at 145 wpm · fills the 40-second recording window with 1 second of headroom. Conversational register throughout, addressed to Nadia by name, concrete alternative (Wednesday visit) with warm close.
Trait breakdown
Band 79What earned each trait score.
| Trait | Score | Why it scored there |
|---|---|---|
| Content | 5/5 | Response reads as a real human reply, not a template. Addressed by name, acknowledged the situation warmly, gave a specific reason for the constraint ("honest with the people who follow me"), offered a concrete alternative with a concrete day ("Wednesday after work"), and closed with a warm sign-off. Content on RTS is hybrid-scored: AI plus a human reviewer both mark it. Both would score this 5/5. |
| Oral Fluency | 4/5 | Natural conversational pace at 145 wpm. Continuous flow between the 4 frame parts. Deduct 1 for one slightly rushed transition between the offer and the close – a Band 90 delivery would leave a beat of natural breathing space. |
| Pronunciation | 4/5 | Clear articulation on "congratulations", "genuinely", "recommendation". Deduct 1 for the compressed stress on "Wednesday" (three-syllable words often collapse to two under time pressure). |
| Total | 13/15 | Consistent with Band 79. RTS is Speaking only – Content, Oral Fluency and Pronunciation all feed only the Speaking score. |
Note: RTS Content is scored by AI PLUS a human expert reviewer (one of 7 hybrid-scored task types on the PTE Academic exam). Human reviewers look for whether the response reads as a real, appropriate reply to the specific scenario – not whether it follows a fixed template. Oral Fluency and Pronunciation are AI-only.
Timing plan
Scenario read + heard, 10s prep, 40s speak.
| Time | Stage | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 30s | Read the scenario + listen to it read aloud | The scenario appears on screen for up to 60 words. It is also read out to you at natural pace. Read it carefully. Identify: (a) who you're responding to, (b) the situation, (c) the specific ask or problem. |
| 30 to 40s | 10s preparation | Plan your 4-part response: acknowledge → address → offer → close. Decide the first 5 words of your response. Do NOT try to memorise a full script – 40 seconds is too short for scripted delivery. |
| 40s | Beep + recording starts | There IS a short beep on Respond to a Situation (like Retell Lecture and Describe Image). Begin speaking within 1 second. Address the person by name in the opening if the scenario named them. |
| 40 to 80s | Deliver the 40s reply | Aim for 90 to 105 words at 140 to 160 wpm. Speak conversationally – RTS rewards natural spoken register, not academic prose. Move through the 4 frame parts in order. |
| ≥ 3s silence | Auto-stop | Recording auto-stops after 3 seconds of silence, and hard-stops at 40 seconds total. Finish your closing sentence and hold. |
Register guide
Matching your tone to the relationship in the scenario.
| Relationship | Tone signals | Verb / phrase choices |
|---|---|---|
| Friend / family member | Casual, contractions, first name, warm opener ("Hey [name]") | "I'd love to", "let me know", "catch up", "thanks so much" |
| Peer colleague you work with | Semi-formal, first name, mostly contractions, professional warmth | "Happy to help", "let me know", "I'll get back to you", "cheers" |
| Manager or senior colleague | Semi-formal to formal, first name usually, fewer contractions | "I'd be happy to", "could I confirm", "thanks for letting me know" |
| Customer / member of the public | Polite-formal, more titles or "Sir/Madam" if unnamed, no slang | "Thank you for your patience", "I do apologise", "we appreciate" |
| External vendor / official | Formal, structured, no contractions | "I am writing to", "please find", "kind regards" |
RTS Content is Band-graded partly on whether your register matches the scenario. Human reviewers notice register mismatches (“Hey mate” to a customer, “Dear Sir” to a friend) and drop Content marks accordingly.
6 common RTS mistakes
The failure modes that drag a Band 79 to a Band 60.
| Mistake | What it costs you |
|---|---|
| Summarising the scenario instead of responding to it | The task is to REPLY to the person, not to describe the situation. A response that says "The scenario is about my friend Nadia who wants me to promote her café" scores 0 or 1 on Content because it did not actually respond. |
| Ignoring the specific person named in the scenario | If the scenario names the person you're responding to (Nadia, Priya, Mr. Chen, your manager), your response should address them by name. Generic "Hi there" openers miss a Content signal and read as impersonal. |
| Missing the specific ask or constraint in the scenario | Every RTS scenario has a specific pinch point (haven't tried the café yet, cannot attend Thursday, need to decline politely). Ignoring the specifics and giving a generic warm response caps Content at 2 or 3 out of 5. |
| Adopting the wrong register for the relationship | "Hey mate!" to a customer or "Dear Sir" to a close friend both drop Content and read as unnatural. Match the register to the relationship the scenario describes. |
| Refusing without offering an alternative | Human replies to awkward requests almost always include a workable alternative. A bare refusal ("No, sorry") reads as terse and immature. The Band 79 signal is an alternative that respects both sides. |
| Speaking in written-essay register ("In conclusion, I would like to state that...") | RTS is a spoken conversational task, not a written essay. Formal essay phrasing sounds robotic in a 40-second reply and drops Content because it does not read as authentic human speech. |
FAQ
Respond to a Situation, answered.
How is PTE Respond to a Situation scored?
Three traits per the July 2025 PTE Academic Score Guide: Content (0 to 5), Oral Fluency (0 to 5) and Pronunciation (0 to 5). Content is hybrid-scored, meaning both an AI model and a human expert reviewer mark it – Respond to a Situation is one of only 7 task types with human-reviewed Content. Oral Fluency and Pronunciation are AI-only. Maximum raw score per item is 15.
How many Respond to a Situation items are on the PTE Academic test?
2 to 3 items per test per Pearson's July 2025 Score Guide. Respond to a Situation was added on 7 August 2025 as one of two new Speaking task types (alongside Summarize Group Discussion), taking the total number of PTE Academic task types from 20 to 22.
How long is the stimulus for Respond to a Situation?
Up to 60 words per Pearson's Score Guide, presented on screen AND read out to you at natural pace. You then have 10 seconds of preparation before the 40-second recording begins. The scenario is a real-world situation (workplace, social, everyday life) that names a specific person you must respond to.
How long should my Respond to a Situation answer be?
Aim for 90 to 105 words, delivered in 35 to 40 seconds at 140 to 160 words per minute. That fills the 40-second recording window and leaves 1 to 2 seconds of buffer. Delivering under 60 words usually means you did not use the 4-part frame; over 110 words at natural pace will not fit inside the window.
Should I respond as myself or invent a persona?
Respond as yourself in the scenario's role. If the scenario positions you as an employee at a specific company, or a friend of a specific person, take that role sincerely and reply as that person would. Inventing extra details (a made-up illness, a fake commitment) is fine as long as it fits the scenario naturally.
What is the difference between Respond to a Situation and Repeat Sentence?
Both are Speaking tasks with recorded audio replies, but the format is entirely different. Repeat Sentence gives you a 3 to 9 second sentence to repeat verbatim, no prep, no interpretation. Respond to a Situation gives you a 60-word real-world scenario to respond to as a real person would, with 10 seconds of prep and 40 seconds to speak. RTS rewards natural conversational register; Repeat Sentence rewards word-perfect memory.
Keep going with Respond to a Situation
One pattern, three depths.
You've just read the band 79 worked example. Here's the rest of the loop for this task.
Reusable framework
Respond to a Situation template
The reusable answer framework — structure, sentence starters, timing marks — that fits any Respond to a Situation prompt.
Read the template →Interactive drill
Practise Respond to a Situation
Free interactive drills — do the reps yourself with the model answer revealed after each attempt.
Start the drill →Further reading
Related tools.
- → Summarize Group Discussion sample – the other new-in-2025 Speaking task.
- → Retell Lecture sample – the sibling 40-second Speaking task with a listening stimulus.
- → Write Email sample (PTE Core) – the written cousin of RTS, with a workplace scenario.
- → Speaking section overview – all speaking task types on PTE Academic.
- → Take a free scored mock – RTS items with AI scoring.