TOPIK 109 (Nov 15): a two-week plan when you score under 140

What you are preparing for

TOPIK I is scored out of 200. Level 1 starts at 80 and Level 2 starts at 140. The test has 30 listening questions and 40 reading questions, all multiple choice with four options. Listening takes about 40 minutes and reading 60 minutes. For the full breakdown, see How TOPIK I is scored.

Because the level comes from the combined total, you do not need to be even in both sections. You need enough points overall. That shapes the plan below.

This page is unofficial. The questions on it and in our practice test are original practice material written by us. They are not official TOPIK questions and have no connection with the official exam.

Step 1: place yourself (15 minutes)

Before Day 1, take one set of our practice test and note your reading score. Then pick a track.

Reading under 40 out of 100 (roughly under 80 in total)

Your biggest gain is vocabulary and the very short questions. Spend the first week on the first third of each section: signs, schedules, short notices and simple fill-in-the-blank. These questions use everyday words, and each one is worth the same as a hard one. Do not spend your time on the long passages yet.

Reading between 40 and 69 (roughly 80 to 139 in total)

You probably understand most sentences but lose points to time and to trap options. Your gains come from question types: learn what each one asks, find the key sentence first, then compare the options. If listening is your weaker side, keep 15 minutes a day for it, because a few extra listening points can be the difference between 130 and 140.

These bands are rough guides, not predictions. Your own results on a timed run are better evidence than any table.

The 14-day plan

Each day is 30 to 45 minutes. Skip nothing on the two timed days, and shorten the others if you are tired. A short session you actually do beats a long one you skip.

If Day 1 is November 1, then Day 14 is November 14, the day before the test in Korea.

Use your mistakes

After each test our result page lists the questions you missed, with a short reason why your pick was wrong. It also collects the key words into a word list you can save. Those two features are the center of Days 6, 11 and 13. Reviewing five wrong answers carefully is worth more than doing twenty new questions in a hurry.

Try 3 questions now

Here is the kind of reading question you will practice in the plan. Tap an answer. You get the result and a one-line explanation straight away.

The last two days

The day before (Day 14)

• Confirm your test center, the address and how long the trip takes.
• Prepare your admission ticket and ID. Check on your center's page which ID is accepted.
• Pack pencils or the pen type your center allows, and an eraser. Check the rules for watches and phones.
• Read your word list once, lightly. Do not start a new set.
• Sleep at your normal time. A late night costs more than an extra hour of study gains.

Test day

• Arrive early, before the entry deadline your center gives you.
• In listening, read the options while the instructions play. Do not dwell on a question you missed, because the next one has already started.
• In reading, do the questions you find easy first and mark the slow ones to return to. Keep five minutes at the end to fill every blank. A guess is better than an empty answer.
• Leave the result alone until December 22. You cannot change it now.

No plan can promise a level, and two weeks will not fill a big gap. But a clear routine, two timed runs and honest review of your mistakes are the things most likely to move your score.