TOEFL Test Prep
I designed the TOEFL AI-tutor-led test prep (Test of English as a Foreign Language). Because of our innovations, Study.com became the official test prep partner by the maker of the test, ETS.
- Led strategy to discover the best problem to solve.
- Created a practice-first experience built around quick AI feedback.
- Designed scalable assessment systems for changing tests and question types.
- Created learning loops to combine practice and instruction sessions.
- Led feature development for the successful test prep product.
Rapid prototyping to determine our focus
TOEFL is the English proficiency test universities use to decide whether an international applicant can study in English. A score gates admission, so the stakes are high. ETS redesigned the exam for 2026 and changed both its structure and its scoring, which dated every prep product on the market.
In 2024, fresh off the success of Study AI, we wanted to explore the feasibility and interest of an AI-first customer experience. I ran a design sprint to explore the problem space. We pinpointed a user-need (fast feedback on test prep) paired with a specialty we had (human instruction for deep learning). TOEFL was a prime candidate for a skunks-work project, and I took the lead on design. We started with a voice-controlled UX that gave fast feedback on speech patterns.
A practice-first experience
Speaking practice with immediate tutor feedback was a winner with TOEFL test-takers. We expanded our product to give feedback for practice in Reading, Listening, and Writing in addition to Speaking.
Including all four TOEFL sections required me to create a practice system that was flexible enough for each question type. I built the questions, answers, and help to live within an AI tutor chat.
A flexible assessment system
Assessment on the TOEFL test was a combination of qualitative and quantitative scores, culminating in a Letter/Number combination that predicted your English proficiency (CEFR score). I created an easy-to-understand colored bar chart to give a score to match student's goals.
This innovation helped students chart progress. By mapping qualitative feedback to a linear score we could show gains while still being transparent about areas of weakness. No other TOEFL test prep offered this.
Creating learning loops
One of the core Learning Science principles at Study.com is the concept of interleaving practice and instruction. By creating a new product with TOEFL, I created new entry points to our video course within the practice experience. This was an innovation at Study.com.
Through regular user research we found different study patterns for students and created a flexible system that allowed for practice-first or instruction-first learning paths.
An innovative product within a proven system
We launched TOEFL test prep in 2025 and it was an immediate success. ETS, the makers of the test, were so impressed we became their official test prep partner.
Over the next year, the test content, scoring, and UX radically changed. We worked in lock-step with ETS to provide the most useful and accurate test prep available. I regularly tested usability and found over 90% of users could understand difficult concepts while effortlessly navigating the system.