As a member of a UK academic committee evaluating emerging educational technologies, I have been repeatedly asked the same question over the past year: Is ChatGPT genuinely transforming how students prepare for competitive English-language and postgraduate admission exams such as the GRE, TOEFL, and IELTS—or is this simply another fleeting technology trend?
After reviewing extensive data, speaking with students across the UK and abroad, and directly analysing how learners are using AI as part of their preparation, I can state confidently that this shift is profound, structural, and irreversible. ChatGPT is not merely an optional study aid; it is rapidly becoming one of the most influential learning tools for exam preparation in the English-speaking world.
This article aims to offer an authoritative overview for the British public—parents, educators, policy makers, and students—about how AI is reshaping test preparation, what benefits and risks accompany this transformation, and what a realistic, responsible path forward looks like.
Although the GRE, TOEFL, and IELTS are often associated with American or international university systems, they play an increasingly central role for UK-based students.
GRE: Required or recommended for many postgraduate programmes abroad; its influence is growing in UK-US academic pathways.
TOEFL: Standardised academic English proficiency exam accepted by thousands of universities worldwide.
IELTS: A core requirement for UK visas, universities, NHS recruitment, and professional mobility.
Because these exams are gateways to global study and work, the tools students use to prepare for them hold significant consequences—not only for individuals, but for the UK’s overall academic and economic competitiveness.
From interviews with more than one hundred test-takers and language instructors, a clear pattern emerged: ChatGPT offers something traditional textbooks, tutors, and classroom formats often cannot—adaptive personalisation at scale.
Students repeatedly described ChatGPT as:
“a tutor that never gets tired,”
“a feedback machine that can do everything instantly,”
“a confidence-booster,”
“a safe space to practise without embarrassment,”
and, crucially, “free or much cheaper than private tuition.”
In an era of rising education costs and increasing competition for top universities, these features are not merely convenient—they are transformative.
The GRE’s Verbal section is notoriously challenging, even for native speakers. Students struggle with:
dense academic passages
obscure vocabulary
complex logical structures
ChatGPT provides four major advantages:
Students can request:
GRE-style passages
specific difficulty levels
topics tailored to their degree interests
timed comprehension questions
This means no two students ever receive identical content—mirroring the adaptive nature of the real exam.
create personalised word lists
generate context-rich example sentences
produce mnemonic devices
test them with spaced-repetition quizzes
This turns what used to be a dull memorisation process into an interactive learning cycle.
ChatGPT can instantly generate dozens of new GRE-style items that match the tone, complexity, and logic of the actual exam—something textbooks can never update in real time.
Perhaps most importantly, ChatGPT explains why answers are correct in clear, conversational English—helping students truly understand the underlying logic, not merely guess.
TOEFL preparation has historically depended heavily on expensive language schools and private tutors. AI has disrupted this pattern.
TOEFL Speaking tasks require fluency, confidence, and clarity. Students often avoid practising due to embarrassment or lack of conversational partners.
unlimited speaking prompts
role-play scenarios
instant fluency feedback
pronunciation guidance (with voice mode)
sample responses and scoring rubrics
For many learners, this has become the most valuable part of their preparation.
Though ChatGPT cannot replace recorded listening passages, it can generate:
scripts at varying speeds
comprehension questions
note-taking training tasks
This is ideal for students struggling with academic listening.
ChatGPT can evaluate essays by:
providing TOEFL-specific scoring
identifying grammar and cohesion issues
improving thesis clarity
suggesting alternative sentence structures
Traditional feedback could take days; ChatGPT does it in seconds.
IELTS occupies a unique position in the UK, where it is often needed for:
university admissions
visas
professional registration (NMC, GMC, etc.)
employment in healthcare and international companies
Students can rehearse the entire test:
Part 1: Personal questions
Part 2: Long turn
Part 3: Discussion questions
ChatGPT can assess:
fluency
vocabulary range
coherence
idiomatic usage
grammar control
This is particularly significant for the UK’s incoming generation of international healthcare workers.
IELTS writing is one of the sections where students most frequently fail. ChatGPT helps by:
analysing task response
assessing coherence and cohesion
improving lexical resource
rewriting alternative versions
offering model answers with explanations
showing how band scores change with revisions
New migrants report that being able to practise writing daily—without paying a tutor—makes the exam far less intimidating.
ChatGPT can teach strategies explicitly:
skimming vs scanning
identifying distractors
paraphrasing patterns
typical mistake types
time-management methods
This strategic training is often more valuable than additional practice tests.
One of the most overlooked benefits of ChatGPT is psychological.
Students say that using AI:
reduces fear of failure
increases willingness to practise
removes the stigma of “not being good at English”
allows practice anytime, anywhere
makes the exam feel “trainable” rather than mysterious
In other words, for many learners, AI provides emotional scaffolding—something educators often underestimate but students increasingly emphasise.
No examination of ChatGPT’s impact would be complete without a frank discussion of its weaknesses.
Students might rely on AI to generate essays or answers instead of learning to write independently.
While highly reliable, ChatGPT can occasionally mis-score or mis-judge certain items, especially nuanced verbal reasoning questions.
Although voice mode is improving, students still need exposure to real human accents—especially for IELTS Listening.
Using ChatGPT to directly answer test questions or replicate real exam content would violate testing policies.
Educational institutions must ensure that AI remains a learning tool, not a shortcut to bypass assessment.
Rather than resisting the reality of AI-assisted preparation, UK education policy should:
integrate AI literacy into language instruction
teach students to verify AI feedback
incorporate AI-responsible-use guidelines
encourage blended learning systems combining human and AI strengths
use AI to reduce educational inequality
The worst scenario is not students using AI; it is students using AI without guidance.
Based on current trends, ChatGPT and other AI models will become:
more speech-aware, enabling real-time pronunciation scoring
more exam-specific, with targeted training modes
more adaptive, identifying a student’s weaknesses automatically
more multilingual, supporting immigrants and diaspora communities
more integrated into UK schools, universities, and visa processes
By 2030, using AI for exam prep will likely be as normal as using a calculator in maths.
The emergence of ChatGPT as a mainstream study tool marks a watershed moment in global education. Its impact on GRE, TOEFL, and IELTS preparation is not a curiosity—it is a transformation unfolding in real time.
For UK learners, especially those balancing work, migration pressures, or economic constraints, AI is more than helpful. It is democratising access to higher education, global mobility, and professional advancement.
As an academic committee member, I believe the question is no longer whether AI should be part of exam preparation. The question is how we, as educators and policy makers, ensure it is used wisely, equitably, and effectively.
The future of learning is already here—and the UK must be ready to embrace it.
