Eighty-seven per cent of students taking the International English Language Testing System have scored high enough to be declared 'competent' or 'good'.

Announcing the results today, the University Grants Committee said more than 11,000 final-year students of the committee's funded degree programmes participated in the Common English Proficiency Assessment Scheme for 2007-08.

Their average overall score was 6.62 on a nine-point scale. About 87% scored in the 6 to 7.5 range, making them 'competent' or 'good'.

Of the testing system's four modules, students were generally better English readers and listeners than they were speakers and writers.