If you’re new to this form of assessment, the idea of being ‘psychologically tested’ may be a bit daunting, especially if you’re unsure of exactly what this means and what it will entail. Here, PA Life outlines the basics
Traditional recruitment and selection procedures are a familiar process for most of us and when applying for a new job or a promotion you would usually have a good idea of what to expect. Once you have made it onto the candidate shortlist you may be informed that the next stage will include a psychometric assessment of your ability or personality.
Psychometric or psychological tests are used in occupational settings by employers to evaluate candidates suitability for the job and they are becoming a common feature of the selection process for many types of career. Psychometric tests are used alongside application forms and interviews and typically take place at the interview stage, or just before it.
If you are invited to take a psychometric assessment it may take place online, when you attend the interview, or at a designated selection centre. Many employers now use online tests early in the recruitment process to select applicants to progress onto the interview stage. If testing is to take place at the interview stage, larger companies and organisations may use a selection centre or their head office, where groups of applicants can all be assessed together.
There are two main types of psychometric assessments; ability & attainment and personality tests.
Ability and attainment tests
These are formal tests used to assess your reasoning and cognitive ability, or how well you can do a specific task. Most will have a time limit and use multiple-choice questions. Before the test begins you will be given instructions by the test administrator, and be given time to read the test information and do a few untimed practice questions.
These tests are used to assess: verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning, spatial or visual thinking, organisation skills and specific skills such as typing or data input.
Personality tests
Personality tests are more similar to a questionnaire than a formal test as they are used to indicate your personality type, interests and values. As such, they do not usually have a time limit and there are no right or wrong answers. However, some responses may be ‘better’ than others in terms of your suitability for that particular role. Questions in personality tests are often a series of statements or options you are asked to choose between. For example:
Q: Choose the statement you agree with most
a) I prefer to work independently b) I prefer to work as part of a team
Some of the questions will be similar to each other and may appear repetitive. However this is done to check the consistency of your answers, to ensure accurate test results. Employers use personality tests to see how you respond to certain situations, relate to other people and solve problems; and to identify your working/thinking styles.
Test tips
• If they haven’t told you, call and find out what type of tests you will be taking. The interviewers may not tell you specific names of tests until on the day.
• Advise the organisation of any special needs you have so they can make appropriate adjustments for you.
• Arrive in good time and know what time the test will start.
• Go to the toilet beforehand as you won’t be allowed to leave the room during tests.
• Listen to/ read the instructions before the test.
• Keep calm and read the questions carefully.
• Ask the test administrator about anything you don’t understand.
• For online tests, make sure you have a quiet area where you will not be disturbed.
Tips for ability tests
• Familiarise yourself with the test by doing some practice questions. You can find examples online, but for fairness these will not be actual questions from the test, and the full test will not be publicly available.
• Work through the test quickly and accurately.
• Use a piece of rough paper to help you think about your answers, if allowed.
• If you get stuck, move on and come back to the question later.
• Check your answers if you have time left at the end.
• Don’t worry if you run out of time, they are usually designed to have more questions than the average person can answer in the time limit.
• Don’t worry about getting some wrong, 50% correct is about average.
Tips for personality tests
• Don’t spend ages over thinking each question, go with your gut response.
• Answer questions honestly, don’t try to predict what they are looking for. Tests are carefully designed for accuracy and will identify answering patterns or inconsistent answers.
• If you feel the need to give ‘fake’ responses, stop and consider if this is really the job for you.
You should always be given your test results and an explanation of what they mean. If your test was pre-interview then the employer may discuss your results with you during the interview. For most ability tests you will get a score, which will be compared to the average results or ‘norms’ for that test in order to make your score meaningful. For personality tests you will receive a summary of which personality types, thinking styles, interests or values your responses show, and how these may influence the way you work or your career choices.
Even if you don’t get the job, psychometric assessments can be a valuable tool to give you insight into your strengths, personality and the type of roles you are best suited to.
You can find more information on psychometric testing and links to further resources at the British Psychological Society’s Psychological Testing Centre website at psychtesting.org.uk.
