How to prepare for a psychometric test

By CareerOne | April 27, 2018 psychometric test

Here’s our top advice on how to prepare for your upcoming psychometric test.

1. Find out what the employer is looking for in the right job applicant

When advertising and seeking to fill a position, all employers want the best person for the job by finding the right applicant. It’s about hiring the person who will best fit the job; from a skills, intelligence, personality and cultural perspective.

Psychometric testing results provide employers with a behavioural profile of you – your level of intelligence or aptitude (measured by aptitude tests), and your personality characteristics (measured by the personality test). The profile will indicate whether you can solve problems, are a team player or whether you prefer to work individually, and other relevant attributes.So prior to taking the test, pick up the phone and call the recruiter for a chat to find out what attributes the right applicant has. Often you will also find clues in the position description or job advertisement.

2. Learn about psychometric testing techniques

Psychometric tests are not like any other test you’ve ever taken. All too often job seekers assume that if they are good at maths or can speed read in English or have just finished uni, they will blitz the psychometric test. This is a wrong assumption. Psychometric tests aim to measure your abstract, verbal and numerical reasoning skills. These aptitude tests are timed and designed in a very unique way. To master these tests you need to add a new set of test taking strategies to your tool box.

3. Get yourself in good physical and mental shape

You need to be at your best to produce good results in psychometric testing. Tiredness is likely to severely damage your scores in the Intelligence or Aptitude tests. Make sure you are well rested and try to take decent breaks in between aptitude tests to ensure you regain your energy.

4. Get to know the types of aptitude test questions

Familiarising yourself with the typical content and format of psychometric tests will give you a significant advantage. Verbal and numerical aptitude test questions are generally multiple choice questions which must be completed in a very short time. These questions can include topics like social sciences, physical or biological sciences, and business-related areas like marketing, economics, and human resource management. The abstract aptitude test is a non-verbal test that uses shapes as test questions. Generally, no specific knowledge of these subject areas is required. Familiarity with the type of test questions will get you a competitive edge.

5. Practice the psychometric tests online

Prepare for and practice the psychometric tests just like you would for any exam or test. Practicing test questions and training your brain to identify frameworks for solving problems will significantly improve your results. The majority of psychometric tests are administered online, therefore it is important that you train or prepare for your psychometric test using the same medium as the real tests – online.

6. Find out the type of psychometric test questions you need to practice

Not all jobs get the same test questions. The level of difficulty and complexity of psychometric test questions changes based on the job you are applying for. A test for a management position is likely to have more difficult questions than that of an entry role. Ensure you are practicing the right type of test questions for your test.

7. Plan your time and set milestones

All aptitude tests in the psychometric test are timed. On the other hand they are also designed in a way that only 1 – 2 per cent of people who take such a test can actually finish it. Here’s the good news, you don’t have to complete all the test questions to get a perfect score, and easy questions score the same as hard ones. The best strategy is to set milestones and if you don’t know the answer to a question, go on to complete others. If you have time left, you can revisit the harder questions.

8. Use any tools that are allowed

Most numerical aptitude tests will allow the use of a calculator and will advise this upfront. If you haven’t used a calculator for a while, familiarise yourself with the different types of operations well ahead of the test. Brush up on reading tables and graphs as well.

9. Read and increase your English vocabulary

Start reading a broader section of the newspaper or any industry specific information regarding the job you are applying for to increase your vocabulary. It will help you to grasp Verbal Aptitude Test questions quicker, answer them faster and therefore improve your score.

10. Be sure not to trigger a lie or fake good scale in the personality test

Most personality tests are designed to indicate whether you were consistent in your answers and to what extent you tried to portray yourself in an overly positive manner. It’s fine to make yourself look good. We all do it when we want to get a job. However, ensure that you don’t overdo it as it will cause inconsistency in your answers. Just be yourself and know what set of your strengths you want to highlight.

Succeeding in the psychometric tests

As daunting as psychometric tests sometimes appear, the key to success and achieving a top score is practice and preparation. Research the company you are sitting the psychometric tests for. Identify their culture, values and the calibre of employee they’re searching for. This will help you in the personality tests. And then practice, practice, practice!

For more information on psychometric tests and to practice, click here.