When you pass a pre-employment test, you advance to the next phase of the hiring process, and employers use them to determine whether you’re a good fit for a specific position.
This page will help you learn more about the various types of pre-employment tests, as well as the steps you need to take to land the job of your dreams.
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What Does Pre-Employment Testing Really Mean?
The purpose of pre-employment testing is to collect information about your cognitive skills and personality.
These tests can provide insight into your ability to perform tasks effectively. Before an interview, some employers may require you to take a pre-employment test.
They use pre-employment tests for two main reasons:
Speed up The Hiring Process
Generally, large companies have a lot of applicants and interviewing them all would be time-consuming and expensive.
Employers use pre-employment tests to quickly narrow down the pool of candidates.
Also, with enough data collected, employers will be able to ask you more specific and precise questions.
Determine Whether an Applicant Is Qualified
A pre-employment test is administered by employers to determine if your skills match the job requirements.
In the case of a managerial job, an employer might administer a test to evaluate your decision-making skills and determine whether or not you meet his expectations.
The use of objective measures of testing could reduce employee turnover rate as well as increase the percentage of hires whose abilities and passions match those needed for the position.
Leading Test Providers
The following are some examples of various types of personality tests used by leading employers in the job market:
Caliper
Caliper is a pre-employment assessment that is designed to measure your personality traits and cognitive abilities, both behaviorally and cognitively.
A candidate’s Caliper Profile, which is based on the results of your Caliper Test, is used to select the best candidate.
For more information about the Caliper assessment, click here.
SHL
SHL is one of the most prominent providers of job screening tests.
Cognitive Verify General Ability, the Verbal Test, and a standalone Numerical Reasoning Test are the most common tests offered by SHL In the UK and internationally,
A variety of other SHL tests are also available, such as Inductive, Deductive, Mechanical Ability, Checking, Personality, and SJT.
Criteria Corp
The Criteria Corp test(also known as the CCAT test) consists of four types of questions – Abstract, Verbal and Mathematical Reasoning, and Logical.
Most candidates will find the test difficult, especially those who are not used to solving problems under time pressure or haven’t touched high school materials in years.
Matrix and syllogism questions, for example, are more complex and need practice.
Ramsay
Ramsay tests (also called Ramsay mechanical tests) are a collection of professional tests that examine the knowledge and learning abilities of applicants for technical and mechanical jobs.
Each of the tests is administered by Ramsay Corporation (Ramsay Corp) and consists of multiple-choice questions.
Currently, the most popular Ramsay mechanical aptitude tests used to select candidates include the Ramsay Multicraft Test, the Ramsay Electrical Test, the Ramsay Mechanical Aptitude Test, and the Amazon Maintenance Technician Test.
Tests Used for Pre-Employment
These are some of the pre-employment tests you can expect to take when applying for a job:
- Physical Ability tests.
- Personality Tests.
- Emotional Intelligence Tests.
- Cognitive Ability Tests.
- Skills Assessment Tests.
Physical Ability Tests
Tests of physical ability determine whether you’re capable of performing in roles that require physical work, like a firefighter or police officer, and their goal is to prevent workplace accidents as well as to find a productive and well-qualified candidate.
In physical ability tests, strength and endurance are measured.
The following are examples of physical ability tests:
- Muscle tension tests involve pushing, pulling, and lifting.
- Muscular strength exams require the individual to overcome some initial resistance, such as untying a rope or loosening a bolt.
- Muscular Endurance Tests check a candidate’s ability to perform repetitive tasks using tools.
- Cardiac Endurance Tests assess an individual’s aerobic fitness by having them run short distances quickly or climb stairs.
- Flexibility Tests – Activities that require twisting, bending, stretching, or reaching.
- Balance Tests – Physical activities that require the ability to maintain a stable position.
Personality Tests
An employer uses personality tests to determine whether you are a good fit for the culture of the company.
Test results can help employers determine your level of commitment to the organization and your compatibility for a long-term career.
Emotional Intelligence Tests
Tests of emotional intelligence measure how well you can build relationships and show empathy towards others.
Those with a high level o f emotional intelligence will be able to handle conflicts more effectively and alleviate the frustrations and disappointments of their fellow coworkers.
A test of emotional intelligence can help reveal the following characteristics:
Sense of empathy– A person who empathizes and understands the feelings of others in a given situation.
Cooperation and Teamwork can be useful to employees who need to collaborate with coworkers with different priorities, goals, and personalities.
Workers who can easily see others’ points of view and find common ground will have a better chance of accomplishing company goals and building a long-term successful career inside an organization.
Adaptability- A person’s ability to adapt to different work-related changes displays how his ability to meet the changing priorities of the company.
For example, as a project manager at a company, you might need to reorder your tasks to meet your boss’s expectations if he decides to change the company’s strategy.
Cognitive Ability Tests
A cognitive ability test measures your mental capacity to succeed in a particular job.
It is a part of a family of tests designed to measure general intelligence. In the majority of cases, these tests are formulated as multiple-choice questions.
Employers can predict your job performance as a result of your answers since they’ll know how you manage and solve complex problems.
To make that prediction, the employer uses verbal, numerical, abstract, and logical tests. Tests in this category can vary significantly in complexity and difficulty level.
Tests of cognitive ability have the following common characteristics:
- The candidate must answer a lot of questions within a short timeframe.
- In most cases, the test subject is not particularly challenging; however, time constraints and switching between subjects can pose challenges.
Skills Assessment Tests
A skills assessment test evaluates your ability and performance for a certain task.
If, for example, an employer is seeking to hire you as a typist in a court of law, they will likely give you a writing test to see how well you type and determine how good you are at proofreading your content before submission.
Additionally, a skills assessment test might ask you to demonstrate presentation skills, leadership skills, or research skills.
