Assessment tests form part of a large part of the job interview processes, especially in larger companies. Such assessments are currently used by over 80% of the Fortune 500 companies in the United States and by 75% of the top companies in the England.

There are 4 major categories of assessment tests that candidates could be subject to when applying for a job.

1. Assessing skills – aiming to identify whether or not the candidates have the skills needed to do the job. They would use multiple choice questions or a situation simulation to evaluate the technical or professional expertise and knowledge of the candidates possess. For example, technical skills or knowledge of a foreign language.

2. Assessing personality – some of the most common personality assessment tests are the Myers-Briggs (determine to what degree a person is extrovert/introvert, sensitive/intuitive, rationalizing through thinking/feeling, dependent on judgment/perception) and the DISC (identify candidates as Dominant, Influencing, Steady or Compliant). Inconsistencies would rise a red flag in the recruiter’s mind and they will investigate further to determine why such differences have occurred. Although this might give an insight on the person’s work style preference it would not identify or confirm job competencies

3. Assessing cognitive abilities - testing the verbal, numeric or logical reasoning. In essence, these tests measure IQ. This would help the recruiter assess the candidates’ ability to learn. Some tests that you can check out are the Wonderlic Personnel test and Profiles XT. Recruiters would use the results of these tests to assess the candidates’ subsequent performance as well as to compare and measure between different candidates. These, together with the structured interview and some type of work sampling would give a pretty accurate idea of the potential of candidates.

4. Assessing competencies – this test would be trying to determine behavioral patterns with respect to qualities such as motivation, honesty, leadership, trustworthiness, reliability, and pro-social behavior, etc. The candidates would be asked direct questions requesting to quote past experiences which relate to how they approached sensitive issues, or they will be asked to talk about preferences and interests which would then be used to determine future behaviors in the areas of interest. These tests are often used to identify candidates who are likely to engage in inappropriate, dishonest, and antisocial behavior at work.

Companies would usually invite the candidates to fill out a test during the second or third round of interviews. As far as banks are concerned, almost all use some sort of assessment to evaluate skills and compatibility. We strongly advise you to ask for more information about the sort of test you will need to pass before going for the assessment; this would give you time to do your research and prepare well for them.

The Growinfinance.com Team