How to prepare for a psychometric test

Preparation helps for ability tests and barely applies to personality questionnaires. Knowing which you are facing is step one.

By The KnowYourself editorial team · Updated · 6 min read

Find out exactly what you are sitting

Ask the employer or check the invitation email for the provider's name and the test type. Format, timing and scoring differ enough between providers that generic practice is a poor substitute for the real thing. Most providers publish official practice tests.

For ability and aptitude tests

Practise under real time pressure rather than at leisure — the clock is most of the difficulty. Work out your seconds per item before you start and move on when you hit the limit; an unanswered easy question later costs more than a hard one you abandoned.

Refresh the arithmetic that numerical tests lean on: percentages, ratios, percentage change, and reading axes carefully. For verbal reasoning, practise the discipline of judging statements only against the passage, not against what you know.

For personality questionnaires

There is very little to prepare. Answer with your first reaction and think about your behaviour over recent months rather than in the last few hours. Do not try to guess the profile the employer wants — the guess is usually wrong and the resulting profile is usually implausibly extreme.

Practical conditions

Sit the test somewhere quiet with a stable connection, on a full-size screen if the format involves tables or diagrams, and at a time of day when you are alert. Have paper and a calculator to hand if they are permitted. These sound trivial and they routinely cost people marks.

If you need adjustments

If a disability or condition affects how you take timed tests, ask about adjustments before the assessment rather than after. Extra time and alternative formats are commonly available and asking early is normal.

Frequently asked questions

How much practice is worth doing?

For aptitude tests, most of the benefit arrives in the first few full-length practice attempts. Beyond that the returns fall away quickly.

Should I prepare for a personality test?

Only by reading enough to understand what it measures. Rehearsing answers tends to make the profile less useful, not more flattering.

Try it yourself

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