Aptitude and ability tests
Types of aptitude test and how to practise them in advance
Numerical tests
Some organisations test for basic numeracy - you should be able cope if you have GCSE, ‘O’ level, or Standard Grade in Maths (and you can still remember it!).
You should be able to do the following, at a reasonable speed
- addition, subtraction, long division and multiplication
- calculate percentages and ratios
- deal with fractions
- extract information from charts and graphs.
You may or may not be allowed to use a calculator.
Worried about your numeracy skills?
You can brush up your maths skills with a GCSE text book or resources on the web such as BBC Skillswise.
Verbal reasoning
These skills are more difficult to practise than numeracy skills. The tests can take various forms. You may be asked, among other things, to
- arrange sentences in a logical order (more difficult than it seems, at speed)
- evaluate the logic of given statements.
Diagrammatic and spatial reasoning
These tests involve finding connections between diagrams or symbols, and might include
- multiple-choice questions where you pick out the correct diagram to complete the sequence correctly
- exercises where you follow coded instructions.
Try out some aptitude tests
You can try out different kinds of aptitude tests on the Prospects website.