Understanding Assessment Centres: Psychometric Tests, Situational Judgement, and More
Assessment centres often include psychometric tests, ability testing, and situational judgement assessments to evaluate candidates. These tests help employers understand your personality, behaviours, decision-making skills, and ability to work in different scenarios. By participating in these assessments, you can showcase your strengths and suitability for the job role or placement. Understanding the types of tests involved and how they are used can help you prepare effectively.
- Assessment Centres
- Psychometric Tests
- Situational Judgement
- Candidate Evaluation
- Workplace Behaviours
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Presentation Transcript
Assessment Centres what are they talking about? What are we talking about? What are they trying to find out about me? Psychometric tests and ability testing Situational Judgement tests How do I complete these tests? How will they use the information Interviews different types Other types of assessments Values and behaviours
Useful information What are they trying to find out about me? Advert The job description Person specification Other information about the job / role / apprenticeship / placement What do they already know?
So many different types (but dont let this scare you) Personality is about you and your typical behaviours Psychometric tests Based on theory of personality and aids the selection process Team or individual Working with others Communicative style .. Identifies things like:
Ability might be numerical, literacy/verbal, logical or reasoning for example or a mixture Ability tests Situational Judgement tests (SJT)
Examples of critical reasoning questions
These tests are designed to test a candidates behavioural decision-making and thought processes when introduced to work-related scenarios When given a scenario you will be presented with 4 or 5 possible actions that you could take, it's up to you to decide which is the most effective and least effective or be asked to rank them in order of effectiveness. Situational Judgement Tests An employer will typically be looking to see how your respond to set situations that might occur in the workplace They are often looking for particular behaviours and these may reflect their Values (we talk about this a bit later)
As an example, one of our local employers, Rolls Royce, use a range of testing for their graduate recruitment that might include: numerical reasoning, verbal reasoning, logical reasoning, situational judgement tests, technical understanding tests Psychometric and ability tests The type of test an employer might use very much depends on the role Some large employers use bespoke tests designed to assess a candidate's ability to do specific technical tasks
There will usually be an opportunity to try some practice tests (good idea to do this!) How do I complete them? Remember they aren t just picking you, you need to choose them too! They are trying to learn more about you than just an interview can tell them
They are trying to learn more about you than just an interview can tell them How do I complete them? Ability adds an objective element. There are right and wrong answers, usually timed Personality is about fit and styles. No correct answers, not usually timed.
Helps them to pick the right person They might use some of the information in your interview How do they use the results? They might use it to support your development on the job / in the placement Allocate you to the right role or team
Lots of different types strengths based, competency based Try and remember: C circumstances. What was the situation? A action . How did you go about it? R result. What was the outcome? Interviews Can you tell me about a time . There will usually be a clear structure that the interviewer will follow Use of opening and probing questions to dig a bit deeper EXAMPLES .
Help the employer to understand how well you can perform real elements of the job Designed to test things like data entry, speed an accuracy, customer service skills, multitasking etc Simulations In manufacturing they might test things like manual dexterity / putting things together For more senior or managerial roles simulations might look for things like leadership potential, communication, prioritising etc
Other types of assessments Group exercises In tray exercises Role play Simulations use of IT and gamification Prioritisation tasks Case studies Remember always read the instructions carefully and try to act naturally in activities such as role play
Values and behaviours what are they? Values Company values are the core values or standards that guide the way you do business. They sum up what your business stands for, influences the organisational culture and drives how and why you do things. Behaviours these define or guide how people in a business behave, in line with theValues (how a business lives it s Values)
Useful to look at the website, company magazines as part of your research always lots of info! Often businesses have information about their Company Values and it is good to know what these are Hints and tips Interviews and assessments might look for how well you demonstrate these values Examples are things like team work / working with others, integrity, diversity, quality
INTEGRITY We Act With Integrity and Show Respect Demonstrate a commitment to integrity and ethics Show respect for and value all individuals for their diverse backgrounds, experiences, styles, approaches and ideas Listen to others for understanding Assume positive intent ACCOUNTABILITY A great example ..Kelloggs We Are All Accountable Take personal accountability for our actions and results Focus on finding solutions and achieving results Actively engage in discussions and commit to decisions once they are made Involve others in decisions and plans that affect them Keep promises and commitments made to others
Our shared values guide our actions and describe how we behave in the world: Leadership: The courage to shape a better future Coca Cola Company Values Collaboration: Leverage collective genius Integrity: Be real Accountability: If it is to be, it's up to me Passion: Committed in heart and mind Diversity: As inclusive as our brands Quality: What we do, we do well
Here are the Values and Behaviours for another major employer in Derby .
Here are the Values and Behaviours for one of our biggest employers in Derby .
It is helpful to try and gain some feedback (particularly if you aren t successful) After the Assessment Centre Employers will often do this and it should help you to understand if there are areas you can focus on for next time
