aptitude test for problem solving

Practice Aptitude Tests

Each test is free to take and includes questions, answers and fully explained solutions . After you take a test , write a comment below it to let others know how you found it.

What Are The Different Types Of Aptitude Assessments?

These are the most common types of aptitude test that you will encounter:, numerical reasoning tests.

These tests require you to answer questions based on statistics, figures and charts.

Verbal reasoning tests

A means of assessing your verbal logic and capacity to quickly digest information from passages of text.

Intray exercises

A business-related scenario that assesses how well you can prioritise tasks.

Diagrammatic tests

Tests that measure your logical reasoning , usually under strict time conditions.

Situational judgement tests

Psychological tests that assess your judgement in resolving work-based problems.

Inductive reasoning tests

Tests that identify how well a candidate can see the underlying logic in patterns, rather than words or numbers.

Cognitive ability tests

A measurement of general intelligence, covering many categories of aptitude test .

Mechanical reasoning tests

These assess your ability to apply mechanical or engineering principles to problems; they are often used for technical roles.

Watson Glaser tests

Designed to assess a candidate’s ability to critically consider arguments; often used by law firms.

Abstract reasoning tests

Another name for inductive reasoning tests .

Spatial awareness tests

These tests assess your capacity to mentally manipulate images, and are often used in applications for jobs in design, engineering and architecture.

Error checking tests

An unusual type of aptitude test that focuses on your ability to identify errors in complex data sets.

How to Prepare for an Aptitude Test

Aptitude tests are designed to be challenging.

To ensure that you do as well as you possibly can, there really is no substitute for practice.

But don’t waste time practicing more than you need to.

Find out exactly what type of aptitude test you will be taking and practice just this type of test .

First use example questions with explained answers to familiarise yourself with the types of questions you will be asked and then take practice tests to improve your performance.

What Are Aptitude Tests Like?

Aptitude tests are typically quite short, often less than 15 minutes long, and are usually completed online.

Tests generally have challenging time limits and often increase in difficulty throughout the test .

This is to put the candidate under pressure and try to understand what their maximum level of performance is.

Typically, tests present the candidate with some information and ask them to use this information to answer a question, usually providing a number of possible answers.

The more questions the candidate answers correctly within the time limit, the better their score will be.

While some aptitude tests will only focus on one type of thinking (either verbal or numerical reasoning , for example) some will have multiple sections that will test various different types of skills.

A multi-part assessment such as that will often take about an hour to complete.

Each section will be roughly 10 to 30 questions, depending on how complex each question is on a particular test .

Basically, if there are more complex questions, the assessment section will have fewer questions.

The position for which the test is being given may also determine the complexity and length of the assessment, i.e., the higher-level the job, the more questions and more complex questions are likely to be asked.

How Are Aptitude Tests Marked?

Aptitude tests are norm referenced.

This means that your performance on the test will be compared to a “norm group.”

A norm group is a group of people with similar characteristics to the candidate, a group of graduate trainees for example.

Your score will be compared to the scores of the people in the norm group, and this will allow the assessor to understand your performance relative to others who are similar to you.

Usually, a candidate’s score is expressed as a percentile.

This, then, tells the assessor what percentage of the norm group their performance surpassed.

If a candidate scored on the 75th percentile, for example, they have performed better than 75 percent of the norm group.

Each particular employer may have a different performance level required for specific positions.

To be successful, the candidate must achieve a level of performance that exceeds a stated minimum.

Candidates will usually not know what the minimum score requirement is before they take an aptitude test .

Why Are Aptitude Tests Used?

Aptitude tests are often used by employers as part of a selection process for a job.

While aptitude tests won’t necessarily test candidates on their ability to perform a specific job within a company, they will give the employer a general sense of how well a candidate can think on their toes and demonstrate critical-thinking skills that would be reflective of the type of thinking they’ll need to do on the job.

Administering aptitude tests allows companies to narrow down the number of candidates who have applied for a job to a more refined group that may be more qualified for the job.

When Are Aptitude Tests Used?

Aptitude tests are most often used before a formal interview and are normally conducted online.

Employers often use the results of the tests in conjunction with how a candidate has performed in an interview to make a final hiring decision.

Combined, the two modes of assessment give employers a clearer picture of a candidate’s ability.

How To Pass Aptitude Tests: Our Top 3 Tips

Familiarize yourself with common types of questions that you will be asked. For example, numerical tests often have questions about percentages. Make sure you know how to work these out before your test !

If you’re taking an aptitude test online make sure you are sitting somewhere quiet where you won’t be disturbed for the duration of the test .

When you are taking tests , work quickly but accurately and ensure you take a few seconds to double check you’ve understood the question and that you’ve actually selected the answer you had in mind.

THE JOBSEEKER'S GUIDE TO

Aptitude tests.

The secret to not being intimidated by tests?

Preparation, test structure for aptitude tests.

Tests are timed and are typically multiple choice. It is not uncommon for some available answers to be deliberately misleading, so you must take care as you work through.

Some tests escalate in difficulty as they progress. Typically these tests are not designed to be finished by candidates.

SCORES AND MARKING

Your score relates your performance to an average group. your aptitude, ability or intelligence has a relative value to this average result..

Most employers take people’s backgrounds into consideration for marking.

For example, maths graduates will have an unfair advantage over arts graduates on a numerical test .

NEGATIVE MARKING

Many aptitude tests incorporate negative marking. This means that for every answer you give incorrectly, a mark will be deducted from your total (rather than scoring no mark). If this is the case, you will normally be told beforehand.

In any test that does incorporate negative marking, you must not guess answers, even if you are under extreme time pressure, as you will undo your chances of passing.

PRACTICE IN ADVANCE

Evidence suggests that some practice of similar aptitude tests may improve your performance in the real tests . Practice exam technique and try to become more familiar with the types of test you may face by completing practice questions.

Even basic word and number puzzles may help you become used to the comprehension and arithmetic aspects of some tests .

PREPARATION BEFORE THE TEST

Treat aptitude tests like an interview: get a good night’s sleep, plan your journey to the test site, and arrive on time and appropriately dressed. Listen to the instructions you are given and follow them precisely.

You will normally be given some paper on which to make rough workings. Often you can be asked to hand these in with the test , but typically they do not form part of the assessment

TAKING THE TEST

Don’t get stuck on any particular question: should you have any problems, return to it at the end of the test . You should divide your time per question as accurately as you can – typically this will be between 50 and 90 seconds per question.

Remember that multiple-choice options are often designed to mislead you, with incorrect choices including common mistakes that candidates make.

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

These five tips are well worth remembering before you take an aptitude test for real:.

Treat the test like you would any other exam.

Work swiftly and accurately through any test .

Work out the maximum time you can spend on any question and stick to it religiously. You can return to questions at the end. Never get stuck on any particular question, even if you think you nearly have it.

If you are going to an assessment centre, take a calculator you understand with you. If you do not, you will be forced to use whatever they might provide you with.

Answer as many questions as possible in the time given. But be wary of negative marking.

Free Practice Aptitude Tests

FREE Numerical Reasoning Practice Test

FREE Verbal Reasoning Practice Test

FREE Inductive Reasoning Practice Test

FREE Abstract Reasoning Practice Test

FREE Cognitive Ability Practice Test

FREE Deductive Reasoning Practice Test

FREE Logical Reasoning Practice Test

FREE Mechanical Reasoning Practice Test

FREE Watson Glaser Practice Test

FREE Situational Judgement Practice Test

FREE Spatial Reasoning Practice Test

FREE SHL Practice Reasoning Test

FREE Diagrammatic Reasoning Test

FREE Practice Critical Thinking Test

FREE This Practice Error Checking Test

FREE Practice In-Tray Exercise

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Free Aptitude Test Sample Questions and Answers

An aptitude test is a psychometric assessment that is used to measure a candidate’s cognitive skills or behaviour in workplace scenarios. Aptitude tests consist of different types of questions and are frequently used by companies to improve the quality of their hiring.

There is a range of different aptitude tests, each assessing a different skill or competency. The most widely used aptitude tests are numerical reasoning, verbal reasoning, logical reasoning, and situational judgement.

Typically, no prior knowledge is needed to complete psychometric tests. But practicing sample questions will get you familiar with the format and question styles, which will give you greater confidence when taking a real test.

The most popular types of aptitude assessments are verbal reasoning, mechanical reasoning, spatial reasoning, cognitive ability, personality, and numerical tests.

So why not try out some free aptitude test sample questions below? Don’t forget to review the answers and solutions at the end of the page, so you can see where you went wrong, and what you might need to focus on.

Sample numerical reasoning test question

What was the percentage increase in snowfall in Whistler from November to December?

Sample logical reasoning test question

Which of the boxes comes next in the sequence?

Sample verbal reasoning test question

Statement: Business owners who have commercial premises often tend to have residential property as part of their portfolio.

• Cannot tell

Sample mechanical reasoning test question

How many revolutions per second is C turning?

Sample situational judgement test question

Passage : You recently submitted a paper to an upcoming professional conference that will be attended by many people from your industry and universities globally. You have attended the conference in the past and it is very well attended and highly regarded in the industry. The paper is a summary of some very complex research you have been undertaking with some key findings that you believe people will find very interesting and useful. Upon learning that it has been accepted, your manager asks you to think about how you will present your findings to make the biggest impact. You only have a short time slot for your presentation. How would you respond?

Read the passage and select two answers, for how you would most likely and least likely respond.

Say that you intend to use a lot of graphics and images to try and draw out a handful of key messages.

Say that you intend to create a presentation that mirrors the wider research paper that you wrote with similar section headers.

Ask your manager what they think would be the best approach to use based on their experience.

Say that you will spend a small amount of time introducing your approach to the research but will mainly discuss your key findings and conclusions.

Answers & Solutions

Answer: 3) 50%

• Identify how much snow fell in Whistler in November and December (Nov = 20cm & Dec = 30cm)
• Calculate the difference between the two months: 30 - 20 = 10
• Divide the difference by November (original figure) and multiply by 100: 10/20 x 100 = 50%

Solution: Squares move from the top left to the middle, then to the bottom right corner with each turn. Unshaded squares appear in every third turn. Triangle appears with every alternate turn.

Therefore, the black square and unshaded square should both be in the middle, with no triangle.

Answer: Cannot tell

Solution: From the passage, we know that people in this survey are less likely to have ‘mixed-use assets’ (an add-on to commercial investment). Our immediate reaction may therefore be to select false, but the passage is only telling us that people in the survey are less likely to have residential holdings that form part of mixed-use assets.

We don’t know if business owners tend to have residential property as part of their portfolio, so the answer is ‘cannot tell’. It is easy to get tripped up on questions like these, so ensure you read the passage carefully.

Solution: If cog A with 5 teeth can do a full revolution in a second, then cog C with 20 teeth will take 4 times as long to do a full revolution. So to find the answer you need to divide 40 by 4.

Answer: The most effective response is number 4, and the least effective is number 3.

Solution : The third option is the least effective, as you’re not showing any original thought by simply asking for their advice. Option 4 is best, since the key findings are what you believe will be of greatest interest to the audience, so it makes sense to focus on them.

Further practice

If you want to try a full free practice test for any of the above test types, click on the links below:

Numerical reasoning tests

Logical reasoning tests

Verbal reasoning tests

Mechanical reasoning tests

Situational judgement tests

Alternatively, if you’re looking for tips on how to do well in aptitude tests generally, check out our 15 tips to pass aptitude tests and 10 ways to prepare for an aptitude test .

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