If you have recently been asked to complete a psychometric test, you may be feeling a little anxious about what will be asked of you – firstly, you are not alone. These are normal feelings and we find that many applicants feel this way, so try not to panic. Secondly, take the time to explore our website and to learn about what psychometric testing is, what you might be faced with, how you can prepare and your rights as a candidate. A good place to start is by having a read through the information we have provided you on psychometric testing and preparing for a test.

FAQ

No specific preparation is required for psychometric testing as it measures your skills, general abilities, cognitive processes and behaviours. The best general preparation advice that we can give you is:

1. Make sure you are well rested
2. Read through our questions on sitting the test so that you are properly set up to complete and will face no technical difficulties
3. Ensure your brain is awake and alert at the time of psychometric testing
4. Spend time completing practice questions so that you understand what you have to do before the test starts. See CAN I COMPLETE SOME PRACTICE QUESTIONS for more information
5. If there is a time limit, don’t spend too long on any one question. If you cannot answer a question, go on to the next
6. Be confident in your abilities, and know your strengths and weaknesses
7. Be prepared to answer all questions honestly.

Can I complete some practice questions?

Completing practice questions will help you to understand what you will be faced with. Most tests provide practice questions to familiarise participants with the format and content of the tests. These will be at the beginning of most of the tests and will give you the best idea of what is expected. The practice questions are not timed and are shown, along with detailed instructions and the correct answer at the beginning of each test.

We strongly recommend that you take your time in completing these and understanding the answers. Note that once you begin the downloading process and examine the sample questions you are committed to completing the test.Exiting the program at this stage will prevent you from completing the test.

Tests can only be accessed once. If you have more than one test you can complete each at different times, however tests with multiple sections must be completed in one sitting. The duration of each test and the number of sections is stated in the table next to the test name, on your Home Page once you have logged in. It is important that you carefully check the time available for each test before you begin the downloading process.

Once the test has been selected and the downloading begins, you must complete the individual test.At the beginning of each test there are instructions and some practice questions. You must go on and complete the test once you have viewed the practice questions.

Depending on the test you are completing, for most of the tests on the TestGrid system the following functionality applies:

To complete the section and/or test, click on Finish Test. You cannot go back to review or change your answers once you have completed the test and clicked Finish. Do not close your browser window until you have returned to your home page. Once you have completed all of your testing and have arrived back at the home page, selecting the logout button ensures that the results are automatically uploaded to the TestGrid database.

Some tests have more than one section (within the one test). Where the save and resume function is available, the participant is allowed to leave the system during a test session without losing their preceding responses. After returning, the system automatically takes the participant to where they left off.

Otherwise, the entire test must be completed in one sitting.

The organisation who has arranged the testing will nominate a date by which testing is to be completed (this date is not set by TestGrid). You will find this date is specified in the e-mail you received with your username and password. If not you will need to contact the organisation that has arranged the testing for these details.

If you are unable to meet the stated deadline you should contact the relevant organisation at your earliest convenience.

Once you have logged in and filled in your personal details page, you will be taken to the Participants Homepage. Listed here are the tests you are being asked to complete and the duration of the test, if it is a timed test. Sample and practice questions shown before the test and are not timed.

A duration time of 0 mins means that this test is not timed. You should allow approximately 30 mins for un-timed tests.

WHEN SITTING THE TEST

Once you are logged in and have filled in your personal details, you will be taken to your personal Home Page where the tests you have been asked to complete will be located in a table at the bottom of the screen. This table contains information about the duration of each test, and the number of sections within each test. A duration time of 0 mins means that the test is not timed.

Each individual test will contain instructions for you to read prior to commencement, and many of them also have sample questions. When you are ready to begin, all you need to do is click on the first test in the list. Please note that you will need to complete them in the designated order. When any test is completed you must click on the Finish Test or Finish Section button to send your results back to the database. Do not close your browser window until you have returned to your home page. Once you have completed all of your testing and have arrived back at the home page, selecting the logout button ensures that the results are automatically uploaded to the TestGrid database.

From a technical perspective basically what happens is that the system downloads each test onto your computer, one test at a time. This can take some minutes depending on the age of the hardware being used and type of Internet service provider. Once the test has been downloaded, you should only use the Next and Previous buttons in the main test screen to navigate your way through the test (i.e. don't use the browser buttons such as back, refresh etc).

The environment in which you complete the psychometric testing should provide you with every opportunity to perform well on the assessment. Ideally, your location should be appropriately ventilated or heated, quiet, and free from distractions or interruption. Please remember to turn off your mobile phone.

1. You can move through the questions by using the Next and Previous buttons. Once the test has been downloaded, you should only use the Next and Previous buttons in the main test screen to navigate their way through the test (i.e. don't use the browser buttons like back, refresh etc).
2. Alternatively, in some tests questions can be selected in any order from the left of the screen where questions are listed in blue boxes.
3. The box containing the question number will turn green when questions have been answered.
4. Unanswered questions remain blue. You can click directly on a question box to access it at any time.
5. At the bottom of the page, you have a button that enables you to mark a question for review, in which case the question number will appear in red. A question can be marked whether or not an answer is selected. These questions can be returned to at any stage if time permits. Please note that all marked questions with a selected answer will be included in the results sent to the database.
6. When you have completed the test or section you have the opportunity to review your answers and make changes if time permits.
What is the process of completing sectioned tests? When should I complete the test by? What is the duration of the test? What does psychometric testing involve? How can I create an appropriate physical test environment?

Psychometric testing needs to be undertaken using an appropriate Internet connection and suitable computer equipment.