January 31, 2017, by Carla
What Are Situational Judgement Tests, and How Can I Prepare?
By Lucie Whitfield, Employability Education Projects Officer – Social Sciences
You may have heard of psychometric tests and even have experience taking them, but what are situational judgement tests? This type of test is becoming more and more popular with employers, so it’s important you understand what they are used for and how to prepare for them.
What are they assessing?
Situational judgement tests are assessing skills that other assessment methods may miss. These might be interpersonal, problem solving or decision-making skills. They look at real-life scenarios and ask you to apply your own judgement and experience to that situation.
Employers want to see how you might behave and your answers will be matched with how an ideal candidate might respond. You will be given a situation and then usually a number of answers where you are asked to mark either the best and/or worst response or sometimes, to rank the responses in order of preference. This enables an employer to understand your reasoning behind the decisions and assess your decision-making ability.
Comment your answers below or tweet us @UoNCareers and we will reveal the results
Okay, that makes sense… How can I prepare?
As situational judgement tests assess a range of skills and your personal response to a situation, you may think they are harder to prepare for. However, there are a wide range of practice tests you can undertake online to get used to the format and style of questioning. Some of these tests will show you the answers and the reasoning behind the chosen format. Make sure you review your answers to look for any gaps in your understanding.
What can I do to really stand out from the crowd?
Well, you have to be yourself and answer the questions as honestly as possible. By doing the online practice tests you will grasp an understanding of where you need to improve your comprehension of the work-based situations. Before starting the test, think about the needs of the role and company and how this might relate to the answers. Don’t forget to time yourself too – time keeping matters!
Can I use past work experience or internships to help me think about the situations?
Absolutely! These examples will be based on problems you may face in the role you’re applying for. They’re designed to be as close to the role or industry as possible. So think about any past experiences you’ve had working – whether in a related internship or an unrelated part-time job. Reflect on situations where you had to make a decision or work with other people to get the best outcome. By reflecting, you’ll have a better idea of whether you could have used a different approach for a more favourable outcome or whether your approach was suitable for that situation.
Look at our pages on psychometric tests to read more about the them and find links to online practice tests. Don’t forget to also check out our skills workshops, as we run various sessions on psychometric tests – just sign up using My Career. You also have free access to Graduates First, which offer a range of psychometric tests to try. Simply register with your University email account or request a login if you are an alumni.
Answers revealed: Most likely to make: A Least likely to make: B
A (more likely) – taking action and keeping people informed of the reasons they are being requested to work extra hours;
B – taking action but indirectly. If the Senior Housekeeper is on the same line of command, that would be appropriate but I assumed He is not;
C (less likely) – being rude to people saying it is all about money;
D – taking action but not informing people properly and apologising instead.