Assessments

Source: https://careerzone.universiteitleiden.nl/en/develop-your-skills/application-skills/assessments Parent: https://careerzone.universiteitleiden.nl/en/develop-your-skills/application-skills/networking/mentor-network/

Career Zone EN

Assessments

An assessment can be part of a job application process and aims to gain a good understanding of your knowledge, abilities, skills, and personality traits.

There are three types of assessments:

• Selection assessment – an evaluation to determine whether you are suitable for a specific position
• Development assessment – to discover which skills can be (further) developed
• Career assessment – to determine whether your (current) career is a good fit for you

Assessment components

Personality Test\ A personality test measures your personality, motivation, and drivers, among other things. You might be presented with a questionnaire containing statements about behaviours or opinions, and you must indicate to what extent these statements apply to you or to what extent you agree with them. View an example of a personality test here.

Cognitive Ability / Aptitude Tests\ The purpose of these tests is to measure your general intelligence and reasoning ability. The tests are often divided into:

• Verbal Analogies
• Syllogisms
• Figure Series

You can prepare well for aptitude tests by practicing extensively. In the right column, you'll find links to various practice pages.

Aptitude tests are (almost) always timed and often consist of multiple-choice questions.

Case study interview\ In a case study interview, you will be presented with a case study (a real-life work situation) to which you must respond on the spot. The goal is to share your thinking with the interviewer about how you arrived at your conclusion

Fact-finding assignment\ In this assessment format, the goal is to gather information. You'll often receive brief explanations, and it's up to you to find the information using targeted questions. You often have limited time for this.

Group Assignment\ You'll work with a group to tackle a problem or question. They'll examine the group process and how everyone functions within the group. This could involve a meeting, for example, or solving a case study.

In-tray Exercise\ These days, it's more often about emails than actual mail, and the exercise is also called the ‘e-tray exercise’. You have a mountain of mail or emails and little time to get through it. How do you approach this?

Role-playing\ A role-playing game can be done with an actor and simulates a challenging workplace situation, where you are observed. The idea behind role-playing is that behavior in the simulation predicts future behavior in the workplace.

Interview\ The interview will be conducted by an assessment psychologist, for example. This interview is often based on the STARR method. A past situation will be discussed in detail, and you will then provide an example.

• What happened?
• What did you do?
• What was the outcome?
• What did you learn from it?

Assessment forms

Online Assessment\ You may be required to complete assignments online that will be discussed later online or during a job interview or performance review.

Assessment Day\ You'll then go to a location where you'll be presented with various assessment components over one or more day

Games\ These days, games are often used as part of assessments

Resource: Hellotest.nl (in Dutch)

Assessment tips

Practicing an assessment is very important. Remember, this really helps. So, do your research beforehand and also read these assessment tips.

• Prepare well.
• Know which assessment you're going to/have to take and what it entails.
• Practice! There are various IQ tests and case studies available online that you can practice. See the right-hand column of this page for options.
• Prepare for a potential interview.
• Know your core values, drivers, as well as your strengths and weaknesses.
• Don't underestimate it.
• Know your rights and responsibilities.
• Regarding the assessment and/or the day itself:
• make sure you get enough sleep.
• know where you need to be and when.
• or what the correct link is to use. More information about conducting an online interview can be found at online job interview.
• if you're not feeling well, please contact the assessment center to reschedule the assessment.

Not handy

• Self-absorption – Don't assume, ‘I'll just do it’. Take the assessment seriously.
• Dress code – What you wear may not seem important, but it can also be part of the assessment. Dress appropriately and play it safe, especially if you don't know what's customary within the organisation you're interested in.
• Being negative – Believe in yourself! Some candidates are negative about themselves and their performance. If you don't believe in yourself, how do you expect anyone else to?
• Lack of initiative – It doesn't give a good impression if you let everything happen to you passively and don't take initiative. Show that you're a go-getter.
• Being overly present – This is the other side of letting everything happen to you passively. Sometimes people will shout to be seen. Keep in mind that this will be seen through. It comes across as forced and prevents you from showing what you truly have to offer.

Resource: 123 test.

Handige links assessment ENG

Practice

123test shldirect Assess.ly GITP Cubiks Fibonicci Ixly Assesmentday Numerical reasoning test Making moves

Handige links assessment - cases - ENG

Cases

Bain and company McKinsey Boston Conultancy Group University of Virginia