Hi there, Towers Watson have invited me for a numerical test to take online within the next two days. I did a practice test on SHL and came up with 38 per cent . I spent too long dwelling on the questions in order to make sure that of the questions I answered, a high percentage were correct. How do they mark it? Is it out of total questions answered or total number of questions? Any tips would be greatly appreciated. Did you guys find it difficult or easy?
I think they are an absolute pain. Not sure they have a pass mark as such. But the results say as much about you as they do numerical ability in some cases. So if you spend loads of time and get lots wrong then that would be a worry but if you rush its different. If you picked an answer that was ridulous or clearly naive that too tells them something. think they are computer marked and all the data shows in number questions attempted, number right, average rime per question. So don't worry. It won't be used in isolation.
Plus, it is worth noting these numerical tests generally offer the possibility of performing way, way beyond what most of us consider normal, so that you can tell the difference between normal good performers and the occasional savant.
I failed the numerical test for TW . I found it really difficult - I even got the practice questions wrong. For anyone that would like to know, what made it difficult was that they required us to take the test within two days of saying so, and so they didn't allow us to do much practice. The numerical content was rather basic but most of the trouble was understanding what to do with the figures and knowing what the figures actually meant. Because I had passed my CT1 exam, I was vaguely familiar with some of the stuff like inflation rate increases etc but still, some questions still baffled me You could argue that the numerical content was GCSE Maths level, but the way the questions are phrased and constructed makes it much more difficult than GCSE. I guess the thing for me to do next is to purchase some books on numerical reasoning. I also have a feeling that if I didn't fail the numerical reasoning I woud have failed the verbal reasoning, so I'd best work on that too. Has anyone in the past had problems with these psychometric tests? I'm guessing that these tests are supposed to be difficult so that only the best get through.
I didn't pass the TW numeracy test either but found I done well in pretty much all others I attempted. Maybe theirs is a particularly challenging one. Either way, don't let it get you down. I would recommend numerical/verbal reasoning books from any bookstore as they are good for sharpening your technique
I've done a couple, and yes, they are always stretching. Like I said before, they need to be, in order to differentiate. If you think about it, applicants are likely to be in the top few tenths of a percent compared to the whole population, so to rank them you need something which gives you a better basis for ranking, as opposed to, say, A-level.
Which other companies did you take the numerical reasoning tests with? It was the first one I had ever done so failing it did make me feel really dumb. I guess, in my mind, I always had the naive notion that numerical tests were easy. I am so going to buy those numerical reasoning books. I actually find that training that skill is very useful.
