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Standardized testing can be a valuable part of your employee evaluation process.

How to Choose the Right Test

Select the right test for the job

For instance...

  • Hiring for an entry level position.
  • Promoting an existing employee.
  • Assessing a senior employee’s skill sets.

Know what you want to measure

There are few one-size-fits-all assessments. Most tests are specific to a certain skill set, job role, or ability. There are also a wide range of assessment products available to help employers test for skills in customer service, retail, management, mechanical ability, honesty, dexterity, safety habits, office skills, computer skills and more. If you know what skills your employees require, then you know what type of tests you need to use to evaluate them.

Sometimes it is necessary to combine a number of tests to accurately measure everything that you want to test for.

Testing enables an employer to...

  • Assess specific skills, attitudes, or aptitudes quickly and accurately.
  • Standardize the application process, to ensure that each candidate is measured against the same criteria.

Consider...

  • What do I need to know about the applicant before I hire them?
  • What skills must I ensure that they have before I offer them employment?

Example scenarios...

  • To determine which one of several candidates would be a good team leader, administer a team leading or leadership skills test.
  • When hiring for an entry level position, consider tests that measure honesty, tenure, attitudes towards supervision or reading/math ability.

Test for specific skills

There are a wide range of assessment products available to help employers test for skills in customer service, retail, management, mechanical ability, honesty, dexterity, safety habits, office skills, computer skills and more. If you know what skills your employees require, then you know what type of tests you need to use to evaluate them.

Types of Tests

Basic Skills Tests

Basic skills tests measure skills that should reasonably be expected for most employees, regardless of their position. These are usually the sort of skills that people obtain in everyday life, elementary school, or high school.

The importance of test validation...

As part of the test development process, any test or assessment tool offered must be validated to ensure that it is accurate, reliable, and legal for use.

Find our more validity and reliability, read our Validity Definitions & Descriptions article in the Tests: Articles About Tests & Testing section.

Basic skills might include...

  • Reading
  • Arithmetic
  • Measurement
  • Problem solving
  • Decision making
  • Reasoning
  • Vocabulary
  • Checking accuracy

Aptitude Tests

Aptitude tests measure a person's ability to learn jobs, perform successfully in training, or assess current skill levels, i.e. general mechanical aptitude. These tests can help to select entry-level workers by measuring their general knowledge and natural ability.

Aptitude tests are not usually used to measure specific knowledge; however, some are more specific:

  • Mechanical aptitude tests measure practical knowledge in mechanics and such things as physics, science and tools. They can be used as an indicator of a person's ability to learn mechanical concepts.
  • Electrical aptitude tests measure practical knowledge in science, abstract thinking, mathematics, physics, and logic. They can be used as an indicator of a person's ability to learn electrical concepts.
  • MultiCraft aptitude tests would be a measure of both mechanical and electrical capabilities.

Skill Tests

Skill tests are generally task- or job-specific. Tests have been developed to help test a person’s ability to perform a specific set of tasks or skills.

These tests measure things like...

  • Microsoft Word
  • customer service ability
  • pharmacy skills
  • sales ability
  • welding ability
  • warehouse skills
  • etc.

Personality Tests

Personality tests are designed to help assess aspects of a person's character that remain stable throughout that person's lifetime, the individual's character pattern of behavior, thoughts, and feelings. In other words, a person's "usual" or normal personality traits; the behaviours or values that make them who they are.

Although these tests are generally very accurate, personality tests are not usually recommended or legal for use as pre-hiring assessments. Most employment laws demand that only those skills that can be proven to be requirements for success in a particular position may be tested.

Other Types of Tests

360-Degree Tests measure one person’s perception of their various skill sets, compared against the perceptions of several other people that they work with or for. These tests can help determine where people can improve their skills and identify deficits.

Other tests include tests for stress and burnout and many other things, including diagnostic and psychiatric tests for professional use in clinical settings.

Finding tests on our website

Choose tests by Category, Title, or Search by Keyword, from the Find Your Test page.

View a list of all tests in alphabetical order in the A-Z Test List.

Also use the A-Z Test List page to sort by...

  • Depth (Basic, Intermediate, or Advanced)
  • Time Required to Take the Test
  • Test Format (Online or Paper)
  • Scoring Options (Hand-Scoreable, Faxed Back, Online Report)

Not sure which test fits your needs? We can help. Contact Us today.

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