Aptitude Test 2

Here is the second of the Aptitude Tests that will be uploaded on a regular basis to help students ensure that they remain on top of the verbal and numerical tests that you will have, either online or at the assessment centre.

Have a go at all five, and again I shall upload the answers to you in one months time. Best of luck.

1. Which sentence, if either, is incorrect:
    A. After going on the training course Susan was skilful in the way she managed to coordinate the concurrent sales and marketing conferences.
    B. After going to her training course Susan was able to coordinate skilfully the concurrent sales and marketing conferences.
    C. Neither of these. 

2.  Put these sentences into the correct order:
     A. Alternatively, on the verdict of guilty, the defendant will be sentenced immediately or have the case adjourned for sentence in order to allow a pre-sentence report to be made.
     B. At the end of the speeches the judge will sum up the case for the jury, who will then retire in the custody of the jury bailiff to make their deliberations.
     C. Counsel for defence will make her closing speech.
     D. Having given their verdict, the defendant, if she is acquitted, is then free to leave.

3. Read the following passage and then answer the following questions as either True, False or You Cannot Tell:

Quarter 3, 1996 data showed that the US economy expanded by just 0.4% against a 1.1% increase in the first quarter of 1996.
All that year, forecasters argued that the US dollar was overvalued, yet it continued to appreciate against every other currency. Finally, in the third quarter the dollar weakened.

A. US economic growth cooled markedly in 1996.

True            False            You  Cannot Tell

B. Depreciation of the US currency could easily gather momentum during the remainder of 1996.

True            False            You  Cannot Tell

C. Economic growth was a factor behind the appreciation of the US dollar.

  

True            False            You  Cannot Tell

D. An American coming to Europe in the autumn of 1996 found that he could buy more with his dollars than when he visited Europe earlier that year.

True            False            You  Cannot Tell

4. Interpret the data below to answer the questions:

The table below indicates the total number of young people and what they did after leaving school in a rural district of an English county between the years 1988 and 1991: 

Year	1988	1989	1990	1991
No. of school leavers	3,000	2,196	2,400	1,652
Returned to education	450	769	480	798
Entered employment	300	285	240	189
Entered training	600	483	480	266
Unemployed	750	373	480	147
Left district	150	66	120	189
Unknown	750	220	600	63

  

A. Between the years 1988 and 1990, which post-school activity saw the greatest percentage increase?

1) Returned to eduction      2) Entered training

3) Became unemployed       4) Left the district

B. How many activities were selected by the same percentage of young people in 1988 and 1990?

1) Two categories   2) Four categories   3) Five categories   4) Three categories

C. How many more times popular was returning to education compared with entering training in 1991?

1) Five times   2) Six times   3) Four times   4) Three times

D. Over the four-year period, what was the average number of annual school leavers?

1) 2,309   2) 3,216   3) 2,312   4) 2,038

5. The following question deals with your ability to look at a question beyond what you may think is theoretically the right answer:

How many degrees are there between clock hands at 3.15 pm?

A. 0 degrees   B. 90 degrees   C. 32.5 degrees   D. 7.5 degrees

Interviews - Being in the right mindset

Interviews are a doubled edged sword - simultaneously a chance for three experts in recruitment to systematically chop you down, as well an opportunity for you to sell yourself, and only yourself, without the worries of what others will do. It's just you and them.

The first piece of advice I can give is something everyone says, an age-old proverb, almost: "Just be yourself." And yet, it is also confusing in that it doesn't say which 'yourself' you should be. The you that sits in front of the TV or down the pub certainly isn't the you that you want to be. The "you" that you want to be is the one who has travelled to the far east, or volunteered for charity work at the weekend.

But the best you is still one-hundred percent you. Your best self is not another different individual, just you in the right place experiencing the right experience. On too many occasions I have heard of boys declaring their best experience of leadership was captaining the football team, despite the fact they only played a handful of games as a sub. If you played for the school team, then say so, but don't start creating some untruth where you single-handedly saved the team with heroics, attempting to defend every shot and embellishing the story so you sound like John Terry. In your lifetime you will probably only ever have a handful of interviews, and most of these will hopefully be internal as you apply for the next management position. But graduate recruiters are experts. They have seen hundreds and hundreds of potential candidates throughout the years, and it's almost second nature to them when someone lies in an interview. If you're lucky, they'll mark you down and move on. But the majority of the time, they will interrogate you further, fully aware that you aren't telling the truth, and one lie will indefinitely lead to another.

Interviews are about being yourself, and selling even the most seemingly mundane tasks as a competency that will make you more employable than the next. You may think that stacking shelves at Tesco isn't something that you really want to mention when applying at JPMorgan, but they will appreciate that fact that at Tesco's you were given the responsibility of organising the dispensing of cereals, even if you don't. Every experience where you have had to either lead, motivate, delegate or influence is another piece of arsenal in your artillery.

Competencies are transferable, and as long as you are confident in your own ability, so will the interviewer. Remember, they are human, albeit with a knack for lie detection, but if you can handle them, they know that you can handle the work.

So remember, don't just be yourself, be your best self. Look at all your achievements, all your positions of responsibility, at everything you may have ever done, and see how you can use it to sell you.

Keep reading for future articles relating to interviews, with advice from recruiters as well as more tips on using your experiences to their fullest.

Aptitude Test 1

Many of you will be going through application forms, some of you may have come to see the blog whilst taking a break in between answering questions. Whilst your application form is your first selling point, be aware that your aptitude tests have a part to play in whether or not you progress to the interview stage.




Below are 5 aptitude questions, covering verbal, numerical and critical reasoning - have a go at all 5 and in one month I shall upload the answers. Best of luck!






John's 1990 salary was equal to three times his current salary. It was double what he earned in 1993. Which piece of information do you require in order to establish the percentage decrease he has had to endure since 1990?


a. Inflation over the period totalled 13 per cent.
b. John paid £5,250 tax in 1990.
c. The difference between John's salary in 1990 and 1993 totalled £7,000.
d. The rate of tax in 1990 was 25 per cent
e. John's total current salary was only £1,750 greater than his 1990 tax bill.




What are the missing digits?


4      10      28      82      XX4      730




Re-organise the sentences below so that they are in correct order:


a. The former did not reach the South Pole first, but died heroically on his return journey.
b. There were two Antarctic expeditions in 1912.
c. The latter, a Norwegian, was the first man to reach the South Pole, but in comparatively unremarkable circumstances.
d. Arguably, Captain Scott's was more famous than Amundsen's.




Read the following statement, and deduce whether or not the following responses are True, False or Cannot Tell:


Simon shared a father with Tania but it is not James, the father of Lucas, youngest son of Dorothy (who is Tania's mother).


a. Tania had three children.
b. James is the father of at least two of Dorothy's children.
c. Dorothy is Simon's mother.
d. Lucas was the offspring of James and Dorothy




Word Swap: Swap the two words around that are in the wrong place:


A subject is a group of sentences that all deal with a single paragraph.

Applying Your Skills

The first impression you make on anyone is the one they'll carry with them forever. The application form is the first instance that a recruiter will ever have to hear of you, to hear of your talents and to hear of your capabilities. Many people always say that they can't believe a talented individual didn't get the job, simply because they messed up on one day. But the same applies to application forms. You may have all the talent that makes you the number one candidate for a job, but mess up the first chance to show them, and that's it. Literally.

Recruiters don't have time for second chances. When you're competing with hundreds, maybe thousands of other talented graduates for the same job, they haven't got the time or resources to give you a second chance. The problem with many graduates is that they simply don't know what to put in the application form that will show of their skills, or even worse, have the skills but simply feel that they aren't relevant because they don't apply directly to the job. But from my experiences of speaking to so many recruiter managers, that simply isn't true. If you can show that you held a position of responsibility by leading a group of primary school kids on a day out, that is exactly the type of real life application of a skill that they are looking for. As long as you have the ability, and can show how you implemented that ability into a real life example and relate it to the role you're applying for, you are what they are looking for.

Graduates have a diminished outlook on the value of the application form, and hence, I have seen many simply not take as much care with it as they should. Arrogance plays a big part in this, with many claiming that simply because they have a first-class degree from a top 5 university, that should be enough to get them to the next stage. But a degree only gets you one foot in the door. The other foot is only allowed in once your application form has been assessed. Yes, your degree may give you a much bigger foot in the door than others, but it's better to have two feet just over the line then one in and one completely out.

Tricks of any Trade

AECOM is one of the world's largest engineering firm, with a focus in transportation, water engineering and planning & design development. With over 70 offices in Europe alone to administer, Steve Rodgers, a 1^st-class graduate in electrical engineering, is AECOM's Recruitment Manager for Europe, having to set the strategy, policies and processes for recruitment, as well as developing the framework so that the firm meets its man power needs. I spoke to him about his views on the job market, and as someone who sets about the policy for recruitment, what was he looking for in a top candidate.

Vinay:   "What are the major problems you feel graduates face in today's market, and what can they do to limit the impact it may have on them?"

Steve:   "Well, the fundamental problem is that jobs are on the decrease! Many students will obviously want to work in an industry that they have studied for, but the fact of the matter is that for many they will simply have to wait for the market to pick up. However, if they do find some sort of employment in any field, that will certainly help. I don't know too many recent graduates who have much experience of civil engineering, but what I can say is that any life or work experience that they do have will obviously have skills that could be used at AECOM. The technical aspect will come from their degree and from learning once they work with us, but at the beginning we're concerned about graduates having the right attributes to work here."

Vinay:   "What sort of attributes are these?"

Steve:   "Like any firm, we're really looking for hard-working team players. We want people who are organised, decision makers and have the ability to solve problems. In fact, this is what some of our core competencies are based on."

Vinay:   "And do you find that graduates do not have these competencies?"

Steve:   "A few don't, but the majority either do and perceive them not be of any importance, or they simply don't know they have them at all! They seem to feel that the more educated they are, the better. But by having a 1^st-class degree doesn't make you a 1^st-class employee. We need to see that you have the capability of working in a team, to make decisions and to solve problems. These are everyday skills that are must. Most would have cultivated these skills at university. We like to question candidates about the group work they have done on their courses, as this is a good indication of planning, organising and team work."

Vinay:   "Are there any other competencies that you wish that candidates had before they apply for a job?"

Steve:   "Most of the competencies we look to develop on the job, but if they have it prior to joining us, then it would certainly make them more employable. I'm sure the same goes for any industry. Due to the nature of our work, being able to build relationships and having some business acumen is highly desirable."

Vinay:   "What are your own personal views of assessment centres, and what types of characters seem to do well at them?"

Steve:   "Assessment centres are a great way of determining someone's suitability against an array of competencies, but I wouldn't say that there is a particular type of individual that we look for; we'd expect to see a balanced mix of skills, knowledge and behaviours demonstrated, although it's the candidates who can couple these attributes with the potential to lead others that tend to shine. Candidates should also let their personality come to the fore and be themselves rather than attempting to try to hard or be something they're not. The types of people who don't tend to do well are those who stay in their shell. As long as you are sensitive to everyone's opinions, you participate throughout and show that you are someone who can diplomatically work with others, then you will do fine."