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How To Interpret Your Candidate Test Scores

Interpreting Test Scores

These notes will help you interpret the results of a candidate's test.  In addition each test has a specific interpretation video to help you get the most from each candidate report.

Percentile Scores

Percentile scores are generated for all tests except Bookkeeper Tests and the Double Entry and Graduate Tests.

Percentile Scores measure your candidate against a norm group of similarly qualified and experienced people.

For example, if your Chartered Accountant Test candidate achieves a 65th Percentile Score, then you can expect them to achieve a higher score than 64 in 100 Chartered Accountants. A 20th Percentile Score would suggest they would achieve a higher score than 19 in 100 Chartered Accountants.

The higher the percentile score achieved by your candidate, the better they have performed against that norm group.

Some high volume recruiters will decide that all new recruits must be at least as skilled and knowledgeable as most of the norm group and will set a benchmark of 50th Percentile. All candidates scoring below this benchmark are rejected. Other employers, especially those looking for skills and knowledge in only one or two of the topics may prefer to concentrate on performance in those topics essential to success in the role and pay less attention to overall scores.

Overall Scores

An overview of test performance gives a quick reference on how many questions your candidate completed in the allocated time of 30 minutes, in terms of how many questions they got correct, incorrect and the number of questions omitted.

You can use this information to identify candidates with lower percentile scores who omitted a number of questions.  A high degrees of accuracy in a smaller number of questions might suggest they worked slowly but accurately in the test, which may keep them in the selection process.

Omitted Questions

Attention should be paid to the number of questions omitted. Because the test is timed, questions are omitted where a candidate chooses to skip a question and also where they run out of time.

To determine whether your candidate ran out of time, look at the cover page to see the time they took to complete the test. If the time is 30:00, then the candidate was still working on the test when their time expired.

Also pay attention to the spread of omitted questions.  High numbers of omitted questions on a certain topic, or on more difficult questions, suggests a candidate 'skipped' questions they couldn't answer.

Basic, Intermediate & Difficult Questions

This page lists the number of questions categorised as Basic, Intermediate and Advanced across the 40 questions of the test, with your candidates performance in each category.

This can provide value in determining the skill and knowledge levels your candidate possesses now against the skill level required to perform the job they have applied for. 

Accountant Tests

Accounting Topics
For each of the topics in each test, you can see the number of questions the candidate answered correctly, incorrectly and questions omitted by the candidate.

Recruiting managers only interested in one or two accounting topics can concentrate on a candidate’s performance in topics essential to success in the role.

Bookkeeper/Assistant Accountant Test

Bookkeeping Topics
Page-3 of the report provides an overview of performance in determining whether a candidate is a Basic, Competent or Advanced Bookkeeper.

For each of the four Bookkeeping Topics in this test, you can see the number of questions the candidate answered correctly, incorrectly and questions omitted.

Each topic is broken down into Basic, Intermediate and Advanced level questions to identify the skill and knowledge level your candidate possesses in that topic. A description of likely capabilities at each level is also provided.

Interpreting your candidate’s performance against each topic is achieved by looking where their number of incorrect questions increases. In an Accounting Concepts example, a candidate with a very high number of correct Basic Questions, most of the Intermediate Questions correct and half of the Advanced Questions correct is likely to be capable of understanding complex Accounting Concepts and competently supporting an accountant in month or year-end activities.

Recruiting managers and business owners only interested in one or two bookkeeping topics can concentrate on a candidate’s performance in topics essential to success in the role.

 

Individual Questions

The most detailed level of the report lists all 40 questions, the topic areas, and whether they were answered correctly, incorrectly or omitted, allowing selection panels to drill down to explore particular elements of accounting most important to their organisation, and their candidates performance against those questions.

Feedback on Candidate Reports

We're very happy to provide individual feedback on candidate reports.  This is particularly useful the first one or two times you use our tests, as it ensures you get the most out of what the reports can tell you.  To access this just Contact Us

 

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