Numerical Reasoning Screening

When you do the numerical reasoning online test, do the banks take into account your CV in order to go into the next round or they just reject the ones who didn't make it to score at their bare minimum?

I'm very interested in the way they proceed with this step.

Example:

Candidate A: very good CV and did very well on the test

Candidate B: very good CV and did well on the test

Candidate C: good CV and did very well on the test

Candidate D: good CV and did well on the test

Do you guys think that the candidates C and D would get automatically rejected because of their CV's?

Thank you very much in advance.

 
Best Response

Depends on the bank you are applying for. Some require you to do the test right after your application, others will go through a pre-screening process first.

However, and given the large pool of applicants, I am pretty sure that failing the test (i.e. below their thresold) is an auto-ding, regardless of how solide your resume might be.

 

I've loved candidates in the interview, then we've dinged them because some part of the psych/aptitude important for the role is in the lower 50% quartile (where quartiles are based on the population of people we have hired).

Those who can, do. Those who can't, post threads about how to do it on WSO.
 

I'll have to practice then I guess because I couldn't make it to go into the next round at any of the banks that I applied to. This makes me feel a fool because everyone says that this tests are very easy...

Thank you very much!

 
sirog:

I'll have to practice then I guess because I couldn't make it to go into the next round at any of the banks that I applied to. This makes me feel a fool because everyone says that this tests are very easy...

Thank you very much!

Buy one of the assessmentday packages. They're good practice. The test isn't hard at all. You just have to be able to extrapolate data quickly and block out the noise in the question.

Another piece of advice is to do the tests for banks in order of preference. So banks you don't like, do that test first. 90% of banks tend to use two companies for their tests and repetition is common.

 

If you want good SHL practices check out GradTests (gradtests.com.au). The whole testing thing is pretty big in Europe, NZ and Australia. They're pretty standard - almost always SHL and almost always numerical, verbal and inductive reasoning. I think these assessments are pointless because you can just practice and get better scores. Anyway, check out that site - it's pretty good as it replicates the SHL environment and the questions seem pretty close.

 
AprilSprings:

Never heard of this practice before. What's the purpose?

To test you.....
"After you work on Wall Street it’s a choice, would you rather work at McDonalds or on the sell-side? I would choose McDonalds over the sell-side.” - David Tepper
 

Mine and my friends experience is that you tend to get a no relatively quickly if you haven't passed the test.

The test is almost always intended to be a screening tool and the threshold varies from bank to bank.

Finally - gauging how good you've done can be difficult. I remember taking one for a position at UBS/CS a few years back and feeling like I had got everything right. During the AC I was re-tested and was convinced I had done much worse. The HR guy showed me my test score had jumped from 7x% to 9x% in one of the 20 question tests, I think it was by SHL, which is worth bearing in mind as you go through recruiting.

Good luck!

 

People need to stop moaning about these. They're a shit but if you can't pass them you really shouldn't be allowed near a bank.

"After you work on Wall Street it’s a choice, would you rather work at McDonalds or on the sell-side? I would choose McDonalds over the sell-side.” - David Tepper
 

Agreed. The maths is very very rarely more difficult than simple division/conversions. It's literally GCSE/High School level stuff.

The only negative is the time but with practice it becomes less and less of an issue.

 

Your CV is more than likely to go unseen if you score below the threshold. Based on your four candidates I'd says B & D get dinged instantly (assuming "well" is below threshold), C gets dinged after CV check and A will get an invite. Much like the GMAT it's a question of practice and doesn't really reflect your intelligence or analytical aptitude. This is more to test whether you can dedicate yourself and do what it takes to advance. There are plenty of free and proprietary resource online to practice. Normally your Uni will have some sort of deal in place that allows you limited access to a prop resource.

 

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