Product Description

This practical guide for succeeding in aptitude tests, which are increasingly being used to test applicants for jobs and academic courses, offers general information (benefits, drawbacks, use of tests) in addition to many examples of themed tests with recommended answers and explanations. It is an essential aid for anyone faced with an aptitude or psychometric test -- particularly one that can make the difference between getting a job or losing it! Includes: Verbal, non-verbal, spatial and numerical tests. Tips on how to speed through a test.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #115053 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-03
• Original language: German
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Review
One of the Sunday Times Top Ten bestselling business books of 2000

Customer Reviews

Full of examples, full of mistakes
The first thing to say is: IQ tests are discriminatory, and utterly politically incorrect. I hold a PhD and a very decent IQ, but I can see no connection between the type of serious skills that were exercised in getting the doctorate, and the superficial and rather silly types of aptitude that are tested in psychometric (IQ) tests. Anyone who is disheartened by these type of tests should bear this in mind!
However, unfortunately employers seem to feel differently these days, and the changes are that if you are going for a graduate level job, you'll face some sort of testing. You may have to work your way through some of these tiresome and boring books in order to jump through the hoops - it's important to know what you're facing. Don't believe anyone who says that you can't improve your IQ with practice - it's untrue! My friend improved his by upwards of 40 points, just by familiarising himself with the type of questions he was likely to face.
If you're job-seeking, don't rely on this book alone to help you through aptitude tests! It is out of date and a lot of the examples are very old fashioned (I can't imagine too many aptitude tests nowadays expecting you to know which trees are native to Britain and which are not!). I suspect that the tests are also quite a bit easier than some of the types of question you'll be facing if you're going through a graduate recruitment programme.
What I found most irritating, however, was the fact that it is FULL OF MISTAKES! Sometimes the questions are so badly structured that there are patently two or three correct answers. I've noticed this in several aptitude test books - it really beggars belief that the people who insist on the validity of psychometric tests and on the importance of "accuracy and speed" in their completion can't even get their own answers and results pages right!
Sometimes, the author doesn't even bother to give you the answers, just giving the first couple, then writing "etc", which would be OK if the answers were self-explanatory and sequential, but they're not! The result is that after you've waded through a test, there is often no way of checking how well you did.
Also, while this book insists that these type of tests should be completed within strict time limits, you are never given any idea at all about how quickly you are expected to complete a question. (And given that IQ tests are increasingly computerised, with extremely strict boundaries to your thought time, this is a serious problem).
However, while these are serious reservations, this book may still be useful. The fact that it is full of examples and tests means that it may still help anyone seeking to pinpoint areas of weakness for further work, using more up-to-date books!

Lots of examples - but out of date
I bought this to revise for a graduate recruitment test (with a famous computer firm). I worked through the whole thing, and only one type of question that was in the book came up in the actual test. Needless to say I didn't get the job, so if your looking for a book to help revise for a recruitment test, best look elsewhere first.

A useful little book
I used this book (and it's sequels) before I underwent selection for the RAF. Many of the tests included were extremely similar to those I faced.

Although aptitude tests are designed to test you natural ability, there can be no doubt that a bit of practice gets you in the right frame of mind.

In conclusion, a useful little book.