FREE SHL Practice Tests with Answers

What is the SHL Test?

SHL Talent Measurement Solutions are a part of Gartner’s (formerly CEB) talent management services. Their psychometric tests are used by employers to evaluate and compare a number of abilities in job candidates, and cover numerical, verbal and diagrammatic reasoning tests, inductive reasoning tests, personality questionnaires and motivation questionnaires, delivered either online or on paper. The company deploys operates in over 30 languages, deploys solutions in over 150 countries and maintains a presence in over 50 countries, and is a trusted partner to 90% of the Fortune 500, nearly 75% of the Dow Jones Asian Titans and over 85% of the FTSE 100.

Aptitude tests deployed by SHL are intended to assess an individual’s maximum ability in an identified competency which is important for success in a given role – for instance, the inductive/deductive reasonings test may be particularly essential in the screening process of a law firm in order to identify the ability of candidates to think fluidly in a legal environment.

In many cases, it will be the case that a firm makes use of multiple SHL tests for the purpose of a multivariate analysis of candidates – by analysing performance on multiple facets the screening process is far more effective as far fewer details will slip through the net.

Let’s take a look at the different types of SHL test to get a better understanding of what to expect:

SHL Spatial Awareness Practice Test

The SHL Spatial Awareness Test focuses on the candidate’s spatial reasoning ability by presenting questions based on the differences or similarities between question items. In the SHL test, this comes in two main forms:

• Conforming Figure: In this question type, the candidate is required to identify which of the four given answer figures DOES share a common feature with the two given question figures.
• Outlying Figure: In this question type, the candidate is required to identify which of the four given answer figures DOES NOT share a common feature with the two given question figures.

This question format is unlikely to be a common type of problem encountered in everyday living, but it is probable that you have encountered similar logical principles in your childhood: for instance, ‘spot the difference’ puzzles are based on a similar principle of identifying differences between images. Of course, however, these questions are significantly difficult compared to their childhood counterparts, as they are designed to critically assess your ability to differentiate between subtle differences and similarities. Prepterminal’s comprehensive SHL course will walk you through the optimal methods to reach the correct answer within the strict time limit.

SHL Inductive Reasoning Practice Test

The SHL Inductive Reasoning Test focuses on a candidate’s ability to interpret figures in order to figure out which item comes next in a series of items. These questions come in 5 primary styles:

• Inversion Sequences: In this question type, figures in the sequence are being procedurally inverted, this requiring the examinee to identify elements which are being ‘flipped’ throughout the sequence.
• Rotation Sequences: In this question type, figures in the sequence are being rotated in some manner, with a couple of secondary changes occurring throughout the items of the sequence.
• Positioning Sequences: In this question type, elements of each item shift around, but the overall bearing of the item does not change significantly. Here, it is important to look for individual elements shifting around rather than the entire figure being tranformed.
• Counting Sequences: In this question type, a given element of the item will either increase or decrease, potentially with other secondary changes in the image. It’s important here to quickly identify the changing count of a certain element, and isolate the change in order to find the solution.
• Size Sequences: As suggested by the name, size sequences involve the changing of the size of the item by some measure, whether it is increasing or decreasing in volume. The trick here is to identify the increment of change and apply it to find the next step.

These types can be a handful to identify and solve within the harsh time limit. Luckily, Prepterminal’s Inductive Reasoning guide offers a methodological approach to identifying and solving the sequence in optimal time.

SHL Situational Judgement Practice Test

The SHL Situational Judgement Test is designed to take a close look at the candidate’s personal qualities in a work environment. This SHL test is different to the other types as it is based on personality rather than cognitive ability. Questions in this category deal with how you would react to certain workplace situations in order to find out whether you are a good fit to the company culture and ethos.

While this question type is much more of a grey area than the cognitive tests, there is a route to identifying the ‘right’ answers and putting your best foot forward so that the company being applied to will recognise your personal qualities and select you over other candidates. We cover these techniques and principles in our comprehensive SHL SJT guide.

SHL Mechanical Comprehension Practice Test

The SHL Mechanical Comprehension Test deals with the candidate’s mechanical knowledge and intuition, used to solve applied problems involving four key areas:

• Gears: These questions require the candidate to identify the correct direction of rotation of gears which, when adjacent, have opposite tendencies of rotation. The challenge in these questions comes in the requirement to work out the speed of rotation of given gears based on the number of teeth or the radii of the gears in question.
• Wheels & Belts: This question type requires the candidate to properly identify the rotation of a given number of wheels when connected by a belt in different configurations. This can involve belts which are cross-connective and belts which are not, so this question type warrants thorough preparation in order to ensure you fully understand the intuition behind answering these questions.
• Pressure: This question type assesses the candidate’s understanding of the mechanical concept of pressure, whether it is solid, liquid or gas pressure. This question type often requires candidates to identify the correct position of an object required in order to exert the minimum/maximum pressure on the ground, or the pressure exerted by a fluid when an object is immersed in it.
• Magnetism: This question type requires candidates to understand the key features of magnetic materials, and how to distinguish between magnetic and non-magnetic material. They must also understand the concept of magnetic poles, as well as electrical fields and how they are represented using field lines.

The SHL Mechanical Comprehension Test is, quite evidently, rather challenging for the unprepared. It is vital that, in order to fully prepare, you practice and study for this test in order to secure success. Prepterminal’s fully-expanded study guides and practice tests are the perfect resource for comprehensive preparation for this test.

SHL Verbal Reasoning Practice Test

The SHL Verbal Reasoning Test deals with a candidate’s ability to read and understand a passage of text and answer a number of questions based on them, drawing inferences and conclusions solely from the text. As such, this question type does not necessarily require any pre-existing topical knowledge, but it is highly important to prepare and understand the principles governing this question type in order to be properly equipped to answer these questions as speedily as is required.

This question type is usually administered in a TRUE – FALSE – CANNOT SAY format, in which the truth of a number of statements is determined based upon the content of the passage of text.

This question type is often considered to be highly difficult by test-takers, who struggle to find the subtle inferences included in passages of text. Prepterminal’s SHL Verbal Reasoning Guide is a perfect resource for comprehensive preparation for this challenging question format.

SHL Numerical Reasoning Practice Test

The SHL Numerical Reasoning Test is a highly challenging mathematical assessment, delivered at different levels depending on the job role being applied for. Questions of this type cover the following topics:

• 1/2/3/4 Operations: As suggested by the namesake, this question type covers the candidate’s ability to deal with equations covering multiple operation types. The most complex variants of this question type involve all four operations, addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, in a single equation.
• Rates & Proportion: This question type deals with the candidate’s ability to deal with problems concerning particular relationships between two variables or values. This type of question will often involve calculation involving values increasing or decreasing by a multiplier which is present in another value, requiring the candidates to extrapolate the multiplier from an existing value and apply it to another value.
• Ratio: Ratio questions involve comparing amounts of a given item, usually written using a colon notation. In this question type, it can be a challenge to quickly find the answer, so it is important to prepare and learn how to efficiently identify ratios without the need to manually count every single item in question.
• Tables: Questions on tables require candidates to calculate certain values using the data presented in table format. This question type will almost always draw on concepts covered in other parts of the SHL Numerical Reasoning Test, such as 1/2/3/4 operations or ratios. In this sense, tables might be considered as an alternative format for the other question types.
• Currency Exchange: Currency exchange questions are not dissimilar to ratio questions. This question type requires candidates to identify how the value of an amount of money when converted to another currency, based on the exchange rate given in the question. While these questions can be solved through easy methods, these methods are unnaceptably slow, so it is vital that you learn the proper methodology a quick solution.
• Percentages: Percentage questions assess a candidate’s ability to deal with calculation in percentage format. These questions can be seen as a kind of division, based on the notion that a percentage is a portion of 100. For these questions, it is important to understand the concepts at play on a deep level so that you can effectively answer questions within the restrictive time limit.

It has been observed that numerical reasoning is often found to be the most intimidating of the SHL test types, as it is not uncommon for most people to feel overwhelmed by mathematical questions. Prepterminal’s SHL Numerical Reasoning Test prep course will help you dispel the mystery surrounding these challenging mathematical processes and help you overcome this challenging hurdle in your job hunt.

How Does Your SHL Score Influence Your Career?

Why scoring high on the SHL test is important for your career

The intent of a SHL test is to put candidates under pressure in order to identify their maximum level of performance, which is then compared with an identified norm group for the candidate’s given industry and job level. A cut-off point is used relative to this norm group, meaning that the candidate can only proceed to the next stage of screening if they have achieved a certain score which indicates them to be of a good ability level in comparison to those already in the same industry at a comparable job level. These parameters are easily interpreted as they are delivered in the form of percentile rankings, which are then categorized into grades from A-E:

For candidates seeking to pass to the next stage of screening, it would be prudent to aim for grade B or above. Below that grade, an individual falls into the realm of mediocrity or worse, so it is ill-advised to settle even at the 69th percentile.

How a high SHL score will help you in the interview

Your SHL score will have a direct impact upon whether employers consider you for a position instead of other candidates. If you have underperformed compared to your peers, then it is almost impossible to be considered for a role. This is heavily reflected in any interviews following an SHL test. It has been reported on multiple occasions that interviewers react far more favorably to candidates who have achieved a high SHL score, and for good reason: if you have achieved a high SHL score, then it stands to reason that you have demonstrated a good fit to the position and therefore have less to prove to an interviewer than someone who has a poor SHL score who needs to compensate in the interview.

Not only does a high SHL score help your progression through pre-employment screening, it also makes the interview process significantly easier.

Can a high SHL score affect your salary offer?

Employers are highly interested in hiring talented and motivated employees, and they are willing to pay more when they are confident that they are choosing the right candidate for their role. In cases where candidates achieve an A-grade SHL score, employers have been known to increase their salary offer by a massive 20% compared to the average rate for any given position. For example, if you were to apply for a managerial position for which the going rate is $45,000 per annum, a high SHL score could mean a salary offer of $54,000 per annum, an enormous $9000 above the usual rate.

Candidates stand to gain a great deal from investing in proper SHL test prep. Prepterminal’s comprehensive course is the stepping stone you need to boost your salary from day 1.

Long-term benefits of a high SHL score

It’s a common misconception that your SHL score is only useful for securing a job.

Your SHL score can also be considered when it comes to internal progression within a company. Given that SHL score is an objective metric of cognitive ability and workplace fit, employers will often look at this score when making decisions on who is to receive promotions based upon the needs of the company. Furthermore, salary decisions are frequently influenced by SHL score as it is seen as a great indicator of an employee’s objective worth. If you wish to truly showcase your value to a company, you should aim to score as high as you can and not settle for anything less.

Prepterminal offers all the resources necessary to ensure that your performance is exactly where it needs to be with our SHL Test preparation packs. Featuring educational modules with text/video components, our psychometric experts have formulated these packages in order to most effectively augment your existing competence in these tests. Our SHL practice tests are meticulously put together to accurately simulate the official SHL assessment, so that you may enter the real thing without any fear of being caught off-guard by unexpected questions. Sign up today for your first step towards test success.

What are SHL Tests?

How do SHL tests work?

SHL tests are widely used by companies in a range of industries to identify the optimal ability level of any given applicant. They achieve this by placing the applicant in a high-pressure environment, with many questions to answer and limited time in which to answer them. Employers gain an insight into an applicant’s maximum ability level through this tool, which then allows them to make decisions regarding which candidates are a good fit for the demands of a given job position.

What are the different types of SHL test?

There is a variety of SHL tests available for employers to administer to prospective hires so that the proper tools are available to measure the competencies required for a specific job role. Broadly speaking, assessments can be split into two main categories:

• Behavioral/Personality: This type of SHL assessment focuses on the individual strengths & weaknesses of a candidate in order to establish how well the candidate fits a given job role as well as their ability to function in given workplace scenarios. Questions on this type of assessment aim to achieve a qualitative metric of a candidate’s fit by assembling a profile which provides direct indicators of how well they would fit into a given position.
• Cognitive/Ability: Where the behavioral/personality assessment focuses on the individual strengths/weaknesses of a candidate, the cognitive/ability assessment serves as more of an objective measurement of a candidate’s ability. Questions in these assessments provide a quantitative view of the ability level of candidates, and compares this ability level to the industry ‘norm’ – the average level expected of an employee in that specific field and position so that employers can consistently prioritize above-average candidates.

In addition, where the standard options do not entirely fit the needs of an employer, SHL offers tailored examination packages in order to fully meet the needs of the employer. In practice, this tends to be a combination of behavioral/personality and cognitive/ability testing, assembled to measure the exact qualities the employer wishes to identify. Due to this, it is important that test-takers prepare accordingly and ensure they have covered all bases in their preparation, so that they are not found lacking when it comes to exam day because they have neglected to prepare for a certain area of the test.

How to Prepare for Your SHL Test

The importance of preparing for SHL tests

SHL tests are meticulously designed to challenge the test-taker at any job level. In order to differentiate the best candidates from the mediocre candidates, these assessments are designed to trip examinees up at any opportunity. This is achieved through a number of means, such as presenting behavioral questions to which the ideal response is highly unclear or subjective, or by placing a number of confusing elements in cognitive questions in order to slow down the test-taker and consume precious time. To truly succeed in these challenging assessments, it is absolutely vital that candidates prepare thoroughly and learn the ways in which the test makers seek to hinder their progress towards the correct solution.

On top of this, candidates frequently report that the topics covered in their SHL assessment, while being relevant to their field of work, often catch them unprepared due to lack of practice. It is highly common for topics which one has not dealt with since they were in school to blindside test-takers with costly consequences for their SHL score. As such, it is also vital to refresh on topics in which candidates might be ‘rusty’; it isn’t enough to vaguely remember a concept and improvise when under such strict time restrictions.

How to prepare for SHL tests

When it comes to preparing for SHL tests, Prepterminal’s comprehensive SHL prep course has you covered. Instead of wasting time sifting through scattered & unreliable information online, this course provides you with the authoritative guide on how to pass your SHL test. By following our simple preparation plan you can go from having no knowledge on the SHL assessment to being 100% prepared for this challenging test:

1. Take the practice tests relevant to your upcoming SHL test
2. Identify errors, strengths and areas requiring development based on performance
3. Work through all of Prepterminal’s modules for the tests in question
4. Re-take practice test
5. Identify points of improvement and remaining areas in need of development
6. Revise modules pertaining to the remaining areas in need of development
7. Continue to complete steps 4-6 until you have reached the required level of proficiency

By following this plan until you are confident in your knowledge on the topics covered, you can achieve tangible progress and ensure that you are in the position you need to be in to ace the real thing.

Improve your SHL score with our intelligent learning system

The SHL is a challenging test, and it’s natural to feel a degree of anxiety when facing it. Not only do you need to pass – you also need to achieve a score which will set you apart from your peers and put you above your profession’s norm group. In order to provide candidates with the very best SHL preparation material, we have worked in collaboration with industry experts and former examiners in order to build a course with one key goal in mind: to improve your SHL score. Our course condenses years of testing expertise into an easy-to-digest course which will teach you the quickest solutions to the challenging questions found on the SHL test, and the intuition you need to think on your feet and adapt to a wide variety of question types. The curriculum of this course features written guides, video guides, module quizzes and full practice tests with elaborated explanations, to help you fully understand the content of the real thing and approach exam day with confidence.