Looking for a UK recruitment assessment? Find the assessment named in your invitation in the tables below, then open that guide. Before you practise, check the official candidate instructions for that vacancy, service pathway or admissions cycle.
UK Civil Service online tests and related British recruitment pathways differ from US Civil Service exams. Guides here use British English and UK recruitment terminology. When an invitation names a global assessment provider such as SHL, Aon, Talogy, Saville or Cappfinity, use the provider guide for the test family and the UK-specific guide for the employer’s wider recruitment process.
Practice materials on Job Practice Tests are original educational content. They are not official Civil Service, NHS, Armed Forces, airline, admissions-test or employer exam papers.
Key Takeaways
- British recruitment pathways differ from US civil-service exams; use US Civil Service Exams guides only for US-focused processes.
- Success Profiles is a flexible Civil Service framework, not one universal test battery.
- Vacancy adverts and candidate invitations control which online tests apply.
- Campaign stages, banked scores and timings can change; recheck official instructions before you sit.
- Start with GOV.UK and employer candidate materials; third-party prep is independent and optional.
Why UK assessments differ from US processes
UK recruitment uses local frameworks and selection pathways such as Civil Service Success Profiles, NHS programme selection, College of Policing assessments and UK Armed Forces aptitude stages. US civil service, ASVAB and federal hiring guides do not replace those processes.
When the same global provider appears in several countries, its main provider guide explains the assessment family. The UK guide concentrates on the relevant employer, programme, eligibility requirements, stage order, official candidate instructions and reasonable-adjustment process.
How to find the right UK assessment guide
Start with the employer, public-service, profession or admissions guide when your invitation names a UK-specific process. Those guides explain the official recruitment pathway, the skills commonly assessed and the preparation resources that match that route.
Use a global provider guide when your invitation names an assessment company or product such as SHL, Aon, Talogy, Saville, Cappfinity or Thomas International. The provider guide explains the general test family; the UK employer guide explains how that assessment may fit into the wider recruitment process.
Some employers use the same underlying assessment provider, but their eligibility rules, stage order, deadlines, interviews and assessment centres remain different. Always follow the official vacancy and candidate instructions for the role you applied to.
The RAF, Royal Navy and Royal Marines may use the shared Defence Aptitude Assessment, so the RAF DAA guide covers that common aptitude family with naval-service applicability qualified. Officer selection through AOSB and the British Army soldier Army Cognitive Test remain separate pathways. US ASVAB-family guides are covered under Military Aptitude Tests.
Irish Civil Service and Irish Prison Service recruitment follow different national systems and are not covered here.
UK Armed Forces and Defence
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| RAF DAA Test | Defence Aptitude Assessment used in RAF recruitment, with Royal Navy and Royal Marines shared-DAA context |
| Army Cognitive Test (ACT) | British Army soldier Assessment Centre cognitive / computer-based tests (BARB historical) |
| AOSB Assessment | British Army Officer Selection Board Briefing and Main Board orientation |
UK Civil Service and Public Sector
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| Civil Service Judgement Test (CSJT) | Success Profiles behaviours and CSJT-style judgement practice |
| Civil Service Styles Assessment (CSSA) | Paired behaviour styles assessment (276 pairs, honesty rules) |
| Civil Service Numerical Test (CSNT) | Adaptive numerical reasoning for Civil Service Jobs |
| Civil Service Verbal Test (CSVT) | True / False / Cannot Say verbal reasoning |
| Civil Service Customer Service Skills Test | Customer response judgement, effectiveness ratings and accuracy |
| Civil Service Casework Skills Test | Case-file analysis, effectiveness ratings and accuracy |
| Civil Service Work Strengths Test | Work Strengths assessment guidance |
| Civil Service Management Judgement Test | Management Judgement assessment guidance |
| Civil Service Fast Stream | Fast Stream online work-based scenarios and case-study practice |
| HMRC Online Tests | HMRC campaigns using Civil Service online tests |
| DWP Assessment Tests | DWP campaigns using Civil Service online tests |
| Scottish Government Aptitude Tests | Scottish Government / Work for Scotland style processes |
| MI5 Assessment | MI5 publicly described application and assessment orientation |
For US state and municipal civil service exams, see the separate Civil Service Exams section.
NHS and Healthcare Recruitment
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| NHS STP Assessment | Scientist Training Programme Oriel recruitment and SJT |
| Public Health Specialty Assessment | Public Health ST1 Assessment Centre (Watson Glaser, RANRA, SJT) |
| Nursing Numeracy and Literacy | Local university and employer nursing numeracy and literacy screens |
| Midwifery Numeracy and Literacy | Local midwifery pathway numeracy and literacy screens |
| NHS Healthcare Numeracy and Literacy | Trust- and vacancy-specific HCA and support-worker screens |
| NHS Graduate Scheme Assessments | NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme (not Civil Service Fast Stream) |
UK Public Safety and Operational Roles
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| Police Online Assessment Process | College of Policing sift, CBI, written and briefing exercises |
| Police Fast Track | Accelerated / Fast Track policing pathways |
| Police Scotland Entrance Test (PSET) | Police Scotland entrance test (PSET; SET is a common legacy label) |
| Prison Officer Assessment | HMPPS scenario-based and values-based online tests |
| UK Firefighter Tests | FRS aptitude-style numerical, information and judgement practice |
| Train Driver Assessment | TOC train-driver psychometrics under RSSB RIS-3751-TOM; employer variation |
| Network Rail Assessment | Network Rail Early Careers and vacancy-specific infrastructure hiring |
| TfL Assessment | Transport for London early-careers strengths and role-specific routes |
| Royal Mail Online Test | Royal Mail Group role-dependent online and operational screens |
UK Airlines and Aviation
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| British Airways Pilot Online Assessment | Direct-entry and experienced-pilot online screening; distinct from Speedbird; modules vary by vacancy |
| BA Speedbird Pilot Academy Assessment | Cadet / ab initio academy selection; check live BA Careers pages for whether applications are open for your cycle |
| easyJet Pilot Assessment | Direct-entry Captains/Co-Pilots and ab initio / Generation easyJet routes kept separate |
For international air-traffic-control aptitude systems, including FEAST and the US-focused FAA ATSA, see Air Traffic Control Tests.
Banking and Early Careers
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| Barclays Assessment | Barclays employer-specific Early Careers selection (graduate, internship and apprenticeship routes can differ) |
| Spring Week Assessment | Multi-bank Spring Week / Spring Insight programmes; not a Summer Internship process |
| Banking Summer Internship | Multi-bank Summer Internship / Summer Analyst assessment themes; not Spring Week |
Employers and Industry Schemes
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| BBC Assessment | BBC vacancy assessments |
| Sellafield Aptitude | Sellafield Ltd Early Careers and vacancy assessments; civil nuclear employer (not Armed Forces) |
| BAE Systems Aptitude | BAE Systems Early Careers and vacancy assessments; defence employer, not Armed Forces recruitment |
| National Grid Assessment | Early careers and vacancy assessments; distinct from Network Rail |
| Rolls-Royce Assessment | Rolls-Royce plc Emerging Talent; distinct from Rolls-Royce Motor Cars |
| Jaguar Land Rover Assessment | Early Careers online testing and virtual AC; graduate/apprenticeship/placement vary |
Education, Admissions and Functional Skills
| Guide | Best for |
|---|---|
| UCAT Practice | University Clinical Aptitude Test for medicine and dentistry admissions |
| LNAT Practice | Law National Aptitude Test for participating law-school admissions |
| BKSB Test | Functional-skills initial or diagnostic English and maths practice (not a university admissions aptitude test) |
How UK assessment families differ
| Family | Typical format | Timing style | Best starting guides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil Service online suite | Ability, judgement, strengths, styles, skills tests | Many untimed; some timed accuracy modules | All eight Civil Service guides below |
| Armed Forces aptitude | Soldier Army Cognitive Test / computer-based tests, or DAA (RAF / RN / RM shared) | Strictly timed cognitive batteries | Army Cognitive Test; RAF DAA; AOSB for officers |
| Police England and Wales | National sift + online assessment (CBI, written, briefing) | Windowed online exercises | Police Online Assessment |
| Police Scotland | Distinct PSET / force pathway | Confirm Police Scotland materials | Police Scotland PSET |
| Banking early careers | Employer- or programme-specific mixes of aptitude, SJT/strengths, video and AC themes | Often timed online stages where used | Barclays (employer); Spring Week (insight); Summer Internship (placement) |
| UK university admissions aptitude tests | UCAT (medicine/dentistry) or LNAT (law) | Strictly timed exam sittings | UCAT; LNAT (not BKSB) |
Eight Civil Service online tests (GOV.UK, updated January 2026)
| Official test | Matching guide |
|---|---|
| Civil Service Verbal Test | CSVT |
| Civil Service Numerical Test | CSNT |
| Civil Service Judgement Test | CSJT |
| Civil Service Management Judgement Test | Management Judgement |
| Civil Service Work Strengths Test | Work Strengths |
| Civil Service Styles Assessment for Behaviours | Styles Assessment |
| Customer Service Skills Test | Customer Service Skills |
| Casework Skills Test | Casework Skills |
Start with the free official practice tests on GOV.UK Civil Service online tests.
Army ACT, RAF DAA and AOSB
Do not treat these as interchangeable. Official Army Jobs soldier assessment pages describe computer-based tests at the Assessment Centre; Army Jobs recruiter answers also use Army Cognitive Test (ACT) for that stage. See the Army Cognitive Test guide. The RAF DAA is the shared Defence Aptitude Assessment used in RAF recruitment and also in Royal Navy and Royal Marines joining contexts. AOSB is the British Army officer selection pathway at Westbury.
UCAT, LNAT, BKSB and recruitment psychometrics
UCAT is a university admissions aptitude test for medicine and dentistry. LNAT is used by participating law schools for undergraduate law admissions. Neither replaces employer psychometrics such as SHL, Aon or Civil Service Jobs tests. The UCAT medical admissions test is also not Criteria’s employment “Universal Cognitive Aptitude Test”. BKSB is a separate functional-skills initial or diagnostic tool used by colleges, training providers and some employers. It is not an equivalent of UCAT or LNAT.
Reasonable adjustments
If you need adjustments, say so early through the process named in your advert or candidate portal. For Civil Service online tests, see the GOV.UK reasonable adjustments guidance linked from the Civil Service online tests page. For UCAT, use the Consortium Access Arrangements process. Never invent medical diagnoses or documents; follow the official request route for your assessment.
Common assessment providers used in the UK
These existing global guides often appear in UK graduate and employer processes. Use them when your invitation names the provider.
| Provider guide | Coverage | Often appears in |
|---|---|---|
| SHL Assessment Test | Global SHL Verify and related formats | Banks, graduates, many employers |
| Aon Assessment | Aon / cut-e modules | Graduates, banking, industry |
| Cubiks Logiks Test | Talogy Logiks | Specialist and intelligence-adjacent hiring themes |
| Cappfinity Assessment | Strengths-style graduate assessments | UK graduate schemes |
| ADEPT-15 Personality Test | Aon ADEPT-15 | Strengths / personality stages |
| Saville Assessment | Saville Swift and related | Industry and graduate routes |
| Thomas GIA | Thomas International GIA | Employer aptitude stages |
| Situational Judgment Test | General SJT method | Most UK public and private pathways |
Choosing preparation resources
- Start with the official candidate guide, vacancy page and any free official practice supplied by the employer or test owner.
- Use the relevant original exercises on Job Practice Tests to improve method, accuracy and familiarity.
- Use a dedicated friendly-network practice page when an exact free match exists for your test family.
- Consider a current independent commercial UK product only from the matching UK guide when that guide shows a clearly matching destination.
- Skip paid preparation when no relevant current product exists rather than using an unrelated pack.
Official sources always take priority. A commercial resource is not evidence of an official test format, pass mark, assessment provider, eligibility rule or recruitment process.
Campaign details can change. Recheck the invitation email, official vacancy page, deadlines and reasonable-adjustment instructions before sitting an assessment.
Independent preparation platforms are not the employer, assessment publisher, government body or official recruitment administrator.
Related hubs
- Employer Assessment Tests
- Cognitive Aptitude Tests
- Civil Service Exams (US-focused)
- Military Aptitude Tests (US-focused ASVAB family)
- Air Traffic Control Tests
Complete guides
Why trust Job Practice Tests
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