What is a Clevry Assessment?
Clevry Assessments are a battery of pre-employment tests that are used to determine whether a candidate has the right aptitude, personality, and work behaviors to be successful in a role.
Clevry used to be known as Criterion, which is an assessment company that was founded in Brighton, UK, back in 1991. Richard Hunter established Criterion as a business that focused on pen and paper assessments as well as consulting for businesses, after helping to develop the OPQ for SHL.
Criterion was one of the first assessment companies to produce online tests through the all-in-one testing platform called Psycruit which was launched in 2001, and then in 2004, they acquired the Nordic testing companies Sharper and Studentwork.
The amalgamation of these companies is known as Clevry, with a focus on soft skills testing as well as other aptitude tests, for pre-employment and development. More than 1000 companies have used Clevry or Criterion assessments, and more than 100,000 candidates are tested every month.
Clevry Ability Tests
Career Streams
Clevry divides their tests into what are known as ‘testing streams’, which are aimed at recruiting for different types of roles.
- Utopia: This stream is for high-level recruitment, so for graduate or professional level selection. The tests in this stream include verbal ability, numerical ability, and abstract ability.
- B2C: This is a mid-level stream aimed at recruiting staff in customer-facing and administrative roles. In this stream, the tests are verbal ability, numerical ability, abstract ability, and checking ability.
- Mechanical: This stream is for recruiting for roles in production, engineering, and production, and includes verbal ability, numerical ability, and mechanical ability.
Clevry Abstract Reasoning Test
The abstract reasoning test has 16 questions that need to be answered in 45 minutes.
Each question is based on a series of shapes that are in a sequence, with a missing item. To get the correct answer from the multiple-choice options, you need to look at the way the shapes are related and find the rule that governs the pattern, then apply that to find the missing item.
The abstract reasoning test is a non-verbal test that is just about making the right decision based on unfamiliar information.
Clevry Error Checking Test
The error checking test also has 16 questions, but only 10 minutes to answer them.
Each question is structured with two pieces of seemingly identical information - usually a list of stock items - and you will need to find any errors or discrepancies between them.
There are multiple-choice options of how many errors are in the information given, and candidates are being tested on their eye for detail while under timed pressure.
Clevry Numerical Reasoning Test
The numerical reasoning test asks 16 questions, and you have 18 minutes to answer them.
Each question is based on numerical data presented in a graph, table, or chart, with a mathematical operation that needs to be completed to find the correct answer from the multiple-choice options given.
Although you will need to complete some basic math (usually ratios, percentages, and fractions), it is not a math test as such - it is more about using numerical knowledge to be able to make a reasoned decision. Candidates are allowed to use a calculator throughout the assessment.
Clevry Verbal Reasoning Test
In the verbal reasoning test, there are 16 questions that you need to answer in 9 minutes.
Each question is about a short passage of text, which the candidate must read and analyze, followed by a statement. The answers are multiple-choice, you need to decide if the statement given is true, false, or you cannot say based only on the information given in the passage.
You do not need any previous knowledge to answer the verbal reasoning questions; all the details you need to choose the right answer will be provided in the text (which is why there is an answer option that effectively means ‘don’t know’).
Clevry Mechanical Reasoning Test
The mechanical reasoning test has 12 questions which you need to answer in 20 minutes.
This is a test that is assessing your mechanical ability, and your knowledge of the physics principles that govern mechanical items.
Each question is based on a diagram, usually of a recognisable object, and you will have to refer to your knowledge of things like pulleys and levers, hydraulics and acoustics, as well as electrical circuits to choose the right answer from the multiple-choice options given.
This is an assessment of your practical knowledge based on school-level mechanical and physics principles.
Clevry Personality Questionnaire
The Clevry Personality Questionnaires are bespoke tests created for specific industries, companies, and even for specific roles.
There are three types of a personality questionnaire, designed to be used in different recruitment scenarios:
- Core Personality: This assessment tests behaviors, feelings, motivations, and values that are important in the workplace against 21 different scales and is used to assess Sales Potential and Team Types.
- Enhanced Personality: This test offers more penetrating insights and is suitable for leadership positions, assessing candidates against 30 scales.
- Workforce Personality: In this test, personality areas related to blue-collar roles in production and manufacturing are assessed.
The number of questions that you will need to answer depends on the role that you have applied for, but you will need to decide how well each statement you are provided with describes you, your personality traits, and your behavior at work.
The overall aim of the personality test is to assess each candidate based on:
- Interpersonal style
- Thinking style
- Emotional style
- Motivational values
- Culture fit
The answers that you give to the questions are then compared to a norm group to see how you would fit and perform if successful.
Clevry Situational Judgment Test
A situational judgement test provides short, realistic work-based scenarios that are fictional but related to the role that you have applied for. They are almost like windows into the type of situation that you are likely to come across in your day-to-day tasks in the role, and they are designed to see how you react.
Each scenario is followed by several different courses of action that you could take to solve the problem that is described, and you need to choose the one that is most like the way that you would deal with it.
Although each situational judgment test is bespoke to the organization, level, and role, there are specific areas targeted in all the Clevry situational judgment tests:
- Thinking
- Influencing
- Collaboration
- Commercial awareness
- Teamwork
Which Financial Employers Use Clevry Assessments?
With more than 1000 clients across the world, Clevry assessments are a popular choice in many different industries and for roles at different levels. Utopia streams (for graduates and professionals) are more likely to be used in the financial sector.
Well-known financial employers like BDO, Asian Development Bank, and Skipton Building Society use Clevry Assessments, and you will also find them in the recruitment process for finance and other roles in different companies such as EY, Marks & Spencer, Royal Mail, and Centrica.
How to Prepare for and Clevry Assessments
Tip 1: Research the role
The more you know about what the recruitment team is looking for in a candidate, the easier it will be to ensure that you have the right aptitudes, skills, and personality traits to be an ideal applicant.
It will also help you judge which tests will be used as part of the recruitment process so that you can prepare yourself and get practicing.
Tip 2: Practice tests
Practice tests have several different uses when you are preparing for pre-employment assessments.
Firstly, they give you a good idea of where your knowledge and skills are, specifically in the aptitude tests. If you struggle in one particular area, that will be demonstrated in the test results and you can focus your revision on it.
Practice tests are also a good way to get familiar with the test layout, format, and structure so that you feel more comfortable and confident when you are faced with the real thing.
Practicing with a timer will help make sure that you are ready to answer all the questions under time pressure - in some of the assessments you will have less than thirty seconds per question.
Tip 3: Read the questions
In the assessment, the questions might not be as straightforward as you think they are. While there are no trick questions, you want to be sure that you understand what is being asked of you before you answer so that you don't make a costly mistake.
Take enough time to thoroughly read the information that you are given before rushing to answer.
Tip 4: Be honest
This is a tip aimed more at the personality and situational judgment tests, but honestly really is the best policy throughout the assessments.
Pre-employment assessments are looking for the right aptitudes and skills, but they are also looking for the right personality traits and behaviors that suit the job as well as the workplace culture - so if you are the right fit for the role, it could mean that you would be unhappy in your job and leave sooner rather than later - not ideal for the recruiter or you.
Answer honestly, but bear in mind what the job role requires so that you can keep those facets of your personality traits and work behaviors out there.
Tip 5: Fuel yourself
Taking a pre-employment assessment is nerve-wracking, so you should make sure that you give yourself the best chance to succeed.
Get enough sleep in the days leading up to the exam as a well-rested brain makes better decisions, and uses the best fuel on the day - so healthy meals and plenty of hydration. You won't perform at your best if your stomach is rumbling or you have a headache through dehydration.
