Architecture jobs – psychometric testing

Does psychometric testing play a role in recruiting for architecture jobs?

Who uses psychometric testing?
Many companies still use psychometric testing to assess the various abilities of candidates who apply for senior positions. In some cases, the recruitment consultancy may be asked to set the tests and in others, the company runs the tests themselves. There is a wide range of tests available, which not only look at the abilities of the applicant, but also their suitability for the architecture jobs and whether they are likely to work well within the company.

Unnerving tests
For applicants, psychometric tests can be unnerving, but as the tests are often accompanied by a brief interview, there is an opportunity to sell themselves to the recruitment consultant or to the company itself. The company decides how much weight to put on the results of the psychometric tests, as there is a margin of error, and those people who perform well on tests are not necessarily the right people to lead a team or manage a project as part of their architectural job.

What is a psychometric test?
Psychometric tests generally come in three types, aptitude tests, personality tests and ability tests. Aptitude tests could easily be confused with ability tests, but in general, aptitude tests refer specifically to the candidate’s aptitude for the particular role he or she is applying for. For function-specific roles such as architecture jobs, the test may be designed to find out exactly what the candidate is capable of, or might be capable of.

Fitting in
Personality tests look at how the candidate relates to the world around them, and may test how they would respond in certain situations. Whilst the general definition of “personality” is very ambiguous, companies are really trying to ensure that they employ someone in the architecture job who will fit into the culture of the company and has the required personality traits for the role.

Having the ability
Ability tests are the most straightforward to explain, as they simply assess the candidate’s underlying ability to perform the role, to learn new tasks and to overcome difficulties. Most ability tests look at what the candidate is capable of doing if he/she is successful in landing the architecture job, rather than what they have already learned.

Literal meaning
Psychometric literally means measuring the brain and applies to tests that have been scientifically devised to measure certain characteristics or abilities. Such tests go through rigorous trials to ensure they do what they claim and can only be bought by people trained to use them, but if you are planning to apply for an architecture job and suspect that you may be required to take a psychometric test, there are many free tests available online that will help you to understand exactly what to expect, and to be prepared.

To talk to one of our advisers about the architecture jobs we have on offer today, call now on 0115 946 9034 or e-mail us at recruit@ktp-recruitment.com

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