What is a validated selection test?

Question

I am interested in applying for a certain job, and among the qualifications is listed 'must pass a validated selection test'.

Answer 1

company hired a psych consulting firm to develop a test, likely multiple choice, that purports to predict which persons will likely be successful in doing the job. Can also test for whether applicant will be happy in the job.

Example: some jobs require significant speed at the task -- toll seller in the subway, for example. Certain types of fussy, precise people aren't good at this job because their need to be neat gets in the way of being fast.

"Validated" means that some set of people judged successful in the job, either in this company or in similar job elsewhere, were previously tested and their responses are the "norm" for what a passing score is. The more the applicant is answers similarly to the validation group, the more the test thinks s/he will also be successful.

Validation is likely culture specific. Brazilians do not and will not test the same as Germans on one series of such tests that I am familiar with. Even Brazilians and Germans who apparently have the same job and same tasks likely will not test as similar.

As an applicant, all you need to know is that only tested and validated applicants will be called in for an interview.

The good news is that some responsible personnel departments will use their testing results to suggest other jobs that an appllicant might be more suited for than the present one. A very few will even tell the applicant what their results say (not many as this costs the company money).


Not to worry -- just take the thing. If you aren't selected, you likely wouldn't be happy in the job anyway.

Answer 2

When a test is validated it means that it has proven to test what it is supposed to test.