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Introduction
The Army requires that candidates for Officer Training have certain mental abilities. These mental abilities are measured by three tests that are described in this booklet. It is essential that you read this booklet carefully so that you will understand the types of test you will be asked to take whilst at the Army Officers Selection Board (AOSB).
The three tests of mental ability you will be asked to do at the AOSB are:
Verbal Reasoning Numerical Reasoning Abstract Reasoning
The purpose of this booklet is to give you some information about why the tests are used, what to expect at the testing session, and tips on how to do your best at the tests. It will also give you a chance to have a go at the types of question you will see in the Verbal, Numerical and Abstract Reasoning tests.
Using this booklet
It is important that you use the time you have been given to read this booklet well. Find a quiet place, free from interruptions. Read the information in this booklet carefully and have a go at the practice questions.
You should mark your answers to the practice questions on the answer sheet provided at the end of this booklet. When you have attempted the practice questions, check your answers against the correct answers also given at the end of this booklet. Make sure you understand the solutions to all the practice questions, as this will help you when you take the real tests.
Taking the actual tests
You will take the Verbal, Numerical and Abstract tests on computer. All responses to the tests are given using the mouse.
It is important to read the instructions for each test carefully. You can see a summary of these during the test by clicking on the question mark button, but this will give you less time to answer the questions. After the instructions, you will see example questions and have a chance to try some further practice questions.
The tests are strictly timed, and you may not finish all of the questions in the time allowed. You should work quickly, but not so quickly that you make unnecessary mistakes. If you cannot answer a question, you can skip it and come back to it later if you have time.
You will be given some paper to make notes or to do any rough-working during the tests.
erbal Reasoning - Instructions
The Verbal Reasoning test looks at your ability to think logically about written information. In this test, you will see passages of text, followed by statements relating to the text. You have to read each passage of text carefully and then decide whether each statement follows logically from the information in the passage.
For each statement there are three answer options you can choose from: True, False or Can’t tell.
True This means that, on the basis of the information in the passage, the statement is true or logically follows from the passage.
False This means that, on the basis of the information in the passage, the statement is false.
Can’t tell This means that you cannot tell from the information in the passage whether the statement is true or false.
When deciding on whether a statement is true, false or you can’t tell, it is important to base your answer only on the information in the passage and not on any other knowledge you may have. Your task is simply to judge whether or not the statement follows logically from the passage.
Look at the example on the next pages, and then have a go at the practice statements on the following pages. Mark your answers to the practice statements on the answer sheet provided, by putting a tick through ‘True’, ‘False’ or ‘Can’t tell’ for each.
In the real test you will indicate your answers by clicking on them with a computer mouse. You will have 40 questions to answer in 15 minutes.
V
Verbal Reasoning – Practice
Charges for late return of library books
It is expected that all users of the library will return books by the date they are due for return. Fines are charged on books which are kept beyond the return date. The purpose of fines is to encourage the prompt return of books, so that maximum use can be made of the library’s stock of books.
A reduced rate of fines applies to those under 18 years of age.
All users, except those who are chronically ill, housebound or disabled, are subject to charges.
If you are unable to return a book by the due date or have not finished with it, you can ask to extend the return date provided the book has not been requested by another user.
- All users of the library have to pay fines on overdue books.
can be extended on any book you have borrowed.
Your age can affect the cost of any fines.
The money from fines is used to buy new books for the library.
The return date
Verbal Reasoning – Practice
All companies should have a Privacy Policy. It should cover what personal information should be stored, where and how it is kept, and who can access it. This issue is not just an ethical one, since the Data Protection Act sets legal requirements.
Changes in technology now make the issues increasingly complex. For example, an employer may request personal information, a recruitment agency be responsible for supplying it, but an independent recruitment consultant may actually collect and record that information. All three parties may end up with a copy of the information stored in different forms in different countries. The laws in all three countries may be different. It is also unclear as to whether the law applies to where the data are collected, stored or accessed. It is therefore increasingly urgent for harmonisation of Data Protection laws across national boarders.
It is wrong to keep personal information without a person’s consent.
A company’s Privacy Policy can cover paper as well as electronic records of personal information.
. Data Protection laws have been standardised across countries. . Changes in technology have made issues around the storage and access of
personal information more complex.
Numerical Reasoning – Example
The correct answer is £54 (B).
To get the answer you first have to find the cost of Bronze cover with Green Arrow from the table. The table shows you this is £30. The cost of covering two cars would therefore be £60 (2x£30), but the question also tells you that there is a 10% discount if you take out cover for more than one car.
To get the final cost, you need to find the discount (10% of £60), and subtract this from the total cost. To get 10% of £60, you need to divide £60 by 100 to get £0.6, and then multiply it by 10 to get 10% (£6). The total cost is therefore £60 - £6, which gives the answer of £54.
E1. Three members of a family share equally the cost of Silver cover for one car with Green Arrow. How much does each person pay?
A. £20 B. £25 C. £30 D. £60 E. £
The correct answer is £20 (A).
To answer this question you first have to find out how much Silver cover with Green Arrow costs. The table shows you that this is £60. To find the cost to each person, you have to divide £60 by 3. £60 divided equally between three people gives you the answer of £20.
E2. There is a 10% discount if you take out breakdown cover for more then one car. What is the cost of having two cars with Green Arrow Bronze cover?
A. £46 B. £54 C. £60 D. £66 E. £
- What is the ratio of the cost of Silver cover with Green Arrow to Gold cover with Green Arrow?
A. 1:3 B. 2:3 C. 3:2 D. 2:1 E. 3:
The correct answer is 2:3 (B).
To get the answer you need to find the highest number that will divide into the cost of Green Arrow Silver cover (£60) and Green Arrow Gold cover (£90). The highest number is 30, which divides into the cost of Silver cover twice (60/30=2) and the cost of Gold cover three times (90/30=3). This gives you the ratio of 2:3.
E4. The cost of Bronze cover with Blue Star increases to £50. By what percentage has the cost of Bronze cover increased?
A. 10% B. 20% C. 25% D. 50% E. 125%
The correct answer is 25% (C).
rence between £40 and
ntage of the original cost (£40) the increase is (£10), by nal cost. £10 divided by £40 gives you 0.25. To turn this
E
To find the percentage increase you first have to find the actual increase in cost. The table tells you that the cost of Blue Star Bronze cover was £40. The question tells you this has increased to £50, giving an increase of £10 (the diffe £50).
You then have to find what perce dividing the increase by the origi into a percentage, multiply the answer (0.25) by 100. This gives the answer of 25%.
Numerical Reasoning – Practice
. How much does 3kg of Deluxe Muesli cost? . What is the difference between the cost of 2kg of Muesli Base and 2kg of Standard
ow many bags of Deluxe Muesli
li every 12 days. How much cost ys?
A. £4.01 B. £4.10 C. £5.00 D. £9.84 E. £39.
A. £2.04 B. £2.46 C. £2.71 D. £2.91 E. £3.
Muesli?
A. 14p B. 15p C. 28p D. 29p E. 30p
- The shop weighs out the Muesli in 1kg bags. H could you buy for £10?
A. 9 B. 10 C. 11 D. 12 E. 14
- On average, a family eats 1 kg of Standard Mues would it for 60 da
SB use an Abstract Reasoning test?
The Abstract Reasoning test looks at your ability to identify patterns and relationships between shapes. Some people may wonder why they are being asked to take a test about shapes. It is clear that army officers need verbal and numerical skills, but why do they need to pick out patterns in shapes? The reason is that the Abstract Reasoning test is related to a number of skills that are important to a good army officer. Some of these skills are not as obvious and direct as verbal and numerical skills. The Abstract Reasoning test will assess skills related to:
The ability to generate a range of ideas – part of the Abstract test requires you to identify common threads and similarities between shapes. To do this, you have to show an ability to generate a variety of ideas about how the shapes may be linked. If some ideas don’t work, you need the creativity to think of alternatives. It is this ability to generate new alternative ideas without getting stuck which is central to good problem-solving ability. The ability to focus on relevant information – The Abstract test contains some features that have nothing to do with the problem. This is true in real life – problems occur with lots of information, some of which is relevant and some which is irrelevant. It is all too easy to become distracted and to spend too much time on irrelevancies. The Abstract problems allow you to show your ability to identify and focus on what is relevant. es of information – The problems in you to look at smaller details, whereas others are more about seeing a ‘bigger picture’. Some are based on epts, whereas others are based on more abstract or con is i sp le ve problem solving.
creativity and flexibility) and the analytical skills to test out these ideas clea recis
n ea easoning test you will see two sets of shapes: ‘Set A’ and et B’ f e sh et A ilar in some way, and all the shapes in Set B re sim me w A an are n d to e er.
hape Neither set.
Look a ple xt p hen have a go at the practice shapes on the following pages. Mark your answers to the practice shapes on the answer sheet provided, by putting a tick through ‘Set A’, ‘Neither’ or ‘Set B’ for each.
In the real test you will indicate your answers by clicking on them with a computer mouse. You will have 70 questions to answer in 12 minutes.
Abstract Reasoning - Why do AO
The ability to switch between different typ the Abstract test are very varied – some need
simple and familiar conc unfamiliar cepts. Th s another a ect of flexib and creati
The ability to be analytical as well as creative – To solve the problems in the Abstract test you need both the ability to generate alternative solutions (which requires and make sure they fit rly and p ely.
Abstract Reasoning - Instructions
O ch page of the Abstract R ‘S. All o th apes in S are sim a ilar in so ay. Set d Set B ot relate ach oth
You have to work out how the shapes in Set A are related to each other and how the shapes in Set B are related to each other. You then have to work out whether further s s belong to Set A, Set B or
t the exam on the ne age, and t
The only common feature between the cells in Set A, is that they all contain white shapes. As some of the cells in Set A contain one shape, and others contain two shapes, the number of shapes in each cell does not matter.
Similarly for Set B, all the cells contain black shapes. Again, as some cells contain one shape and others contain two, the number of shapes in each cell does not matter.
The answers to the example questions are:
E1 – The correct answer is Set A, as it contains a white shape.
E2 – The correct answer is Neither. As it contains one white and one black shape, it does not clearly belong to either set.
E3 – The correct answer is Set A, as it contains white shapes. Although E3 contains five white shapes, more than any cells in Set A, it still conforms to the rules of Set A as the number of shapes is not part of the solution.
E4 – The correct answer is Neither. As the shapes have both black and white parts to them, they do not clearly belong to either set.
E5 – The correct answer is Set B, as this contains a black shape.
Answers to Example Questions
Abstract Reasoning – Practice
Abstract Reasoning – Practice
the Practice Questions
Questions 1 to 4
- All users of the library have to pay fines on overdue books.
The answer to this question is “False.”
Explanation: The second bullet point states that all users are subject to fines ‘… except those who are chronically ill, housebound or disabled’. As people who fall into these categories are exempt from fines, not ‘all’ users have to pay fines on overdue books.
- Your age can affect the cost of any fines.
The answer to this question is “True.”
Explanation: The first bullet point states that ‘A reduced rate of fines applies to those under 18 years of age’. As younger users of the library pay reduced fines, age does affect how much people have to pay.
- The money from fines is used to buy new books for the library.
The answer to this question is “Can’t tell.”
Explanation: The passage gives information on fines and why fines are imposed on overdue books. Although it says that the purpose of fines is to ‘make maximum use … of the library’s stock of books’, it does not say anything about how the money from fines is used.
- The return date can be extended on any book you have borrowed.
The answer to this question is “False.”
Explanation: The passage says that ‘you can ask to extend the return date provided the book has not been requested by another user’. Therefore the return date cannot automatically be extended on any book you have borrowed, as the book may have been requested by another user.
Verbal Reasoning – Answers to
ing – Answers to the Practice Questions
. How many red and black cars were sold during the year?
he correct answer is 44 (E).
. 25 + 19 gives a total of 44. . How many more blue cars were sold than red cars?
wer is 11 (B).
xplanation: The answer is found by taking the number of red cars sold (25) away from
. What percentage of the cars sold were white?
o get the answer you have to find what proportion of all the cars that were old were white, and then turn this into a percentage. The total number of cars sold is und by adding the sales of all types of car together (25 + 12 + 36 + 19 + 28), which
is into a percentage, multiply this by 100 to give 10%.
. What is the ratio of white cars to blue cars sold?
xplanation: To get the answer you need to find the highest number that will divide into e number of white cars sold (12) and the number of blue cars (36). The highest number is 12, which divides into the number of white cars once (12/12=1) and the number of blue cars three times (36/12=3). This gives you the ratio of 1:3.
Questions 5 to 8
- How much does 3kg of Deluxe Muesli cost?
A. £2.04 B. £2.46 C. £2.71 D. £2.91 E. £3.
Numerical Reason
Questions 1 to 4
A. 6 B. 19 C. 25 D. 34 E. 44
T
Explanation: To find the answer you have to add the number of red cars sold (25) to the number of black cars sold (19)
A. 1 B. 11 C. 25 D. 36 E. 61
The correct ans
E the number of blue cars sold (36). 36 - 25 gives a total of 11.
A. 10% B. 12% C. 14% D. 16% E. 18%
The correct answer is 10% (A).
Explanation: T s fo gives 120. You then divide the number of white cars (12) by the total number of cars (120). 12/120 is 0.1. To turn th
A. 1:4 B. 1:3 C. 3:4 D. 3:1 E. 4:
The correct answer is 1:3 (B).
E th
the correct answer you have to first get the price of Deluxe Muesli r kg. To find the cost of 3 kg you have to ltiply 97p by 3. This gives you 291p or £2.91.
. What is the difference between the cost of 2kg of Muesli Base and 2kg of Standard i
C. 28p D. 29p E. 30p
xplanation: The easiest way to get the correct answer is to first find the cost of Muesli ase and Standard Muesli from the table. Muesli Base costs 68p per kg and Standard two values by subtracting the maller (68) from the larger (82), to give you 14 (82-68=14). 14p is the difference between the cost of 1kg of Muesli Base and Standard Muesli. To find the difference for kg, you have to multiply the difference between them by 2, to give you 28p (14x2).
nother way to find the correct answer would be to first find the cost of 2kg of Muesli
8p.
. The shop weighs out the Muesli in 1kg bags. How many bags of Deluxe Muesli
to
. On average, a family eats 1 kg of Standard Muesli every 12 days. How much would it cost for 60 days?
A. £4.01 B. £4.10 C. £5.00 D. £9.84 E. £39.
he correct answer is £4.10 (B).
xplanation: To get the answer, first find out how much muesli the family would eat in 60
o find the cost for 60 days, find the cost of Standard Muesli from the table (82p per kg). he number of kg eaten in 60 days) gives you the answer £4.10.
bstract Reasoning – Answers to the Practice Questions
uestions 1 to 5
The correct answer is £2.91 (D).
Explanation: To find from the table. The table shows this is 97p pe mu
6 Muesl?
A. 14p B. 15p
The correct answer is 28p (C).
E B Muesli 82p per kg. Then find the difference between these s
2
A Base (68x2=136) and 2kg of Standard Muesli (82x2=164). Then subtract the smaller value (136) from the larger (164) to give you the difference of 2
7 could you buy for £10?
A. 9 B. 10 C. 11 D. 12 E. 14
The correct answer is 10 (B).
Explanation: To get the correct answer you first have to find the cost of Deluxe Muesli from the table. The table shows that Deluxe Muesli costs 97p per kg. To find out how many 1kg bags of Deluxe Muesli you could buy with £10.00, you have to divide 97p in £10.00.
8
T
E
days. You are told that 1kg lasts 12 days. To find out how much they would eat in 60 days, you need to find out have many ‘lots’ of 12 days there are in 60 days. 60 divided by 12 gives you 5, so the family would eat 5kg in 60 days.
T Multiplying 82p by 5 (t
A
Q
