The Army Cognitive Test in short
If you apply to join the British Army as a soldier, one step of selection is an aptitude test: the Army Cognitive Test (ACT). It has five short sections – Error Detection, Orientation, Number Fluency, Word Rules and Deductive Reasoning – and in each one the question disappears before the answers appear (Mindmill practice booklet). That makes it as much a test of working memory as of reading or maths.
Screener at home, real test at the assessment centre
During your application you do a short cognitive screener on your own through the application portal. The Army describes it as a short version of the test: the results are used as practice and to give an idea of how you are likely to do in the real test, which you take at the assessment centre (British Army).
At the assessment centre the test is on a touch screen, and it measures both speed and accuracy (British Army). Before each section you answer practice questions; if you get more than two of them wrong, you repeat the practice before the real section starts (Mindmill booklet).
Your score decides your roles
There is no single pass mark. Each job role has its own score requirement, and your recruiter can tell you which roles you qualify for based on your assessment centre results (British Army). Wrong answers do affect your score, although they are only part of how results are worked out – so keep answering properly rather than guessing at random (British Army).
How to prepare
The Army's own advice for the weeks before the test:
- revise literacy and numeracy, for example with BBC Bitesize,
- plan your study time with regular breaks,
- practise online psychometric tests,
- be well rested and eat on the morning of the tests,
- and speak to your recruiter if anything is unclear.
Our Army Cognitive Test course covers the practice part: every section in the real format, timed practice and three full mock tests in exam order.
Sources
- British Army – What kind of mental aptitude tests will you be required to pass?
- British Army – What can I do to prepare for the aptitude test?
- British Army – I had a 44 on my cognitive test, what roles do I get with this score?
- British Army – Do you get marks deducted if you get a question wrong?
- Mindmill – Army Cognitive Test Practice Test Booklet