How to Pass the Saville Swift Executive Aptitude Test in 2024
Updated May 31, 2024
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What Is the Swift Executive Aptitude Test?
Companies who are looking to hire individuals for graduate, managerial or director roles will often ask candidates to complete the Swift Executive Test.
This is a timed, three-stage, multiple-choice aptitude test designed to assess candidates' skills and abilities in relation to the role they will be taking on.
Companies looking to hire individuals at this level will have a very firm idea of the type of person they are looking for and the skills that they need to be able to show.
The Swift Executive Aptitude test is usually offered to candidates as one of the early stages within the recruitment process.
A successful test will often result in an invitation to attend an interview.
The assessment is most commonly completed by candidates online.
However, candidates will sometimes be asked to complete a longer version of the test at a designated assessment centre or an alternative location which is decided by the employer.
What Are the Sections of the Swift Executive Test?
There are three separate sections to the Swift Executive Aptitude test:
- Verbal reasoning
- Numerical reasoning
- Abstract reasoning
Each section is timed and candidates will be required to complete all three sections.
Practice Swift Executive Test with TestHQ
Verbal Reasoning
Duration: Six minutes
The verbal reasoning section of the assessment is designed to evaluate written language skills.
It will assess each candidate’s ability to understand, infer and draw conclusions from a series of written passages.
During this stage of the test, candidates will be presented with a series of texts on a wide variety of topics.
They will then be asked to answer a series of multiple-choice questions which relate to the text.
Numerical Reasoning
Duration: Six minutes
During the second stage of the assessment, candidates will be required to answer questions relating to their numerical reasoning skills.
The main purpose of this section is to evaluate how well you are able to analyse data and draw conclusions from the information you are shown.
Each question will be accompanied by graphs, tables or numerical data relating to the question.
You will use this information to choose the correct answer from a list of multiple-choice options.
Not all of the data given will necessarily be relevant, so it is important to know how to identify the valuable information.
Abstract Reasoning
Duration: Six minutes
Finally, candidates will answer questions designed to assess their abstract reasoning skills. Primarily, these will be based around logic and reason.
Questions will be formatted in the same way as the previous sections, with a question and multiple-choice options to choose from.
Candidates will be shown a variety of patterns or shapes where one of the groupings is missing.
The objective is to choose the correct image from the options to complete the pattern or group.
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After the Assessment
Once you have completed the assessment, the results are usually available quickly.
The employer will evaluate these results and responses alongside their criteria before deciding which candidates should move to the next stage of the process.
This will often involve attending a face-to-face interview.
Prepare for Swift Executive Test with TestHQ
Swift Executive Aptitude Test Practice Tips
Although this is essentially a test which considers the skills you already have, there are a few things you can do to perform at your best on the day.
Step 1. Take Practice Papers
Practice papers are invaluable when it comes to sitting an assessment.
There are a number of websites which will let you practice questions similar to the real thing for free.
Alternatively, you can sign up for packages which will help you to prepare for the test.
Step 2. Practice Timing Yourself
You will have 18 minutes to complete the entire assessment of 24 questions, so you will need to be able to think and respond quickly.
Timing yourself when practicing similar questions and working to a time limit can help you to avoid panicking on the day.
Step 3. Use the Process of Elimination
Rather than spending too long on a question you are unsure of, sometimes it is better to use the process of elimination.
If there are answers which you know definitely can’t be correct, this can help you to consider which of the remaining options is the most likely choice.
By answering in this way, you will avoid losing too much of your time limit on tricky questions.
Step 4. Identify the Question Types You Find Most Challenging
Nobody is good at everything and it is possible that you will find one section or style of question more difficult than others.
Each section makes up a third of your overall result; therefore, it is important to identify anything which you find more difficult.
This way, you can focus more of your time on practicing these areas to achieve a better score.
Step 5. Read Complex Texts and Technical Information
You will be presented with a variety of texts during the verbal reasoning section of the assessment. Some of these may be technical in nature.
For this reason, it is important to make sure that you are able to read and understand complex information.
Some of the numerical questions will also involve complex data.
It is a good idea to familiarise yourself with the wide variety of ways that data can be presented. This way, you will already be familiar with any style of graph or chart you are shown.
Step 6. Read the Question Carefully
This is important for any assessment – always make sure to carefully read the question before answering it.
This can help you avoid unnecessary mistakes from misunderstood or misread questions.
Step 7. Get Enough Sleep
Scientific studies have shown that a lack of sleep can significantly impact our ability to perform well in tests.
Not only can it affect our cognitive abilities, it can also reduce reaction times which are especially important in timed situations.
For this reason, it is important to make sure that you are well rested before taking the Swift Executive Test as this will help you to feel alert, focused and responsive.
Step 8. Practice Mindfulness
If you find that you sometimes struggle under pressure, it can be helpful to practice mindfulness techniques.
Simple practices can help you to feel calm and in control ahead of sitting the test. You will then be able to perform at a better level than if you are feeling anxious.
A Swift executive test is used as a pre-employment screening assessment for graduate, managerial or director roles in several different industries.
It is a short, timed, multiple-choice assessment that is usually completed online in the early stages of the recruitment process. It has been designed to allow a candidate to demonstrate their competency. The questions in the Swift Executive Test have been created to assess a candidate based on their potential for success in an executive-level role.
In the Swift Executive Test, there are three subsections, each lasting just six minutes each for a total time of 18 minutes. The subsections are:
Companies like Nestle, Barclays and ING have all used the Swift Executive Test to find the right employees. It is split into three tiers and is usually used primarily in executive and business roles. The test measures a candidate’s verbal analysis, numerical analysis and their abstract reasoning ability.
The three stages are equally split, and the candidates will have around 18 minutes to answer a total of 24 questions. In this sense, it is not a long examination, but the questions are very specific.
In the verbal analysis section, candidates will be asked to analyze written sections and draw conclusions from a set text.
In numerical analysis, candidates will be presented with data in the form of graphs and charts. They will have to come to conclusions after analyzing the data.
Finally, in the abstract reasoning section, the candidates will be challenged on their logic and reasoning skills. They will be given sets of patterns or objects, and they will have to find the correct number of solutions.
Aptitude tests are common and can be practiced online in multiple places. We offer a range of free aptitude tests on the WikiJob website and there are many other places to look for them such as on TestHQ.
Executive aptitude is the ability to reason and come to decisions on important business matters. People who have strong executive aptitude have strong reasoning skills and critical thinking abilities. Executive aptitude is required for all management and director roles.
The Swift Executive Test is designed to be challenging – it is supposed to screen potential candidates according to their potential for success in a graduate, managerial or director-level role based on their natural aptitude and skills.
One of the most important ways you can prepare for the assessment is to take practice tests. This will help you get used to the exam conditions and test environment.
The questions you struggle with should help you create a study plan – revising the basics of GCSE-level maths and operations, including percentages and fractions, for example.
Your revision doesn’t all have to be about answering questions – you can read more widely to help with verbal reasoning or complete puzzles and brain training apps on your mobile or on paper.
Thinking about things in a logical way, whether you are reading a newspaper or other forms of formal writing, will help you frame things more critically.
When you are practicing, make sure that you are setting yourself up with accurate exam conditions – most crucially, with the right time limit. One of the most challenging aspects of this assessment is the very tight allowance of time to answer questions, so if you are used to dealing with that you will feel more confident in the real thing.
As the Swift Executive Test is part of the recruitment process for top-level jobs, it is designed to filter through potential candidates and help recruitment teams to pick the best performing applicants.
This means that the test needs to be hard to pass so that only the very best can get through it.
The test has a tight time limit, just 18 minutes to complete the whole thing – which is not a lot. Each section lasts just six minutes, and you will be expected to move from verbal reasoning to numerical reasoning before completing abstract reasoning questions.
This means that you need to be able to think on your feet and complete these sections with mental agility, while under pressure in test conditions. If you can do that, and get a good score, then you will be more likely to be selected for your ideal top-level executive role.
Make sure that you give yourself the best chance with practice and revision.
The score you will need to get the role you have applied for will depend on the employer.
Remember, the Swift Executive Test is used in the beginning stages of recruitment for top-level roles including graduate and managerial, as well as directors. This means that you will be in competition with other candidates – so not only will you have to pass the test, but you will need to perform better than the other people who have applied for the role.
The Swift Executive Test is marked on a Sten scale from 0 to 10. The results are presented in a report that the recruitment team can see, which outlines your performance overall and how you scored on each subsection too.
The results are pretty much instantaneous as soon as you have completed the test, so the recruiter can choose the top performers to take further into the application process.
The Swift Executive Test is an aptitude test, which means it is not testing education or knowledge, but your inherent skills in logical thinking, decision making and number fluency.
To be successful in the Swift Executive Test you need to be able to quickly read, understand and analyze data presented in writing, as numbers in a table or a graph, or as a sequence of shapes and patterns.
You will need to make reasoned decisions to select the right answers from the multiple-choice options – and you will not have much time to do it, either – just 18 minutes in total.
Practice will help you be more confident in the assessment, especially if you are a bit rusty in your formal language usage or basic maths operations, for example. However, this is more about your potential to be successful if you are taken further.
Other tests include Saville Wave Focus Styles for workplace interactions, Saville Wave Professional Styles for professional approaches, and Saville Wave Cognitive Styles for cognitive preferences. The Saville Swift Analysis Aptitude assesses analytical reasoning.
The company that you have applied for might have some information about the aptitude tests that you are required to take on their careers site, and this could include practice questions.
The best place to practice for your Swift Executive Test is the Saville Assessments site.
Here you can take an online practice test which will help you get used to what the actual assessment will be like.
The more practice tests that you take, the better your scores will be. This means that you should look for other practice test papers to take too – such as those that you can find here in this article.
TestHQ has an excellent range of resources, from free practice tests to paid-for Prep Packs that include a huge amount of revision as well as tips and tricks for success.
The Saville Assessments candidate hub is a great place to get all the information you need when you are taking the Swift Executive Test. As the publishers of the test, Saville should be one of the first places you go when you want to see what you will be facing.
Articles like this Wikijob one will give you a detailed rundown of what to expect and how to improve your score on the Swift Executive Test, including some very useful example questions that shows what you are likely to face in the real thing.
For a thorough mix of free practice tests and in-depth revision tools, the resources available on TestHQ will give you a great understanding of the test itself, as well as different ways to revise and tips and tricks.
The more practice and preparation you do for the assessment, the better your performance will be in the real thing.
The online Swift Executive Test takes only 18 minutes. It is split into three subsections, each lasting just six minutes – verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and abstract reasoning.
Your results are available almost immediately to the recruitment team, but you will not know how well you have done until all the applicants have taken the test and the recruiters have decided who to take forward to the next stage.
This process can take a week or so, depending on the workload of the recruitment team.
If you are unsuccessful, you might not hear back from the business at all – but you will be told ahead of time if you should expect any personalized feedback.
Final Thoughts
It is easy to feel overwhelmed when you are asked to complete an aptitude test as part of a recruitment process.
This test is designed to look at your core skills and abilities in relation to what the employer needs from their staff.
Your core skills are unique to you, so there is no reason to try and cheat the system.
Practice and preparation are some of the most important skills which you can show ahead of the assessment.
The ability to focus and plan your time, practicing and improving in areas which you find difficult, will help you in the long term as well as throughout the testing process.
Taking steps to look after yourself and getting used to the style of question with which you will be presented will ensure that you are able to perform to the very best of your ability on the day.
