CCAT test day: what to expect, and a checklist

What happens on CCAT test day?

The Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test (CCAT), the hiring test from Criteria Corp, is almost always taken at home, on your own schedule, before a deadline the employer sets. Here is the day in order:

(This page is about the hiring test. The Canadian Cognitive Abilities Test that schools use for gifted programs shares the acronym and nothing else.)

What should you do before the CCAT?

Find the link and the deadline

The invitation comes from the employer. Note the deadline and plan to test a day early, not the last evening. If you need more time, ask the employer: Criteria's support team says it is "unable to grant extensions on behalf of any employer"^C2.

Read the employer's rules, not just Criteria's

Criteria sets the format. The employer sets almost everything else: whether you can use scratch paper, whether the test is proctored, whether you get a retake. Some employers also have rules about preparation. Crossover, for example, says engaging with most third-party CCAT materials is treated as cheating and disqualifies an application, while you can prepare by getting familiar with the types of questions^X1. If you're applying there, read Crossover's CCAT guide before you practice anywhere.

Choose your device

Criteria says its assessments work on tablets and phones, and that you'll be told beforehand if a test isn't compatible. You need "a stable internet connection, and an internet browser with cookies and JavaScript enabled"^C2. We'd still use a laptop. Spatial questions show five small figures side by side, and they're easier to compare on a larger screen. See what they look like on our spatial reasoning questions page.

Book a quiet room

Criteria's advice is to take the test when you can be free of distractions^C1. Fifteen minutes is short, so one knock on the door is a real share of your time. Block 30 minutes: the instructions, the test, and a buffer. Close other tabs, silence your phone, and tell anyone at home.

Paper, pencil, and no calculator

Criteria says plainly: "No calculators allowed"^C1. Scratch paper is different. Criteria doesn't publish a rule on it, so check your invitation and the instructions screen. If paper is allowed, have two sheets and a pencil ready before you start. You won't have time to look for them once the clock is running.

Ask about accommodations now

If you need extra time or another adjustment, Criteria's candidate help says to contact the employer, individual or organization that asked you to take the assessment^C8. Criteria's platform supports a 1.5x time adjustment: for the CCAT, about 22 minutes instead of 15^C7. The employer applies it, so ask before you open the link, not after.

Know your pace before the day

The worst time to discover your pace is on the test that counts. Take a free timed CCAT practice test first, under the same conditions: 50 questions, 15 minutes, no calculator. Then use the CCAT pacing calculator to turn your target into a checkpoint for each minute, and the CCAT score calculator to see what that target means against Criteria's published norms.

What happens during the CCAT?

The instructions are not timed

Criteria says you can take all the time you need to read them^C1. Use it. Read every line, take a breath, then start.

The clock: 15 minutes, 50 questions

Once you start, you have 15 minutes "to answer as many questions as you can"^C1. That's 18 seconds a question on average. Criteria says fewer than 1% of candidates answer all 50, and the average test taker gets 24 right^C1. You're not expected to finish. You're expected to get as many right as you can in the time.

Questions from all three areas, mixed

You'll switch between verbal, math and logic, and spatial questions. Our CCAT question types guide shows each format with a worked example, so none of them is new on the day.

Guess, don't freeze

There's no penalty for wrong answers^C1, so never leave a question blank. Criteria's tip is to make an educated guess and move on if a question takes more than a minute^C1. We'd cut that to about 30 seconds. A minute on one question is the cost of three others.

Can you go back to a question?

Criteria doesn't publish a rule either way: not on its candidate page, not in its FAQ. Prep sites state it both ways, and none we've read cite Criteria. So plan as if you can't. Pick your best guess before you move on. If your test does let you go back, you've lost nothing. Our CCAT rules page covers this in more detail.

If your connection drops

Don't panic. Criteria's FAQ says you can go back to the assessment center, enter the Event ID you were given, and "resume the assessment from where you left off"^C2. Write the Event ID down when you get it.

What happens after the CCAT?

Your results go to the employer. Criteria says, "Your results are emailed directly to the company for which you applied," and they "are not shared with any other companies"^C2. The employer gets your raw score and percentile^C1. You may never see your score unless the employer shares it. Our guide to CCAT scores explains what those numbers mean.

Retakes are the employer's call. Criteria's help docs describe how employers can re-administer a test^C4, and by default an employer can reuse your result for up to 12 months if you apply again^C5. Some employers set a fixed wait. Crossover, for example, allows one attempt per email address in six months^X3. Treat your first sitting as your only one.

Some employers retest you under a proctor. Employers can turn on proctoring in Criteria's platform, with a webcam check and a report that's marked "Clear" or "Review"^C6. Crossover is the clearest public example. Its finalists take the PCCAT, a live proctored CCAT, with an ID check, a webcam and a phone camera showing a side view of the desk, and the proctored score must fall in the same range as the first attempt and above the role's minimum^X2. That's why practicing at a pace you can repeat matters more than one lucky run. See which other employers are reported to use the test on our companies that use the CCAT page.

What should you do the night before the CCAT?

Less than you think. A cram session the night before won't teach you a new question type. It will cost you sleep, and sleep is worth more on a speed test.

• Do one short mixed set, not a full test. Ten or fifteen questions across all three areas, to remind yourself of each format.
• Write your guessing rule on a sticky note. Something like "30 seconds, then guess." Under pressure, people forget the plan they made calmly.
• Set up the room tonight. Charger, paper and pencil (if allowed), water. Morning-you shouldn't have to think about any of it.
• Pick a time when you're sharp. The test is on your schedule within the deadline. If you think best at 9 a.m., take it at 9 a.m., not at midnight after a long day.

CCAT test-day checklist

Print this, or keep it open on your phone. Tick each line before you click start.

1. Find the invitation and the deadline. Open the email, note the deadline, and ask the employer early if you need more time. Criteria cannot extend it.
2. Read the employer's rules. Check the invitation for anything on scratch paper, proctoring, devices and preparation materials.
3. Ask for accommodations before you start. If you need extra time or another adjustment, ask the employer that invited you before you open the test.
4. Pick your device. Use a laptop if you can. Spatial questions are easier to read on a larger screen. Charge it or plug it in.
5. Check your browser and connection. Use a current browser with cookies and JavaScript on, and a stable internet connection.
6. Book a quiet room for 30 minutes. Fifteen minutes of test plus time for the instructions, with no interruptions. Silence your phone.
7. Set out paper and a pencil if allowed. Two sheets and a pencil, only if your employer allows them. No calculator: Criteria does not allow one.
8. Warm up with a few questions. Ten minutes of mixed practice questions, so your first real question is not your first question of the day.
9. Read the instructions fully. The instructions are not timed. Read them, settle in, then start the clock.
10. Guess and move on when stuck. No penalty for wrong answers. If a question is taking more than about 30 seconds, guess and keep going.
11. Save your Event ID. If the connection drops, return to the assessment center with your Event ID and resume where you left off.

The last step of preparation is the one that doesn't fit on a checklist: having taken a full timed test before. If you haven't, our free CCAT practice test takes 15 minutes. And if something about your test day isn't covered here, ask Clever below.