What to expect from a Wonderlic Test

Test Environment & Pressure

When approaching the Wonderlic test, it is important to understand the underlying principles upon which it is built. The core of the test consists of three main assessors, mathematics, vocabulary, and reasoning. With that, it is recommended to have a good grasp on arithmetic and vocabulary before taking the test given the time constraints, as well as the fact that people perform differently when taking the test in an approved testing facility, as opposed to the comfort of their sofa at home.

Developing Instinctive Responses

Because the Wonderlic test gauges your ability to perform under pressure, it is good to develop an instinct with regards to an understanding of arithmetic and vocabulary, not only because it will make it much easier to navigate and proceed through the test in an organized manner, it also saves precious time that would have otherwise been spent in an effort to remember mathematic principles or the meaning of a word, which could potentially ruin any chance of achieving a high score.

Example Question Breakdown

It is important to remember that remaining confident in your ability to complete the test well help maintain effective performance throughout the twelve short minutes given for you to complete it within. Also, make sure to look over many examples of questions you might be presented with during the test; you want to become almost instinctive in your response because it will save a lot of time, and even more grief knowing that you didn't just lose five minutes attempting to recall a rule of mathematics, or the definition of a word you could have sworn you knew well enough to not study it. For example, if you come across this on the test:

The answer is simple, 3 pairs of shoes will cost $81 today. If you read the question too quickly, you might have simply added $45 + $27 and arrived at $72, but since the question asks about the price of shoes today, and not tomorrow -- which is when the sale starts -- you have multiply $27 x 3 to get to $81. Also, if it took you longer than 15 seconds to answer this question, you won't have enough time to answer every question on the test, especially since there is only an average of about 15 seconds per question, which means that being anything less than absolutely sure of your ability to recall arithmetic rules when needed might be the difference between a low and high score on the Wonderlic test.