Succeeding in Graduate Assessment Centres

Doing well in assessment centres, or when attending assessment days, is a non negotiable 'must' for obvious reasons: it is the employer's objective to sort out the strongest candidates from the others, and a mediocre performance just won't cut it. Bring on the pressure, eh? Preparing for Assessment Centres in the right way is absolutely vital, and this page gives you access to a range of invaluable resources that help you shine on the assessment day.

An Introduction to Assessment Centres. If you are unfamiliar with what goes on in Assessment Centres, then grab a coffee and settle down with this pdf. It explains exactly what happens in assessment centres, what you are being assessed against and how.

Competencies in Assessment Centres. If you read the above pdf, you will have learned that most employers will assess you against a set of competencies. It really is absolutely vital that you are familiar with this concept. Read this pdf if you are not.

Top 10 Tips for Attending Assessment Centres. Once you are familiar with the basics and with the concept of competencies, check out these top 10 tips for doing well in Assessment Centres - you might be surprised about some of them!

Assessment centre activities and exercises. While there are many exercises employers use to assess your suitability for the job, the good news is that they almost always belong to one of 5 basic activity types, which makes it easier for you to prepare. The sample activities below explain the 5 basic types, and all are based on real exercises used in a variety of industries. They will give you a feel for what you are likely to face on the day.

Sample Role Play

Sample In Tray Exercise

Sample Presentation Task

Sample Group Exercise

Sample Competency Based Interview

Shine in group exercises. Finally, here is a resource to learn more about group exercises. These are tricky little f*****s because, on the one hand, you are competing against the other graduates to get the job, and on the other hand competing in the group activity itself would be a big mistake! So don't compete. Shine!