I don't know whether any of you have come across this but more and more recruitment agencies are emailing tests for you to take before inviting you for interview. I have taken tests for Excel which i didn't mind as i hadn't any qualification for it, but if you think that exams don't represent the real world then these are absolutely useless. You get asked a question and then you are to click on the relevant part of the spreadsheet or ribbon, you only get one click per answer. I was recently sent tests for:- Bookkeeping, Sage, Excel, all at different levels even after stating that my knowledge and experience is limited. I politely declined these tests and then got to thinking "why am i spending all my time studying and passing exams only to be tested this way before i can get a foot in the door" Maybe i'm just being daft again.
Sounds like they are just trying to use some crude first stage screening process.
Probably more a consequence of the number of applicants they get for advertised posts or have on their books, than an actual attempt to assess skill levels.
May be a bit harsh, but I have always had more success in gaining employment when writing to firms direct to see if they have any vacancies rather than go through agencies. The area I work in, Accounts services for Solicitor practices, tends to have it owns accounts pacakages anyway so it is the knowledge of how an accounts sytem works with control accounts, double entry etc that is more important than your familiarity with SAGE.
Of course it is that knowledge that you will be gaining through your study and examinations.
I also try and cut out the middle man when i can but recruiters are even posting on the Directgov website. If i hold my hands up, there is no way in this world i would get a good score on any of these tests apart from the Excel one. I had a sneaky look at the Sage one and it was multiple choice questions without the programme in front of you. I suspect even data inputters who use Sage all day long would struggle and at least i understand what it is that i am actually doing when i enter data.
Because of that fundamental knowledge you can work on more than one system as your knowledge is accounts based rather than specific system based.
On the current system I use I have set it up from opening balances and done every aspect from purchase ledger through to compiling the final year end accounts. So the daily tasks and control account reconciliations are routine.
However would I want to answer multiple choice questions on it without the system in front of me. No because its not just inputting the data onto the system it is also checking the system, when you post the transaction, to see that everything is as it should be.
Cheers Hal for the replies, makes me think i'm right in the way i see these tests. Maybe the recruiters should be made by law to complete these tests and have their results posted on the wall of their tiny cubicle offices. Actually, this reminds me of when i studied computerised accounts last year, when everyone found out we were to use Sage they were well chuffed because it's what they use at work, i was hoping for a different programme as i had access to Sage, but the others didn't get that when i told them.
-- Edited by Spamkebab on Tuesday 15th of November 2011 01:21:30 PM
I'm what you would call a proficient user of Excel and I'm not sure I'd pass these tests - I have also been using Sage in various forms for nearly 20 years (I'm not that old, I started young!) but again am not sure I'd pass that type of test. I'm completely with both of you in that I don't think these tests reflect a real world user. I know plenty of people who know which buttons to press in Sage but have absolutely no idea what is going on in the background when they press those buttons. I also think that brainless tests where a single click determines a pass or fail on a question are never going to be a good guide to someone's real ability. I wonder how many of these recruiters could actually pass their own tests? After all shouldn't they be able to provide feedback to potential candidates on where they went wrong if they fail?
Thank you Clare Unfortunately these type of tests are putting me off applying for jobs i consider myself suited to, if taken i will no doubt achieve a low score if any score at all and block my path to getting a foot in the door. I must add that i am looking to gain a position as either an accounts assistant or purchase ledger clerk or somewhere within these areas and the jobs i am looking at or have applied for are paying around 14k to 15k per annum. Am i expecting too much? (I don't mean to turn this into an employment thread, it is about qualifications and being tested again once qualified)
We have recently taken on an accounts assistant. I am studying AAT L3 and when the vacancy came up I recommended a girl from my course. She had no accounts/ office experience (previously worked in a shop) but having been on the course (L2) last year with her I thought she was bright enough for the role. We offered her £14k due to her having no experience, so I do think you are asking to much. So far she is getting on great. We are in South Yorkshire by the way.
Hiya Jenna, You do think i am asking too much? maybe i come across as a bit daft on here then lol. Anyway what do people think i should be aiming for? I found my deleted email with the tests that i had recieved and the tests themselves were still active so i spent yesterday afternoon playing with them. The Sage test was based on V9 and i was given 50 questions relating to where you would find such a thing or what would you click on to find this. Having spent nearly 2 years playing around with V12 i am confident that i wuld find my way around v9 but the test was ridiculous. The Excel test was 2003 and i'll hold my hands up, yep, i've never used it although i am capable of producing Lookups, If statements, Pivot Tables and have a little knowledge of Macros using 2007/2010 so again i think i could find my way around 2003 given time. I have actually emailed the recruiter to let them know i have completed the tests although i did withdraw my application for the position i had applied for. I also stated that i wasn't confident in my results, but didn't mind taking the tests even though i don't consider them relevant to the "real world"
Thanks
Neil
BTW i take my final exam for AAT level 3 at the end of this month, so hopefully i will have Manual Bookkeeping level 1, Computerised Accounts level 1 and 2 and also a level 3 AAT qual.
-- Edited by Spamkebab on Thursday 17th of November 2011 06:56:11 AM
Neil, I also think that age and experience play a part. I know I'll once again be accused of being ageist but those who have a few years experience tend to be older by default! In my previous life I employed people on a regular basis and for an Accounts Assistant (unqualified) role I'd have been paying £16k as a minimum but that would have been to ensure that we employed the right person.
