CCAT-style practice test: 50 questions in 15 minutes

What your practice result means

Your result counts how many of these 50 practice questions you answered correctly, with a breakdown for verbal, math and logic, and spatial questions, and the time you used. It shows which types you handle quickly and which slow you down. It is not a CCAT score or a percentile: the CCAT uses its own questions and compares results with people who have taken it, which no practice site can do.

Do not worry if you did not reach the end. Criteria says fewer than 1% of candidates answer all 50 questions. Use the review list to see where your time went, then try again: the answer options shuffle on each attempt.

What is the CCAT?

What is the CCAT? The Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test is an aptitude test published by Criteria Corp and used by employers in hiring. Criteria says it "measures your ability to problem solve, use new information, and think critically", and describes it as recommended for "any mid- to high-level jobs that require problem solving and attention to detail".

The CCAT test is available in English (US) and English (UK), and Criteria points to the UCAT as a language-independent version. People often call it the CCAT exam, but it is a short online aptitude test rather than an exam you study content for.

CCAT format and timing

According to Criteria's candidate preparation page, the CCAT has 50 questions with a 15-minute limit, and calculators are not allowed. The questions fall into three categories: verbal, math and logic, and spatial reasoning. Criteria's assessment page notes that very few people finish all 50 items in the time limit, and its preparation page puts the figure at fewer than 1% of candidates.

That is about 18 seconds a question on average, so the CCAT is as much a test of pace as of reasoning. The practice test above follows the same shape: 50 questions, 15 minutes and the same three categories, mixed together.

CCAT sample question types

These original examples show the kinds of question in a CCAT practice session, with how to approach each:

• Verbal: word meaning and analogies. "Doctor is to patient as teacher is to: school, student, lesson, book." Answer: student. Name the relationship first (who helps whom), then match it.
• Verbal: sentence completion. Pick the word that makes the sentence make sense, reading the whole sentence before choosing.
• Math and logic: quick arithmetic. "If 3 notebooks cost $7.50, how much do 8 cost?" Answer: $20. Find the unit price first.
• Math and logic: number series. "3, 7, 15, 31, ...?" Answer: 63. Try differences first, then multiplying.
• Math and logic: ordering. "Eve beats Cal, Cal beats Ana..." Write the order down as you read.
• Spatial reasoning. Sequences of shapes, odd-one-out shapes, counting shapes and mirror images. Look for one change at a time: rotation, number of sides or position.

None of these come from the CCAT itself; every question on this page was written for it.

How CCAT scores work

Criteria says employers receive "your raw score (the number of questions you get right) and your percentile (how you did compared to everyone else)". Its preparation page gives the average as 24 correct answers out of 50. Because so few people finish, a raw score in the 20s or 30s is common.

So a CCAT score has two parts: the raw number correct, and a percentile that compares you with others. Your result on this page is only a count of these 50 practice questions; it cannot be converted into a CCAT raw score or percentile, because the questions and comparison group are different. Employers decide how to use CCAT results for each role, often with a target range rather than a single pass mark.

How to prepare for the CCAT

Criteria's own advice is to read instructions carefully, play to your strengths and manage your time, including not spending more than a minute on any question. In practice:

1. Take a timed run. Use the practice test above in exam mode and notice how many questions you reach in 15 minutes.
2. Skip and return. Flag hard questions and come back if time allows; a quick best guess beats leaving the last items blank.
3. Practise without a calculator. Percentages, unit prices, ratios and simple equations come up often.
4. Learn the spatial patterns. Rotations, counting shapes and mirror images become quick once you have seen them a few times.
5. Prepare the setup. Use a quiet room and a reliable connection, and ask the employer about adjustments before you start.

More free CCAT practice tests and other formats are on our pre-employment test practice page.

For employers: a CCAT alternative

If you are an employer comparing aptitude tests, HireValid offers short cognitive ability tests, including a general cognitive ability test, alongside job-skill tests in role bundles, on published monthly plans. Our HireValid vs Criteria page compares the two with sourced, dated facts.