Cognitive ability tests are widely used both by companies and educational institutions in an attempt to make sure that only those who meet a certain standard will be inducted into their organization. Such tests, like the Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Test, give them the assurance that not only is the student or applicant competent enough to meet their expectations but also that they can succeed and grow in the long run. 

This is more predominant in large organizations like the NFL, which uses the Wonderlic test, in order to see how well the aspiring athlete can perform on the field under pressure. In fact, even nursing schools and some branches of the military utilize a curated, or even just the base version, of the Wonderlic assessments as part of the screening process. That being said, let’s take a good look at how the Wonderlic assessments measure general intelligence.

It measures one’s numerical ability in general, not as a whole

As with every IQ test out there, math questions are always included in some form or manner. However, many assessments make the mistake of including calculations that only a small portion of the population is bound to know or remember like basic, or even complex, algebra.

The Wonderlic test, however, only includes math subjects that are likely to be encountered by a person on a daily basis like basic arithmetic, percentages, ratio, and some fractions.

While there may be some difficulty, the questions included in the test are all curated so that they can be calculated with some relative ease.

It focuses on one’s basic verbal ability skills

Instead of making the test-taker read a paragraph or page-long passage to measure their grammar and reading comprehension skills, the Wonderlic Cognitive Ability does this instead by making them instead go through multiple short questions covering each language and grammar-related subject.

This means that one can encounter questions where they have to answer ‘fill-in-the-blanks’, ‘find the synonym/antonym’, ‘which word has the correct spelling’, and ‘proper sentence order’ questions.

When you tackle this portion of the test, there is also a good chance that the questions will always have context clues to help you look for the correct answer if you are not familiar with a particular word.

It accounts for skills that aren’t tied to a particular subject

Considering that someone with good numerical and verbal skills can take the Wonderlic test at their own leisure, it would be unfair for those who are not that quite good on those subjects to be left out just because they have limited knowledge of it.

This is why most versions of the Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Test include an inductive reasoning/logical reasoning portion in its question bank.

The reason behind this is because the exam also wants to determine if the test-taker can solve problems that are more focused on pattern-recognition, logical reasoning, and deductive/inductive reasoning.

Lastly, every Wonderlic Assessment is designed to intrinsically test one’s decision-making skills

No matter which version of the Wonderlic you encounter, there is a recurring theme that you will have to face in each and every one of them: you must answer a big number of questions within a very short time limit.

This is why Wonderlic practice tests are very useful for those who want to pass it because even just the base version of the exam is formidable: you have to answer a 50-question set within 12 minutes.

It should be noted that the Wonderlic test is designed to have numerous ‘time traps’, where the questions are absurdly complex and would take at least a minute or more to solve.

As a result, the test-taker must figure out if it is worth answering the question or skip it for something easier, thus allowing the company or organization to have a good grasp on their decision-making skills.

In summary

The Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Test is used by many organizations in various industries due to how many skills it measures, making it a go-to IQ or psychometric test used in the hiring or admissions process.

What it cannot measure, however, is the ability of a person to learn or grow, meaning the score that they received when the first took it is not indicative of their potential as an employee, athlete, or student.

With enough practice and determination, everyone can overcome any version of the Wonderlic test.