PSNI Recruitment - Stage 1 - The Initial Selection Test

potatopeeler

I sat the IST last week and I think personally it's nigh on impossible to read and answer every single question considering the time constraints its prudent to bring a stop watch , skip the hard questions do the easier ones attempt the tough ones at the end or if you don't have time make you best guess , with 45 secs left on the clock in each section I just blitzed the the unattempted questions with my best guess , so that way at least you have a chance of picking up some marks.No negative marking means no penalty for last second guess work .

Good luck

bigandy1983

potatopeeler wrote: »

I sat the IST last week and I think personally it's nigh on impossible to read and answer every single question considering the time constraints its prudent to bring a stop watch , skip the hard questions do the easier ones attempt the tough ones at the end or if you don't have time make you best guess , with 45 secs left on the clock in each section I just blitzed the the unattempted questions with my best guess , so that way at least you have a chance of picking up some marks.No negative marking means no penalty for last second guess work .

Good luck

On that note potatopeeler - I've heard a few people mention about this technique i.e. leaving the hard ones to the end. Is it obvious immediately you look at a question whether or not to leave it? How many questions did you find yourself leaving until the end?

I'm sitting the test for the first time quite soon. Its hard to picture this type of examination when I've never done anything like it before - guess others are in the same boat!! Thanks for your advice

irishmikee

Hey Guys, just found this page, been good reading through it and realising that i'm not the only one bricking it, I have my IST test in a couple of weeks in Dublin, I think i'm all good except for those True, not true, can't say round of questions, mental block for me, anyone have any good websites where I can practise?
PS. Good luck everyone doing it too or has done it and has the dreaded wait.

Slave_To_Sound

irishmikee wrote: »

I think i'm all good except for those True, not true, can't say round of questions, mental block for me, anyone have any good websites where I can practise?
PS. Good luck everyone doing it too or has done it and has the dreaded wait.

Hey Mikee THIS

site isnt bad for the verbal reasoning.

Im reallly not going to be good at this whoe waiting thing im already dying to find out my results and i only did it a week ago and this is the quick part lol

edzzy

Part A – Verbal Logical Reasoning

48 Answers to complete in 20 mins – Not possible use a strategy!!
48 / 20 = Approx two min max per statement NO MORE

Ask examiner: “Is there negative marking?” Use stopwatch – Bring it with you

Should be at question 24 after 10 mins half way

Write start time and end time down at start of session.


MAKE SURE ALL QUESTIONS ARE COMPLETE
DON’T LEAVE ANY BLANK



Guess last four questions at start of exam immediately!!
Go back and check only if you have time



True statement = if it is says it in text

False statement= if it isn’t in text

Can’t tell = if it isn’t in text

Ignore real life information. For example if the text in passage states that "Titanic sank in a pond in in Ahoghill in 2008" then IT DID

(Clearly we all really know that it sank on the River Bann after hitting a drunk swan......in 1985 after most of the passengers were at Buggles concert on board. The band played a great rendition of Video killed the radio star as it sank...)



Look for qualified text in statement to give you pointers


Absolute words - Must Have Will
Qualified words - Could Can Some



Scan read paragraph

Pick out key words form true/false /can’t tell statements form the paragraph use them to answer.

Aim for 32 marks min, aim to get best marks in which ever section you are good at, use the other to carry you through

Part B - numerical

30 Answers to complete in 25 mins – Not possible use a strategy!!
30 / 25 = Approx 1.2 min max per statement NO MORE

MAKE SURE ALL QUESTIONS ARE COMPLETE
DON’T LEAVE ANY BLANK

Guess last four questions at start of exam immediately!!
Go back and check only if you have time

O h yes and did i mention DON’T LEAVE ANY BLANK

One more thing practice under time pressure, useless if you dont,will get you used to handling the panic.

I have a degree and masters and went in before arrogantly assuming and thinking that the IST would be easy, its is if you had and hour to complete it , but you don't....but you can prepare and beat it.

Good luck all..............

welshNI

Cheers for PM m8, great advice, best ive seen so far, advise everyone who hasnt done the IST yet to take a look

Louisiana 1927

I got both parts completed within the time, i was happy with it.;) Certainly the verbal reasoning section was easy. I personally think it really wasn't that taxing.:rolleyes:

valetudo

Louisiana 1927 wrote: »

I got both parts completed within the time, i was happy with it.;) Certainly the verbal reasoning section was easy. I personally think it really wasn't that taxing.:rolleyes:

Was this your first time?

Jill77

I dreamt about getting my results last night and I've only been waiting 11 days!

edzzy

I posted advice for those who might find it useful but i agree there are plenty like Louisiana 1927 out there who will find IST easier than others.

I think by Louisiana 1927 comments that this is your first test.....?

I had your attitude and got a rude awakening:eek:.....anyway each to his/her own good luck to all.

Louisiana1927 for chief constable by Christmas then lol.....

Bifbert

edzzy wrote: »

I posted advice for those who might find it useful but i agree there are plenty like Louisiana 1927 out there who will find IST easier than others.

I think by Louisiana 1927 comments that this is your first test.....?

I had your attitude and got a rude awakening:eek:.....anyway each to his/her own good luck to all.

Louisiana1927 for chief constable by Christmas then lol.....

Anyone who found that easy must be chief constable material!!! I would consider myself to be quite bright, but i did struggle a bit on the IST. Maybe Im not as smart as i thought good luck to everyone. Just over two weeks till my results hopefully I have done enough.

Shield

Well done. You're in a very, very small percentage of people who can.

Louisiana 1927 wrote: »

I got both parts completed within the time, i was happy with it.;) Certainly the verbal reasoning section was easy. I personally think it really wasn't that taxing.:rolleyes:

gigity gigity

Hello all, ive just done my ist today. my thoughts are: first bit is ok this where i will have picked up my marks. second bit was terrible completly panicked and am certain that i wont even get a letter to say bad luck. I looked up lots on appitude tests on internet but nothing was able to help for the second test. Next year at least I will have had some first hand experience of it. advice from edzzy is 100% i done the ole guess work at the start meant that i didnt leave any space blank though still doesnt matter cause i done £$%£$&^%*(&_($%$*(&(&*^$ beeeeeeeeep

Papa Charlie

gigity gigity wrote: »

Hello all, ive just done my ist today. my thoughts are: first bit is ok this where i will have picked up my marks. second bit was terrible completly panicked and am certain that i wont even get a letter to say bad luck. I looked up lots on appitude tests on internet but nothing was able to help for the second test. Next year at least I will have had some first hand experience of it. advice from edzzy is 100% i done the ole guess work at the start meant that i didnt leave any space blank though still doesnt matter cause i done £$%£$&^%*(&_($%$*(&(&*^$ beeeeeeeeep

Im glad someone is in the same boat as me!!

MrsGeneHunt

edzzy wrote: »

I posted advice for those who might find it useful but i agree there are plenty like Louisiana 1927 out there who will find IST easier than others.

I think by Louisiana 1927 comments that this is your first test.....?

I had your attitude and got a rude awakening:eek:.....anyway each to his/her own good luck to all.

Louisiana1927 for chief constable by Christmas then lol.....

Edzzy!
Nice to see you back on the board mate!

Did you go to Strathclyde? Have you thrown your hat into the ring for C15?

There are a few who will think the IST easy, I didnt and this was my second go, all I'll say is that I personally was better prepared - I knew what to expect and had a game plan so to speak and I felt slightly more confident leaving the test than I did last year but whether I've got enough marks to pass remains to be seen. I certainly hope so! ( Though as time wears on I'm feeling less and less confident LOL )

Good luck one and all.

mhairt

Hi
I have a copy of "How to Pass The New Police Selection System" I will send on to the first person who pm's me their address. I have done the practice tests from it so no further use to me. My IST is in about two weeks so need all the good karma I can get.

manaka

hey everyone, i found a site that lists other sites for aptitude tests and various others. its http://www.uow.edu.au/careers/get/pdf/2007PracticeTestsAndCaseStudies.pdf dont ask which is best as i have not tried many of them! I was searching the deloitte one also but couldnt find anything. Good luck...:cool:

gigity gigity

Try out this as well. the verbal reasoning is good the maths isnt really as relevant, you have to do both before you get any result. http://www.shldirect.com/ .

Slave_To_Sound

mhairt wrote: »

Hi
I have a copy of "How to Pass The New Police Selection System" I will send on to the first person who pm's me their address. I have done the practice tests from it so no further use to me. My IST is in about two weeks so need all the good karma I can get.

I would hang onto that until you have done you AC I know that its more aimed at English Forces but there is still quite alot of helpful stuff in it.

Chelsea555

Slave_To_Sound wrote: »

I would hang onto that until you have done you AC I know that its more aimed at English Forces but there is still quite alot of helpful stuff in it.

Yeah i would definitely hang onto it i have it myself and there is alot of helpful hints in it as Slave to Sound rightly says keep it till you have done your AC mate;)

MarkDev

Hi...Was just wondering if anyone from the south is doing their IST exam up north?I was reading the forum a few pages back and found that there is people doing it in Dublin.I got my date for a place up north and was just wondering how come?

MrsGeneHunt

MarkDev wrote: »

Hi...Was just wondering if anyone from the south is doing their IST exam up north?I was reading the forum a few pages back and found that there is people doing it in Dublin.I got my date for a place up north and was just wondering how come?

I think its just a case of first come first served to be honest.

Double Oh Seven

My IST is just around the corner. I was wondering, do you do Section A, have a break, leave the room, then come back for Section B...or do they say 'ready steady go' and you work through the entire test in one swoop?

everhopefull

They sit you down and explain the whole process and tell you thats your last chance to go to the loo etc.
then they let you do a sample question for the 1st part and then go through the answers...then you do the 1st part.
they collect your answers and then its straight on to the 2nd part.
same again...practice question, answers and then the paper itself.:)

Double Oh Seven

Cheers mate, I've just finished the test.

I found Section A very easy and got it finished in good time.

Section B...total nightmare. :mad:

Section A had 48 questions and Section B had 30, which obviously adds up to 78 questions.

When people talk about the pass mark being approx 50, does that simply mean, 50 correct answers out of 78? Or is it not that straightforward...?

Bifbert

Double Oh Seven wrote: »

When people talk about the pass mark being approx 50, does that simply mean, 50 correct answers out of 78? Or is it not that straightforward...?

If thats the case I think thats quite a high pass mark but also quite reasonable. I should be getting results in about two weeks, the wait is killing me.

This is my first time so not really expecting to get in. However if I can get through this part and have a crack at the AC it will give me a bit of hands on experience. Good luck to everyone

edzzy

Just done my IST....mmmmmmmm

Thought it worse than last year.....but who knows, I have to be say that I found second part awful as usal.....not the questions but time management.

I guesed a high percentage....hope those comments about guessing and trained monkeys are correct......:(

Anyone elese do it today? how you all find it?

RoscoPColtrane

Hey folks... Sat the IST there at the beginning of last week. Honestly left with a bad feeling. I doubted everything in section A. Being new to it last year I read every passage and ran out of time. Finished it in time this year but didnt find it as easy at all. And dont even get me started on Section B. Guessed the last 10. Time time time. The only one on the front row with a stopwatch. Teachers pet. Brought an apple for deloitte. I thought it would be easier this year knowing what to expect. JOG ON!!!! Have been under a cloud of depression ever since...

MrsGeneHunt

RoscoPColtrane wrote: »

Hey folks... Sat the IST there at the beginning of last week. Honestly left with a bad feeling. I doubted everything in section A. Being new to it last year I read every passage and ran out of time. Finished it in time this year but didnt find it as easy at all. And dont even get me started on Section B. Guessed the last 10. Time time time. The only one on the front row with a stopwatch. Teachers pet. Brought an apple for deloitte. I thought it would be easier this year knowing what to expect. JOG ON!!!! Have been under a cloud of depression ever since...

I was a nerd and brought a stopwatch too, would have been lost without it. The two clocks on either side at the front of the room were showing different times so I'm glad I did. I also asked to sit at the front, less distractions that way...!!! The woman from Deloitte looked at me like I had two heads when I asked her if I could sit at the front.
I thought this year would be slightly easier in the sense that I knew what to expect so maybe I was a bit calmer but I still found the test difficult, not so much the first part but definitely the second part. Hats off to those who think its easy. Wish I was you!

MrsGeneHunt

Double Oh Seven wrote: »

When people talk about the pass mark being approx 50, does that simply mean, 50 correct answers out of 78? Or is it not that straightforward...?

I dont think anyone knows what the pass mark will be this year. It was 52 last year and then lowered as not enough got through to AC.

This is just my opinion but I think it will be 52 or possibly even higher this year as there are an awful lot of candidates. (9800+) As a wise man once told me, its a De-selection test, they want to wipe as many out at this stage as possible.

RoscoPColtrane

MrsGeneHunt wrote: »

I was a nerd and brought a stopwatch too, would have been lost without it. The two clocks on either side at the front of the room were showing different times so I'm glad I did. I also asked to sit at the front, less distractions that way...!!! The woman from Deloitte looked at me like I had two heads when I asked her if I could sit at the front.
I thought this year would be slightly easier in the sense that I knew what to expect so maybe I was a bit calmer but I still found the test difficult, not so much the first part but definitely the second part. Hats off to those who think its easy. Wish I was you!

Nerds of the world unite. At least we're not Christopher Biggins. No offence Chris if youre watching. Easy? Easy? Id like to meet that ONE person. Bet they failed....Its not easy but sorts out the wheat from the chaff for sure. Put it like this... Stalking of royal mail employees has ceased. Im not hopeful. Wonder are there many more Ist's or when do they end..

RoscoPColtrane

MrsGeneHunt wrote: »

I dont think anyone knows what the pass mark will be this year. It was 52 last year and then lowered as not enough got through to AC.

This is just my opinion but I think it will be 52 or possibly even higher this year as there are an awful lot of candidates. (9800+) As a wise man once told me, its a De-selection test, they want to wipe as many out at this stage as possible.

But does anyone know if its 52% or 52 out of 78. If the latter is the case then Im amazed... neigh shocked that I got through last year....

MrsGeneHunt

RoscoPColtrane wrote: »

Nerds of the world unite. At least we're not Christopher Biggins. No offence Chris if youre watching. Easy? Easy? Id like to meet that ONE person. Bet they failed....Its not easy but sorts out the wheat from the chaff for sure. Put it like this... Stalking of royal mail employees has ceased. Im not hopeful. Wonder are there many more Ist's or when do they end..

Think the ISTs run until the end of May? There's a timeline for the campaign on the JoinPSNI website.
I came out of the test feeling better than I did last year but as time wears on I'm feeling less and less hopeful and trying not to think about it doesnt bloody work when you're surrounded by police all fecking day!!!:eek:

RoscoPColtrane

MrsGeneHunt wrote: »

Think the ISTs run until the end of May? There's a timeline for the campaign on the JoinPSNI website.
I came out of the test feeling better than I did last year but as time wears on I'm feeling less and less hopeful and trying not to think about it doesnt bloody work when you're surrounded by police all fecking day!!!:eek:

Pure HEAVEN...;)

MrsGeneHunt

RoscoPColtrane wrote: »

Pure HEAVEN...;)

Nah, thats going to GV for lunch and ogling fine trainee officers ar$es.
One in particular, me likey a lot!:o
Anyway I digress, back on topic, I'm expecting results sometime after 21st May. Bleugh. Makes me feel queasy...:p

DC Dibble

IST done today, first part ok, second part aaarrrrggggghhhhhhhhhh. Not too hopeful now though hopefully the first part will save my ass

RoscoPColtrane

DC Dibble wrote: »

IST done today, first part ok, second part aaarrrrggggghhhhhhhhhh. Not too hopeful now though hopefully the first part will save my ass

You never know Dibble..You just never know.. It was all hard. Very difficult. It depends what youre up against I suppose but you have a good a chance as any. Good luck. And all the very best. Hope you get good news. Its a great experience anyway.

Double Oh Seven

RoscoPColtrane wrote: »

does anyone know if its 52% or 52 out of 78....?

That's what I'm wondering too.

Slave_To_Sound

I would say its 52 out of 78 which is 67% . 52% would be too easy and wouldn't knock out enough people me thinks. Anyway 2 weeks to go until i get my results can't wait!

integra1

Slave_To_Sound wrote: »

I would say its 52 out of 78 which is 67% . 52% would be too easy and wouldn't knock out enough people me thinks. Anyway 2 weeks to go until i get my results can't wait!

No way is it 52%, most def 52 out of 78 guys....:eek::D

GazeeboBrown

So it's 2 weeks after the IST that we get our results? Roll on 100%

MrsGeneHunt

GazeeboBrown wrote: »

So it's 2 weeks after the IST that we get our results? Roll on 100%

Nah its a month for the results, some of us have already waited 2 weeks as we did test pretty early on.

DC Dibble

RoscoPColtrane wrote: »

You never know Dibble..You just never know.. It was all hard. Very difficult. It depends what youre up against I suppose but you have a good a chance as any. Good luck. And all the very best. Hope you get good news. Its a great experience anyway.

Thanks for that, still think I done SH1T in the data analysis part, though I could be lucky enough with my guess work. I suppose its like you say "you just never know". I'll soon find out in the fullness of time

PapaYankeeGirl

A month is nothing. LOL. Try waiting over 3 months to hear if you have passed the Initial Part of Greater Manchester's police recruitment!!! Just got results today. Not going to persue a career with them anymore.:) PSNI baby!!!!!

bc84

PapaYankeeGirl wrote: »

A month is nothing. LOL. Try waiting over 3 months to hear if you have passed the Initial Part of Greater Manchester's police recruitment!!! Just got results today. Not going to persue a career with them anymore.:) PSNI baby!!!!!

jesus your intent on being a peeler pyg. handcuffs appealing to you?:p

PapaYankeeGirl

bc84 wrote: »

jesus your intent on being a peeler pyg. handcuffs appealing to you?:p

Yes I am indeed. Yes they are indeed!!;):D

bc84

PapaYankeeGirl wrote: »

Yes I am indeed. Yes they are indeed!!;):D

egggggsellllenttttt ~in mr burns from the simpsons styleeee~

PapaYankeeGirl

bc84 wrote: »

egggggsellllenttttt ~in mr burns from the simpsons styleeee~

I do, of course, own a pair of black fluffy handcuffs at home, but thats another story.;)

bc84

is it me or is it hot in here?

im blushing :eek:

Bifbert

PapaYankeeGirl wrote: »

I do, of course, own a pair of black fluffy handcuffs at home, but thats another story.;)

Well we have plenty of time to wait for results to hear your story ! Just kidding. I'm also intent on becoming a police officer, but I'm a bit of a home bird so want to stay here. Results two weeks away for me, will let you all know how i get on. Good luck to anyone doing their test soon, just stay focused.