Figuring out the concept behind the EPSO exams can be extremely frustrating. Our EU Training personal coach, András Kőrízs, has shared his thoughts and tips on how you too can approach the EPSO exams from a different angle to help improve your chance of success:
Dear Fellow EPSO Candidates,
I wish to share a few thoughts regarding the recent comments about the EPSO AD5 pre-selection exam results. Some of you asked me how I managed to get 20 out of 20 points on the abstract reasoning test.
As you may know, I am a coach at EU Training. After having done dozens of personal coaching sessions, I see that many candidates are still approaching the test incorrectly. It is not about assessing knowledge of your mother tongue, or linguistic skills. It’s about logical reasoning, with a clear concept and methodology. But before I became a trainer, I made the same mistake. I sat my first EPSO exam and received my first results. Though my scores were okay, I had room for improvement, especially in verbal reasoning.
My first thought was: "How could I improve?” I sought advice from many of my friends, and many of them complained that the translations were horrible. I understood this problem, but felt there was more to it than that. That’s when I came across EU Training’s materials, and realised the following:
Instead of just robotically solving hundreds of problems, I had to understand the actual concept behind the EPSO tests.
After I finally understood this, my scores already increased 3-4 points on the 20-point scale. However, I still only scored 16 points. My immediate thought was that I need to look at my results and the details. Why is this important, especially given that EPSO doesn’t disclose the questions and releases very little information along with the results? Because as I looked over my results, I spotted that my 4 incorrect answers were ones I spent no more than 30 to 40 seconds on. This helped me realise that I was still over-confident and that I was not assessing the statements thoroughly enough. I began to focus on my weaknesses.
I found EU Training’s materials, especially those discussing methodology, very useful. When I applied myself to learning the methodology behind the abstract reasoning test, that’s when my test scores really improved. Using this method resulted in me getting 18 out of 20 questions correct. That left 2 questions where I was still hesitating between 2 options. This was not luck. This was because I mastered the methodology, which helped me succeed.
Using any EPSO test preparation material will help you improve your skills and results. Before taking the exams, it is wholly worth taking the time to understand the nature of these tests.
Best of luck on your exams,
András Kőrízs
Prepare for the E-tray with the following resources:
E-tray exercises which simulate the actual EPSO E-tray exams
Book your place at one of our LIVE EPSO E-Tray Methodology Webinars here
- 4 October from 17:00-18:00 (Brussels time)
- 10 October from 17:00-18:00 (Brussels time)
Personal Coaching with one of EU Training's resident experts
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