Illustrative example
Interact with the task
Follow the instructions on screen.
Respond through tasks
Arctic Shores observes behaviour as you interact with tasks, rather than asking you to rate yourself.
View guidanceArctic Shores Assessment
The task-based format, the three things it measures, how a practice task before the real one works, which reasoning formats employers pair it with, and how the result is read against the role rather than marked.
- 10 practice tests in the Arctic Shores pack
- 100 questions, all solved
Prepare for employers like
What is an Arctic Shores assessment?
An Arctic Shores assessment is a task based psychometric assessment from the UK publisher Arctic Shores. Instead of question banks, you complete short interactive tasks while the assessment measures how you behave, capturing thousands of data points to profile personality, workplace intelligence and learning agility. There are no right or wrong answers in most tasks and no traditional multiple choice format, and you get a practice task before the real thing.
Which Arctic Shores test you sit depends on the employer and the role: an entry-level position will not be given the same assessment as a graduate or managerial one.
How an Arctic Shores test works
Four things to know before you sit one. Timings and difficulty vary with the level of the role.
- FormatTasks, not questions
- Short interactive tasks rather than a question bank. The assessment records how you approach each one, so there is no multiple-choice answer to pick and nothing to revise in the usual sense.
- PaceA practice task first
- You get a practice task before the real one, and the tasks themselves are short. There is no per-question clock to beat, so working naturally matters more than working fast.
- DifficultyNo right answers in most tasks
- Most tasks have no correct response. They measure behaviour, so the assessment cannot be passed by knowing more, only misread by trying to game it.
- ScoringProfiled against the role
- The data points become a profile of personality, workplace intelligence and learning agility, compared with what the employer set for the role. The employer decides what a good fit looks like.
Arctic Shores: assessment names, formats and timings
Match the name in your invitation to the assessment below. Timings marked “approx.” are completion estimates; other published durations are limits for the named version.
| Assessment | What it measures | Questions | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Task-based assessment | Behaviour and cognitive ability observed through interactive tasks | Up to 9 tasks | See invitation |
Counts and timings vary by role level and by the version an employer licences. Check the instructions on the screen before you start. Facts checked 11 September 2026.
Arctic Shores uses tasks rather than a conventional question paper. The task selection is employer-specific; your invitation gives the completion guidance.
Official sources for assessment names and timings
What Arctic Shores assessment formats look like
A visual guide to the skills and response formats covered on this page. Your invitation tells you which assessments to prepare for.
Illustrations by Practice Aptitude Tests · not official test screenshots
Illustrative example
Read instructions↓Try the example↓Start your assessment
Read, practise, then begin
Use the practice task to understand the controls before starting the employer’s assessment.
View guidanceEmployers who set Arctic Shores tests
If you know which company invited you, start there: the employer guide tells you which Arctic Shores assessment sits at which stage of that firm's process.
- PwCCareer Unlocked, the first assessment for most early careers roles
- CapitaGame-based assessment at the apprenticeship application stage
Not listed? Browse all employer guides.
Understanding practice scores
These results come from our own practice test in a format covered on this page. They are not official Arctic Shores results, a benchmark for our entire Arctic Shores practice pack, or an employer pass mark.
How our test takers score
Results from our numerical reasoning test.
Average score63%
75th-percentile score90%
0%50%100%
Average75th percentile
Source: Practice Aptitude Tests
Based on 784 completed practice sittings, all time. Checked 12 September 2026.
The 75th percentile marks the boundary of the top quarter of recorded scores; tied scores can share that boundary. These are our practice results, not employer pass marks.
How we calculate these figures
We use all-time completed, scored attempts at this practice test. Repeat attempts count separately, so the sample is sittings rather than unique people.
The average is the mean score across those sittings. The 75th percentile comes from their recorded score distribution. The “checked” date is when we retrieved the figures, not the period when the tests were taken.
Sharing these figures? Please credit Practice Aptitude Tests and link to this page.
Practise the real thing
One question tells you the style. A pack gives you the pace: timed and marked, with the working shown.
Unlock 10 Arctic Shores practice tests
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- 10
- practice tests
- 100
- questions, all solved
What the format looks like
Once an employer has reviewed your application you receive an email with a link to the assessment. You can complete a short practice task first, so you know what to expect. Because the assessment measures how you behave rather than what you know, there is nothing to revise in the usual sense, but getting comfortable with the task-based format helps you feel settled on the day.
Arctic Shores frames the assessment around three areas: personality, workplace intelligence (its alternative to a traditional cognitive test) and learning agility. Behaviour-based measurement is why it is used so heavily in early-careers and high-volume hiring, where candidates have little work experience to be judged on.
The reasoning it draws on
Depending on the role, employers pair an Arctic Shores assessment with, or look for, conventional reasoning skills: numerical, verbal, spatial and abstract reasoning, error checking, and situational judgement. Some tasks are recognisably built on those skills, presented as short exercises rather than question sets, so practising the formats above is the closest thing to revising for it.
Employers using it include Siemens, Thales, Capita and the AA, alongside the employer processes listed above. If yours is not listed, the employer guides say which assessment sits at which stage.
Frequently asked questions
What candidates ask us most often
How long does an Arctic Shores assessment take, and is it timed?
Arctic Shores provides a practice task followed by up to nine tasks. Follow the completion guidance in your invitation and the instructions for each task. Its public candidate guide does not give one universal duration for every employer’s assessment.
How do you prepare for an Arctic Shores assessment when there is nothing to revise?
Get comfortable with the task-based format so it feels familiar on the day, use the practice task you are offered, and keep the underlying reasoning sharp with timed numerical, verbal and logical reasoning practice, which is what employers often pair it with. Then sit it rested, and answer as yourself rather than as the candidate you think they want.
Can you retake an Arctic Shores assessment?
Retake policies belong to the employer, not to Arctic Shores, so ask the recruiter. In most processes you get one sitting per application, which is why the practice task beforehand matters.
Will you get feedback on your Arctic Shores assessment?
Some employers share a summary of your profile and some do not. If the invitation does not say, ask the recruiter before you sit it; the profile exists either way, so it is a question of whether the employer chooses to release it.
Arctic Shores is a trademark of its respective owner. Practice Aptitude Tests is not affiliated with Arctic Shores and our practice tests are not endorsed by them.
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