With a presence in over 70 countries, BNP Paribas is a French banking group offering retail banking, corporate institutional banking, and investment and protection services to international clients.
BNP Paribas uses a variety of tests in their recruitment process, tailored to assess skills relevant to each role. These often include numerical, verbal reasoning, and situational judgement tests that evaluate candidates’ capabilities in a structured manner.
From application to final assessment. The process varies slightly by programme and office.
Practising the right publisher's style matters more than practising more.
A question in the style BNP Paribas sets. Pick an answer and the keyed option is shown.
One question tells you the style. A pack gives you the hour: blended, marked, with the working shown.
Candidates can join BNP Paribas through various different routes, depending on where they are in their academic career.
The BNP Paribas summer internship is a 9-week programme open to penultimate-year students. This programme gives students a flavour of what it’s like to work with the bank.
For students who are on a placement year or who have graduated within the past year, BNP Paribas offers a 6–11-month internship programme aligned to one of its main business areas.
Candidates who have been in higher education within the last two years can apply to join BNP Paribas as a Graduate Analyst.
Opportunities are available in these main business areas:
The academic requirement for these roles is a 2:1 degree (attained or predicted). Or a good academic record if applying to the summer internship programme.
The first stage of the process requires candidates to submit their CV and complete an online application form, stating their chosen role or area.
Candidates will then be asked to sit the online ability tests. These tests include numerical reasoning, verbal reasoning, logical reasoning, and situational judgment tests. The type of tests will depend upon the business area applied to.
BNP Paribas delivers these tests through Aon. You can see this in the bank’s own recruitment FAQs, which send candidates to the Aon support team with any queries about the online tests, so practising in the Aon style is time well spent.
If successful at the tests, candidates are then invited to attend a morning virtual assessment centre that contains a mix of individual and group exercises.
Progression to the final stage of the application process, the business interview, is dependent upon the successful completion of the virtual assessment centre. The business interview is held in the afternoon.
It is worth noting that you can only apply to up to five internship roles per year and one graduate role per year.
Like many application forms, this asks candidates to detail their academic history and work experience, and to state their preferred role.
The application form also requires you complete answers to competency-based questions. The questions asked may differ depending on the role applied for, and are assessed against the core values and competencies that BNP Paribas looks for in applicants (ambition, responsiveness, creativity and commitment).
When answering these questions, it is important to think about what you can bring to the role based on the skills that you have.
Candidates are also invited to upload their CV as part of the initial online application process.
The logical reasoning test assesses a candidate’s ability to make logical conclusions from images such as graphs or shapes. Candidates are presented with a series of images and asked to identify patterns between them.
Once the pattern, link or rule has been identified, this information is then used to determine which of the multiple-choice answers is correct. For example, which shape comes next in the sequence.
As with most online tests, the BNP Paribas logical reasoning test is a timed test. To be successful, it’s important to practice so that you are familiar with the format and style of the questions.
The situational judgment test evaluates your characteristics and how you would react in work-based situations, based on what you might encounter when in the role at BNP Paribas.
Once you have read the scenario, you then pick the multiple-choice answer that best fits how you would deal with the situation. Again, the test is timed.
To do well on the situational judgment test, ensure that you are aware of the qualities that BNP Paribas looks for in its applicants.
The numerical reasoning test assesses a candidate’s ability to analyse and interpret numerical information and draw conclusions from this.
Data is presented in the form of graphs, charts and tables. You need to use basic arithmetic such as percentages or ratios to work out which of the multiple-choice answers, presented as statements, is the correct answer.
Often the issue with the numerical test is not the complexity of the questions but the time pressure. Because of this, the best approach is to work quickly but accurately, having practised such tests regularly beforehand.
The verbal reasoning test assesses a candidate’s ability to read, analyse and understand complex written information.
Candidates are presented with a series of paragraphs. Once you’ve read the information, you are then asked to answer questions based on this text.
The multiple-choice answers are given as statements. You decide whether these statements are true, false or you cannot tell, based upon the passage of information you have read.
As with all BNP Paribas ability tests, the verbal reasoning test is timed. You need to ensure you have read all of the information and understood this, before answering the questions.
If a candidate is successful at the online ability tests, they will be invited to attend the virtual assessment centre. The aim of the assessment day is to assess candidates against the skills that BNP Paribas looks for in applicants.
The assessment centre is a mix of some maths-based ability tests, a group exercise, and a presentation exercise.
The group exercise assesses how well a candidate works as part of a team. You will be presented with information and then asked to discuss this (as a group) to reach a conclusion.
It is important that you read and understand the information given as part of the exercise. Be willing to share and contribute your views and ideas to the discussion.
The presentation exercise requires candidates to prepare a short presentation on a brief, and then to answer questions afterward.
Strong communication skills and respect for others are important skills to demonstrate at the assessment centre.
Candidates that are successful at the virtual assessment centre will be invited to stay on for the afternoon session: the business interview.
This is the final stage of the process and is a mix of competency-based and strengths-based interviews. The interview is with a member of the Early Careers team, as well as a representative from the business.
What candidates ask us most often
The difficulty of BNP Paribas tests can vary based on the role and one’s personal strengths. However, they are designed to be challenging to identify candidates who are well-suited for the demanding environment of the banking industry.
The best way to prepare for BNP Paribas tests is through practice. Familiarizing yourself with the test types and formats on Practice Aptitude Tests can greatly enhance your readiness and confidence on the actual test day.
The recruitment process length at BNP Paribas varies for different positions but generally involves several stages over a few weeks. It may extend depending on the role’s requirements and the number of applicants.
BNP Paribas champions core values including innovation, flexibility, and responsible banking. They seek to integrate these principles in their services and within the collaborative work culture they foster.
Rated 4.6 out of 5 across 7 reviews. A selection:
Your practice tests really helped me to understand what I should expect in my psychometric test and how to cope with the pressure of being timed. All answer explanations were very simple to understand. You helped me a lot in ensuring that I passed the test and get the job I want.
Quite clear questions. Benefits from having quick math skills, as some of the questions only require sanity-check answers.
Helpful to have an insight of how the test might be
BNP Paribas is a trademark of its respective owner. Practice Aptitude Tests is not affiliated with BNP Paribas and our practice tests are not endorsed by them. Visit BNP Paribas careers.
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