Criteria Assessments: Company, Tests, Platform & Candidate Guide
Criteria is a talent-assessment and decision-support company. Its current platform combines pre-employment assessments, interviewing tools and employee-development products.
Job candidates usually encounter Criteria after an employer or recruiter sends an assessment invitation. The invitation may name one test, several assessments or only the Criteria assessment environment.
A Criteria invitation does not automatically mean that you are taking the CCAT.
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Use our CCAT practice comparison and online tests first, or begin with the free 30-question CCAT practice test. A further independent option is the JobTestPrep CCAT PrepPack.
Criteria Quick Facts
| Topic | Current guidance |
|---|---|
| Main purpose | Help organizations assess, interview and develop people |
| Candidate use | Complete assessments selected by an employer or recruiter |
| Assessment families | Cognitive aptitude, personality, emotional intelligence, risk, skills and role-specific tests |
| Platform results | Employers can view results and reports after completion |
| Candidate results | Not automatically disclosed in every hiring process |
| Candidate support | Technical and event-access assistance, not hiring decisions |
| Default language | Most products use US English by default, with product-specific alternatives |
| Device use | Many assessments support multiple devices, but event warnings control |
| Official score owner | The administering employer or organization controls access and interpretation |
Criteria states that its products have been used by thousands of organizations and across many countries. These company-level figures can change, so candidates should focus on the assessment named in their own invitation rather than platform marketing totals.
What Criteria Assessments Measure
Criteria offers several assessment families.
Cognitive Aptitude
These tests assess abilities such as:
- problem solving;
- critical thinking;
- learning ability;
- attention to detail;
- numerical reasoning;
- verbal reasoning;
- spatial or abstract reasoning;
- concentration or mechanical reasoning, depending on the product.
Examples include the CCAT, UCAT, Cognify, UCognify, GAME, CTRS, CAST and mechanical-aptitude tests.
Personality
Personality assessments examine work-style tendencies, preferences and traits. They do not use the same right-or-wrong scoring model as the CCAT.
Examples include the Employee Personality Profile and other general or role-specific personality inventories.
Skills
Skills tests can examine current job-related capabilities such as:
- basic maths and language;
- Microsoft Office proficiency;
- typing and computer skills;
- English-language proficiency;
- job readiness.
The Criteria Basic Skills Test is a skills-oriented assessment and should not be confused with the CCAT.
Emotional Intelligence and Risk
Criteria also offers products related to emotional understanding, integrity, rule adherence and workplace-safety behavior.
An employer may combine several assessment types to obtain a broader picture of a candidate.
Major Criteria Cognitive Assessments
| Assessment | Standard format | Main distinction |
|---|---|---|
| CCAT | 50 questions in 15 minutes | Verbal Ability, Math and Logic, Spatial Reasoning |
| UCAT | 40 questions in 20 minutes | Language-independent aptitude without verbal ability |
| Cognify | Three games, about 10 minutes plus tutorials | Game-based problem solving, numerical reasoning and verbal knowledge |
| UCognify | Two games, about 7 minutes plus tutorials | Language-independent game-based aptitude |
| GAME | Three mini-games, about 5–6 minutes | Mobile-first cognitive screening |
| CTRS | Adaptive and modular; duration depends on configuration | Fast or customised cognitive assessment |
Read the Criteria tests comparison before assuming that another Criteria test uses the CCAT format.
The Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test
The CCAT measures a candidate’s ability to solve problems, learn, think critically and digest and apply new information.
The standard format is:
50 multiple-choice questions
15 minutes
Verbal Ability
Math and Logic
Spatial Reasoning
no calculator
Criteria reports a raw score equal to the number of correct answers and a percentile ranking relative to a norm group. The report may also include category percentiles and position-associated suggested score ranges.
A suggested range is not a universal pass mark. Employers can choose their own decision process and may combine the CCAT with interviews, work samples, skills tests and personality measures.
Read the complete CCAT guide, test-format guide and score-report guide.
HireSelect and the Criteria Platform
HireSelect has historically been used as a name for Criteria’s assessment-delivery service. Current Criteria terms also describe the service as including features formerly known as HireSelect.
Candidates may still see:
Criteria;HireSelect;- an assessment-center address;
- an Event ID;
- a no-reply email from Criteria.
These labels identify the platform or event environment, not necessarily the exact assessment.
If the invitation names only Criteria or HireSelect:
- open the official assessment center;
- read the event details before starting;
- identify each assigned assessment;
- note the time limit and permitted materials;
- prepare for the named test rather than the platform brand.
Use the HireSelect candidate guide for portal and Event ID guidance.
How Candidate Invitations Work
An invitation may include:
- the employer or recruiter name;
- a testing-center link;
- an Event ID;
- one or more assessment names;
- an expiry date or deadline;
- device and browser instructions;
- accommodation information;
- contact details for the administering organization.
Preserve the complete invitation privately. Do not post the event link or Event ID publicly.
The employer determines which tests are assigned, when they must be completed and how the results affect the recruitment process.
Who Receives the Results?
Criteria’s candidate FAQ states that results are sent directly to the company for which the candidate completed the assessments.
Candidates may not automatically receive:
- a raw score;
- an overall percentile;
- category percentiles;
- an employer-facing score report;
- a hiring-status update.
Criteria support does not provide candidate results or application-status decisions. Questions about feedback, progression or disclosure should be directed to the employer or recruiter.
Read the CCAT results guide and results-not-received guide.
Technical Requirements
Criteria’s candidate guidance emphasises:
- a stable internet connection;
- cookies enabled;
- JavaScript enabled;
- a current browser such as Chrome, Firefox or Edge;
- careful attention to event-specific compatibility messages.
Many Criteria assessments can be taken on laptops, desktops, tablets or mobile devices. However, a specific event may display a compatibility warning, and a larger screen may be more practical for dense visual or table-based questions.
Use the browser-requirements guide, mobile-device guide and technical-problems guide.
Languages
Criteria delivers different products in different languages.
The CCAT is currently listed in:
- English (US), the default;
- English (UK).
Candidates needing a broader range of languages may be assigned a language-independent test such as the UCAT or UCognify. The employer controls the assessment and language.
Translation tools should not be used during a live assessment unless the official instructions explicitly authorise them.
Read the CCAT language-options guide.
Accommodations
Candidates who need an accommodation should contact the employer or recruiter before beginning the scored event.
Do not assume that an adjustment is automatic, and do not send sensitive medical information to an independent preparation website.
Once an arrangement is approved, follow the employer’s and Criteria’s instructions exactly.
Read the CCAT accommodations guide.
Candidate Preparation
Criteria provides shortened public practice tests to familiarise candidates with common formats. Criteria notes that these simulations do not necessarily reproduce the complete length or full difficulty of an assigned assessment.
For an assigned CCAT, a practical preparation sequence is:
- confirm the exact assessment;
- learn the 50-question, 15-minute format;
- practice without a calculator;
- complete an unseen timed baseline;
- review verbal, maths and logic, and spatial weaknesses;
- progress to mixed timed sets;
- complete full simulations;
- review errors, guesses and time traps;
- prepare the device and environment.
Use the CCAT preparation guide and study plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Criteria the same as the CCAT?
No. Criteria is the company and platform provider. The CCAT is one assessment in its portfolio.
Does a HireSelect invitation mean CCAT?
Not necessarily. HireSelect can refer to the assessment environment. Confirm the exact test name.
Can Criteria tell me whether I passed?
Candidate support does not control the employer’s decision and does not provide hiring-status updates. Contact the administering employer or recruiter.
Can I reuse a previous result for another employer?
Criteria states that results are part of a confidential candidate record and are available only to the company that administered them. Another employer can require a new event.
Can I take the assessment on a phone?
Many Criteria tests support multiple devices, but event-specific warnings control. Use the compatible device that provides the clearest and most stable experience.
Does Criteria offer tests in other languages?
Yes, but language availability differs by product. The CCAT itself is currently listed in US and UK English.
Independent Preparation Options
Our primary CCAT routes are the practice comparison and online tests and the free 30-question practice test.
Additional independent resources include:
- JobTestPrep CCAT preparation;
- AptitudeTests.org free aptitude practice;
- Tests.Careers online practice and free-trial options.
These resources are independent. They do not administer Criteria events or issue employer results.
Official Sources
- Criteria home page
- Criteria assessment catalogue
- Criteria candidate assessment guide
- Criteria candidate FAQs
- Criteria test languages
- Official CCAT overview
Independent-Site Notice
CCATPracticeTest.com is an independent information and test-preparation website. It is not Criteria Corp, HireSelect, an employer, a recruiter or a score-reporting service.
The official invitation, live instructions, employer communication and employer-issued result information take priority over independent guidance.