The Watson Glaser: which firms use it, and what each one tells you
The Watson Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal, published by Pearson TalentLens, is the standard first test for many City law firm training contracts. These are the firms on our site that name it, with what each page says about it.
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Employers whose pages name this provider
Each row comes from that employer's own page on this site. 8 employers, checked November 2026. Stated means the employer says it. Candidates report means we found it only in candidate accounts.
| Employer | What the employer page says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| CMS | The firm does not name the product; guides and candidates usually describe it as a Watson Glaser style test. | Stated by CMS |
| Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer | Candidates on forums ask whether vacation scheme versions add a verbal reasoning section, and older guides describe a Watson Glaser test, so read your invitation closely. | Stated by Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer |
| Linklaters | Describes a Watson Glaser online test, with practice hosted on Pearson's site | Candidates report |
| Clifford Chance | Application form, Immersive Online Assessment and Watson Glaser, form review for those who pass, recorded video interview, then an assessment day | Candidates report |
| Freshfields | It is commonly reported on prep sites that the Freshfields Watson Glaser has about 40 questions, though they disagree on whether the limit is about 30 or about 50 minutes. | Candidates report |
| DLA Piper | Prep sites commonly report a DLA Piper Watson Glaser of up to 40 questions in about 30 minutes, which conflicts with the firm's statement that the test is untimed. | Candidates report |
| Bird & Bird | A training contract guide describes the Watson-Glaser as one of the hardest parts of the process and says there is a benchmark to progress. | Candidates report |
| Civil Service Fast Stream | Commercial prep sites describe the online battery in conflicting ways: one lists SHL-style numerical and verbal tests, a Watson Glaser critical thinking test, a judgement test and an e-tray, while another describes a work style questionnaire plus interpersonal and thinking skills judgement questionnaires. | Candidates report |
Practise the format
- Verbal and critical reasoning testsEvery employer that uses one, side by side
- Law firm assessments comparedFrom online tests to partner interviews
Five kinds of question, one habit
The Watson Glaser tests critical thinking through inferences, recognising assumptions, deductions, interpretation and evaluating arguments. Each section has its own answer rules, and most lost marks come from bringing in outside knowledge. The habit to build is answering only from what the passage says.
Prep sites commonly describe a 40-question version of about 30 minutes, though firms set their own rules and some say their version is untimed. DLA Piper, for example, gives five working days to complete an untimed Watson Glaser.
Why law firms like it
Firms use the Watson Glaser because it tests what a trainee does every day: separate what a document says from what someone assumes it says. Clifford Chance states that passing the test decides whether your application form is reviewed, which makes it a gate rather than a tie-breaker there.
Because the stakes are high and the format is fixed, practice helps more than for strengths tests. Learn the rules of each section, then practise until applying them is automatic.
Scores and percentiles
Results are reported as a percentile against a comparison group the firm chooses. No firm on our site publishes its threshold, and prep-site figures for "the pass mark" vary widely. Treat any single number with suspicion.
What helps: steady accuracy across all five sections. A weak section drags the total down more than a slightly slow pace.
Free practice that transfers
Several firms point to practice on Pearson's own site, which shows the real interface. Use that first. For broader careful-reading practice, our free reasoning test includes verbal questions where you judge what follows from a passage, which trains the same discipline.
Read one newspaper opinion piece a day and write down its main assumption. It takes five minutes and is the closest everyday exercise to the assumptions section.
Practise with a free Reasoning test
50 original questions, 45 minutes, scored the moment you finish. Free, no sign-up. Our reasoning test trains the careful reading the Watson Glaser rewards. It does not reproduce the Watson Glaser's five sections.
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Employer pages in this guide
- CMS assessmentPass the assessment day of case study, interview and group task and you get a direct training contract.
- Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer assessmentA self-paced judgement and personality test of about 30 to 40 minutes, with a firm practice version first.
- Linklaters assessmentNo time limit, but the critical reasoning element is time-recorded and scored on speed and accuracy.
- Clifford Chance assessmentPassing Watson Glaser decides whether your form is reviewed. Practice attempts are unlimited and unseen.
- Freshfields assessmentAn 850-word statement first, then the Watson Glaser and a half-day assessment centre.
- DLA Piper assessmentAn untimed Watson Glaser due within five working days, then video and a virtual case study.
- Bird & Bird assessmentThe firm removed the Watson-Glaser time limit and gives every candidate a practice test and practice video.
- Civil Service Fast Stream assessmentMost and least effective picks per scenario, feedback for all, then a half-day online FSAC scored on 4D.
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LifeScore is not affiliated with any employer or test publisher named on this page. Names belong to their owners and appear only to describe published hiring processes. Pass marks and questions are not published by employers, and we do not claim to know them. Reviewed October 2026 by the LifeScore Editorial Team.