The National Crime Agency tells you to practise for its online test. Few employers say that

The NCA says some roles use an online verbal or numerical reasoning test at application, and it recommends practice tests to get used to the format. Our reasoning test mixes exactly those two kinds of question, so it is the practice the agency itself suggests for that stage.

Many NCA roles skip the online test and go straight from sift to an assessment centre with a presentation, written exercise or in-tray task, or, for experienced investigators, a knowledge check exam. Our test covers none of those, and the agency does not name its test supplier.

The NCA's careers guidance on applying makes a candid point: you often cannot prepare for its assessments, but if an online test is required, you should get exposure to the format by completing practice online tests. Plenty of employers say there is nothing to prepare. The NCA draws a sensible line between exercises that depend on the moment and tests whose format you can learn.

So use the advice as written. If your advert or invitation mentions a verbal or numerical reasoning test, a few timed practice sittings are what the agency itself suggests. Our free test above gives you both question types, and the numerical reasoning test page shows the methods for tables and percentages.

Verbal reasoning tests ask whether a statement follows from a passage; numerical ones ask you to work from tables and charts. For an agency that investigates organised crime, both are close to daily work. A case summary has to be read for what it proves, not for what it hints. A table of seizures or financial flows has to be read row by row before anyone draws a conclusion.

Practise with that mindset. After each verbal question, say aloud which sentence settled it. After each numerical question, check the units and the time period of the figures you used. Investigators who get those habits wrong in a test usually get them wrong in a file too.

The NCA lists three exercise types that may appear at an assessment centre: a presentation, a written exercise and an in-tray exercise. An in-tray gives you a pile of messages and tasks with competing deadlines, and asks you to prioritise and act. A written exercise usually asks for a short report or recommendation from a pack of material.

Even though the specific content cannot be predicted, the skills can be practised in general. Our assessment centre guide explains how these exercise types are usually scored.

• In-tray: sort by risk to people first, then by deadline, then by who else is waiting on you.
• Written exercise: put your recommendation in the first paragraph and keep facts and judgements visibly separate.
• Presentation: plan for a minute less than you are given, so questions do not cut off your conclusion.

An NCA advert for Organised Immigration Crime investigators sets out a different route. Candidates who pass the sift go to an in-person assessment centre with a written exam called the Experienced Officer Knowledge Check, a scenario-based interview, an essential criteria check of ID and qualifications, and a substance misuse test.

The knowledge check tests what an experienced investigator should already know, which no general aptitude test can rehearse. Revise the law and procedure you use in your current role. Bring the identity documents and certificates the invitation lists, because the essential criteria check happens on the same day.

NCA adverts say successful officers get online access to revision material and classroom-based tutorials to support the exams they take after joining. That is a useful signal of the culture: assessment continues into the job. If you find tests stressful, building a calm routine for them now will pay off for years.

Locations for the assessment stage are confirmed when you are invited, so budget travel time once you know.

These come from anonymous reviews, university careers pages and prep guides. They often disagree, and National Crime Agency has not confirmed them. Read them as leads, not rules.

• A practice test site describes the NCA process as four stages: online application, online assessment, interview and assessment centre. The NCA itself says the mix varies by role.
• Candidate guides note that the process length varies by role and applicant volume and typically spans several weeks to months.