BARB Test cheat sheet

General Cognitive Aptitude - BARB Test Reference

• BARB stands for British Army Recruit Battery; it is a computer-delivered cognitive aptitude battery used in British Army candidate selection.

• The battery is modular: each subtest is separately timed and presented in multiple-choice format on a computer.

• Core subtest families include letter checking (perceptual comparison), number distance (numerical comparison), symbol rotation (mental rotation), odd one out (pattern reasoning), and map reading (route/spatial navigation).

• Letter-checking items require a same/different judgment about pairs of letter strings; speed and accuracy of visual comparison determine the score.

• Number-distance items require judging which of two or more numbers is closer to a target or farther along a number line; no calculator is used.

• Symbol-rotation items require deciding whether a rotated symbol matches a target or is a mirror image; mental rotation, not physical rotation, is tested.

• Odd-one-out items require identifying the symbol or shape that does not share the rule governing the other items in the set.

• Map-reading items require tracing a route or locating a point using a simplified map, direction, and distance cues.

• Scores are standardized and used with other selection data (interview, medical, fitness) to determine trade eligibility; higher-demand technical trades typically require higher scores.