Completing assessments on LinkedIn is a great way to showcase your skills and experiences to potential employers. As more companies use LinkedIn to source and vet candidates, performing well on LinkedIn assessments can give you a competitive edge in the job market.
LinkedIn assessments are standardized tests that measure your proficiency in a specific skill or ability. They test a wide range of professional skills like coding, data science, design, writing, and more. Passing these assessments with a high score signals to recruiters that you have the hard skills required for the job.
Why do companies use LinkedIn assessments?
Companies are increasingly using LinkedIn assessments for several key reasons:
- To pre-screen and vet candidates at scale – Assessments provide an efficient way to evaluate skills and abilities of many applicants.
- To standardize the screening process – assessments allow companies to objectively compare candidates across common metrics.
- To test hard skills – They go beyond just resumes and self-reported experience to actually measure abilities.
- To determine whether to proceed with interviews – Good assessment scores can qualify you for next steps while poor scores can screen you out.
How should I prepare for LinkedIn assessments?
Here are some tips to prepare and perform your best on LinkedIn skills assessments:
- Review the skillsets tested – LinkedIn provides information on exactly what each assessment covers. Review the content areas and skills tested so you know what to expect.
- Brush up on technical skills – Many assessments test specific technical abilities like programming languages and data science tools. Refresh your knowledge in advance.
- Practice sample tests – LinkedIn offers practice tests for some assessments. Take those to get familiar with the format and question styles.
- Study LinkedIn Learning courses – LinkedIn Learning has courses that align with specific assessments. Leverage those courses to review key concepts.
- Get hands-on practice – Where possible, apply the skills tested through work projects, freelancing gigs, or personal projects.
How do I take LinkedIn assessments?
Taking a LinkedIn skills assessment is simple and straightforward:
- Add the skill to your LinkedIn profile – This triggers LinkedIn to offer you an assessment for that skill.
- Go to the LinkedIn skills section – Locate the skill and click “Take test” to launch the assessment.
- Verify identity – LinkedIn will require you to verify your identity before starting the test.
- Take the assessment – Testing times range from 10 min to 1 hour depending on skill.
- View results – You will see your overall score and how you ranked against others.
Some things to keep in mind when taking LinkedIn assessments:
- You must have a complete LinkedIn profile to take assessments.
- Each assessment can only be taken once every 4 weeks if you don’t pass.
- Assessments are timed and some have limits on how long each question can be viewed.
- Your overall score as well as subscores on categories is provided at the end.
- Passing scores are provided as a percentile range compared to other test takers.
Examples of LinkedIn skills assessments
Here are some of the most popular LinkedIn assessments and the skills tested:
Assessment Name | Skills/Knowledge Tested |
---|---|
SQL | SQL queries, database concepts, data analysis |
Python | Python programming, Python libraries, coding |
Data Science Foundations | Stats, hypothesis testing, data visualization |
User Experience Design | UX principles, user research, interaction design |
Front-End Web Development | HTML, CSS, JavaScript, responsive web design |
Software Development Life Cycle | SDLC methodologies, development processes |
LinkedIn assessment question examples
Here are some examples of actual questions from LinkedIn assessments:
SQL Assessment
Which SQL query would return all the columns from the Customers table, sorted by the Country column?
- SELECT * FROM Customers ORDER BY Country;
- SELECT * FROM Customers SORT BY Country;
- SELECT all FROM Customers ORDER BY Country;
- SORT Customers BY Country;
Python Assessment
What will be the output of the following Python code?
prices = [29.99, 9.99, 19.99, 49.99]
print(min(prices))
- 9.99
- [9.99]
- min(prices)
- None
Front-End Developer Assessment
Which HTML element is the correct semantic tag for the main content of a page?
- <section>
- <div>
- <content>
- <main>
How are LinkedIn assessments scored?
LinkedIn assessments are scored on a scale of 0 to 100%. The final score is based on two factors:
- Number of questions you answered correctly
- Overall difficulty of the questions
Getting more difficult questions right leads to a higher score. Scores are calculated instantly and shown as soon as you complete the assessment.
Rather than showing your raw score, your results are presented as a percentile rank compared to other test takers.
For example, a score of 90% means you performed better than 90% of others who took that assessment.
Passing scores
Each assessment has its own passing score threshold, which LinkedIn determines based on the test’s difficulty and required proficiency level.
Passing scores are set at the following percentile benchmarks:
Assessment Difficulty | Passing Percentile |
---|---|
Entry | 20th percentile |
Intermediate | 50th percentile |
Advanced | 70th percentile |
So for intermediate assessments, you would need to score better than 50% of other test takers to pass and have the skill added to your LinkedIn profile.
Tips for passing LinkedIn assessments
Here are some helpful tips for passing LinkedIn skills assessments:
- Study the material – Review the concepts and skills covered in each test.
- Practice sample tests – Familiarize yourself with the test format and question styles.
- Read questions thoroughly – Don’t skim or rush. Understand exactly what each question is asking.
- Check your work – Double check calculations and code when applicable.
- Manage time – Keep an eye on the timer and don’t get bogged down on any single question.
- Skip and revisit questions – If stuck, flag it and come back if there’s time.
- Remain calm – Tests can be stressful. Take a few deep breaths during the exam if needed.
With thorough preparation and an effective test-taking strategy, you can improve your chances of passing LinkedIn exams and boosting your professional profile.
Benefits of passing LinkedIn assessments
Passing LinkedIn assessments can offer many benefits for your job search and career advancement, including:
- Validation of skills – Passing serves as proof you have the skills claimed on your profile.
- Professional endorsement – Adds a standardized certification of abilities from a trusted source.
- Shareable credential – Assessments appear on your profile and can be shared.
- Ranking boost – High scores can improve your profile’s search ranking when recruiters look for skills.
- Marketability boost – Quantifiable demonstration of knowledge/abilities vs. just claims on resume.
- Interview advancement – High scores can improve chances of advancing to interview rounds.
In short, passing LinkedIn assessments can significantly enhance your candidacy and employability for relevant roles. As more recruiters use LinkedIn to vet candidates, performing well on these tests should be a key part of your job search strategy.
Conclusion
With companies increasingly using LinkedIn assessments to evaluate job candidates, it is important to prepare for and perform well on these tests. Follow the guidance in this article on what LinkedIn assessments are, how to take them, example questions, how they are scored, and tips for passing.
Investing the time to master relevant skills, practice for the tests, and achieve passing scores can significantly improve your competitiveness and career prospects in today’s job market.