Prepare for Doctorate in Clinical Psychology Test With Accurate Preperation
Becoming a Trainee Clinical Psychologist is not an easy task.
The admission is SO competitive that only 15% of all applicants will be offered a place in one of the 30 UK programmes.
Even if you have exceptional academic ability and relevant work experience – you still need to pass the short-listing tests and the rigorous interview process.
Many candidates are overwhelmed with the preparation required for these short-listing tests - It’s completely understandable, and I appreciate your unwillingness to give up (and I take my hat off to those of you who have applied multiple times).
That’s why we created a special PrepPack to help you ace the tests and get your place and pursue your dream to become a Clinical Psychologist.
With our preparation pack, you’ll get accurate practice tests and specified drills that’ll help you gain confidence, improve your skills and reduce anxiety during the actual test.
Clinical Psychology Tests
- 3 SHL Verbal Analysis Practice Tests
- 5 SHL Verbal Reasoning Practice Tests
- 2 Verbal Reasoning Video Tutorials
- 5 Deductive Practice Tests
- SHL Deductive Study Guide
- 10 Situational Judgment Practice Tests and a Study Guide
Clinical Psychology Doctorate Assessments
Each university is able to choose its own tests, so there is variety in the tests you may be asked to take. Some of the tests include:
SHL Verbal Reasoning Test
The psychological field demands a very high understanding and comprehension of a wide range of material. Anyone working in the field knows that what was true yesterday might not hold water tomorrow. When reading through often complex health journals, it is easy to misinterpret data or jump to conclusions.
This test contains 30 multiple-choice questions to be answered in 19 minutes.
The NHS Trainee Clinical Program Verbal Test provided by SHL requires you to read through intricate texts and answer a series of questions with either true, false, or cannot say.
- True - The statement follows logically given the information contained within the passage. Pointing to a statement in the text, you will have to decide if it congruent with the logic of the preceding points.
- False - The focused statement is not in-line with the logical flow of the text.
- Cannot Say - In this case, you would need more information to determine if the statements logically follow.
SHL Verbal Reasoning Sample Question
India’s economy grew faster than estimated last quarter, maintaining pressure on the central bank to extend its record interest-rate increases even as the global recovery weakens. Stocks, bond yields and the rupee advanced. Gross domestic product rose 7.7 percent in the three months ended June 30 from a year earlier, the Central Statistical Office said in New Delhi today. That compares with a 7.8 percent climb in the previous three months. The median of 26 predictions in a Bloomberg News survey was for a 7.6 percent gain. India’s consumption has “remained strong” because of higher salaries and inflation may remain “stubborn” in the near term, the Reserve Bank of India said last week. By contrast, growth has cooled in other Asian nations such as Taiwan, South Korea and Malaysia as a faltering U.S. recovery and Europe’s debt crisis curb demand for the region’s exports.
Statement:
The United States and Europe have not been importing from Taiwan as much as they used to.
What is the truth value of the statement?
SHL deductive Reasoning Test
The SHL deductive test measures your logical thinking skills.
It consists of about 20 questions and typically takes 15-20 minutes to complete.
As a candidate who is about to take the SHL deductive test as part of the recruitment process, your test performance, speed, accuracy and alertness during the exam are all taken into account when providing your overall assessment score.
Note: this year, the SHL deductive reasoning test is a new interactive version. We are currently working on updating the PrepPack to include the new test, so stay tuned. However, the deductive reasoning preparation provided in the current PrepPack will help you get used to the style of questions and improve your skills for the actual test.
Situational Judgement Test
The Situational Judgment Test for the NHS Trainee Clinical Program was developed by the Work Psychology Group and has been the standard in the UK since 2013. While the test is primarily administered in written or online formatting, there is also the possibility of taking it in video format.
This test assesses how you respond in work-based situations. On these tests, you are usually given a scenario describing a situation you could expect to come across in your daily work, and a set of possible responses. Your task is to choose the most suitable response. By preparing for this test, you can learn techniques for identifying the best response.
Considering that working in healthcare requires advanced cognitive abilities, the NHS Trainee Clinical SJT specifically addresses those metrics, including:
- Communication Level - dealing with other wards like radiology or relating needs to nursing staff
- Teamwork – Offering support to colleges and learning how to accept their help, and recognising their talents where they can help you.
- Pressure on the Job – Altercations with angry relatives, responding to your own mistake, and more.
- Professionalism – Confidentiality issues, inappropriate conversations between colleges and their patients, continued development in the field, and more.
- Patient Focus – Understanding the varying needs of your patients and being able to show empathy with them.
Note: The SJT section of the PrepPack uses generic SHL SJT questions dealing with business management. These are still useful because many of the principles (including working with subordinates, management, and other workplace situations) apply here as well.
Written Tests
There is no doubt that writing is a major part of a physician’s life. From writing prescriptions, leaving instructions for staff or colleagues, or writing reports – clear and concise wording is crucial. Again, the writing scenarios will directly relate to real-job writing.
To help you, here are a few quick tips before you start writing:
- Clarity: Before you begin writing, take some notes and create a broad outline for each segment.
- Empathy: Sometimes delivering unwanted news, even if correct and factual, can harm the other side. Have tact!
- Brevity: You will have a word limit, so make sure not to go over. On the real job as well, you will need to be accurate and concise. No one has time to read.
Learn more about written exercises with our written exercises pages.
Note: Our PrepPack doesn’t currently include a writing preparation.
How to Prepare for the Clinical Doctorate Application Process
Once you have applied to the Clearing House at Leeds University, the next stage for many schemes is some sort of short-listing test. You’ll receive an invitation to sit the tests.
I know that the process is notorious for making really good, capable candidates feel devalued. So first off - take a deep breath, you got this!
Second – Practise. A lot.
Practising will not only improve your abilities for the upcoming tests but could also help you to reduce uncertainty and anxiety, which means saving valuable seconds.
Take a couple of hours of practising different types of questions in different difficulty levels, and pass the tests with flying colours.
If you have any questions after reading this, please don’t hesitate to reach out. You can contact us at ask_the_team@jobtestprep.co.uk