NAO Assessment Centre, Group Exercise, Case Study, and Competency Based Interview Preparation
If you pass the first assessment stage, you will be invited to attend the NAO assessment centre. The assessment centre is a whole day event at the NAO offices. Get prepared for your NAO assessment centre with JobTestPrep and prove that you are the right candidate for the job.
NAO assessment
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Throughout the assessment centre you are assessed on the competencies mentioned here, so make sure you review them ahead of the day. As well as the four exercises below, you will also have a group lunch and an opportunity to meet current employees at the NAO. Don’t forget to use the opportunity to find out more about the scheme and NAO as an employer.
Group Exercise
In this exercise you are part of a team working together on a project. You are being assessed on your abilities to work in a team setting and to communicate with both team members and customers, all of which are important skills for an auditor. You are being watched on your behaviour in the group dynamic throughout. Check out JobTestPrep's tips on how to work in a group exercise.
Client Presentation
You are sent the presentation topic ahead of the assessment day. You are required to prepare a 10 minute presentation for your assessors and the other candidates. After the presentation be prepared to answer their questions. The purpose of the presentation is to discover how you analyse information, present both sides of an argument, and come up with a recommendation. A previous presentation topic was: How effective are our flood defenses? Does the risk justify the cost?
Written Case Study
The written case study is a taste of the sort of work you will carry out as an auditor. In this exercise you are given a set of information and four questions to answer based on that information. You only have an hour for this exercise, so make sure you make time to answer all the questions rather than get caught up in one particular question. Prepare for this test with our case study practice pack.
Competency Based Interview
The last part of the assessment centre is the competency based interview, conducted by a Director at the NAO. The questions will focus on all the NAO graduate competencies, so review the information you had at the last interview. It may have been some time since your last NAO interview, so don’t forget to brush up on your interviewing skills.
Prepare for Success
The NAO recruitment process for both the School Leavers Programme and the Graduate Scheme is competitive and challenging and is designed to test you on a whole range of skills. The competition is tough, but the rewards are worth it. Preparation is key to ensuring you are one of the lucky people at the end of the day.