Hi, I’m David, the Amazon assessment expert at JobTestPrep. Have a question? Don’t hesitate to contact me at askdavid@jobtestprep.com
Getting hired by Amazon is a dream that many job seekers share.
Whether it’s the generous benefits, the top-notch technology, or the career development paths it offers – Amazon is indeed a prestigious place to work for.
But getting in is not a walk in the park. To receive a job offer, you first must ace the initial Amazon online assessment.
Amazon’s assessments are often tricky. Their structure is unique, and what they test for “behind the scenes” is not found in other companies’ hiring processes.
That’s why thorough preparation becomes invaluable and can give you an edge over your competitors.
So, to help you score high and pass the Amazon assessment, we developed a powerful prep plan that’s based on three tools:
- Accurate practice tests that simulate the actual assessments.
- Targeted drills aimed to teach you the specific skills needed to beat the tests.
- Realistic testing experience and expert tips to improve your performance under pressure.
Keep scrolling to dive deep into the online assessment and access their prep guides.
What Is the Amazon Assessment Test?
The Amazon assessment is an online test given to Amazon’s applicants for a variety of jobs. Usually, you’ll get an invitation for the assessment test after passing the initial resume screening process. Amazon’s assessments differ greatly between positions and include the Amazon Virtual Job Tryout, coding assessments, personality tests, job simulations, and more.
The Amazon Recruitment Process
For most positions, Amazon’s application process looks like the following:
- Initial Resume Screening
- Assessment Tests
- Phone Interview
- Virtual / On-site Interviews
- Job Offer
Below is an overview of the most popular Amazon assessments:
Amazon SDE Online Assessment
The Amazon Software Development Engineering online assessment combines coding and behavioral tests given to candidates for SDE positions - interns, new grads, and experienced roles.
For interns and new grad positions, the Amazon online assessment is divided as follows: Code Debugging, Coding test and Workstyles (personality test), and Technical Problem Solving (work simulation assessment).
For more experienced SDE roles, you’ll get a coding challenge that includes two coding questions, a coding approach questionnaire, and a Work Style assessment.
Note that Amazon puts a premium and bases its behavioral and personality assessments on the 16 leadership principles. So, learn them and take them into account while choosing your responses.
Learn more about Amazon’s SDE online assessment here >>
Amazon Work Simulation
On Amazon’s Work Simulation assessment test, you’ll get an inside look at the types of challenges commonly faced by Amazon employees.
This work simulation assesses your prioritization and multitasking skills, how you work under pressure, and of course – your use of Amazon’s Leadership Principles.
Each scenario will begin with email communication that gives context into the nature of the issue you’ll face. When the simulation starts, you’ll be prompted with emails and instant messages from your virtual Team Lead, team members, etc.
Within each scenario, you’ll get more details to help you solve the problem in the form of charts, graphs, spreadsheets, and tables. You’ll then be asked questions and given a set of responses you need to choose from.
For more info and for a full prep, enter our Amazon Work Simulation page.
Amazon Work Style Assessment
The Amazon Work Style assessment is a personality test that evaluates your work preferences and qualities to determine your suitability to Amazon’s unique culture.
In most cases, this test comes before or after other Amazon online assessments, and you’ll rarely receive it as a single exam.
On this assessment, which takes about 15 minutes to complete, you’ll see pairs of statements, and you’ll need to decide which is most like you or more like you.
Overall, there will be a few dozens such pairs. Here’s an example for a question:
(A) I adjust my normal approach when a situation required it.
(B) I approach changes more cautiously than others.
Now, you must choose which statement is more or most like you.
Amazon’s Work Style Assessment is completely based on the Amazon Leadership Principles. These are core values that are super important to Amazon, and its worker’s address and follow them daily.
So, before starting the Work Style Assessment, read the Leadership Principles and learn how to implement them in your past work experiences.
Additionally, it’s also important to familiarize yourself with common personality test questions, their structure, and what personality traits they evaluate.
Learn more about pre-employment personality tests and how to prepare for them using our dedicated page.
Learn more and get full practice on our Amazon Work Style Page.
Amazon SHL Numerical Assessment Test
The Amazon Numerical Test, administered by SHL, is designed to assess your numerical reasoning skills, which are a key component of the company's work.
On the test, you need to understand and interpret numerical data presented in the form of a table or a chart and then answer questions relating to it.
Working out the answers often requires performing calculations involving percentages, ratios, conversions, etc.
The most common type of numerical test used to evaluate candidates for graduate and managerial roles is provided by SHL.
On this Amazon test, you are presented with sets of data, each followed by three multiple-choice questions.
Our preparation pack offers you practice materials for the SHL test.
It includes practice drills and video tutorials to help you master the basic concepts required for successfully passing your Amazon numerical test.
This Amazon prep pack also contains hundreds of table/graph questions to sharpen your data interpretation skills.
Amazon AWS Online Assessment
Note: We have a new preparation pack for the AWS assessment test. Click here for more info.
Because AWS positions range from technical-oriented roles to costumer-oriented roles, the AWS Assessment is given to AWS candidates with slight variations.
The assessment covers different aspects of the candidate - In most cases, the assessment will be comprised of:
- A Work-Simulation test that deals with Amazonians' work scenarios. In it, candidates will need to rate or rank possible solutions to dilemmas they might face.
- A Work-Style assessment which is Amazon's custom-made personality test, built around their famous 16 Leadership Principles.
- Some sort of technical knowledge test, depending on the role.
- A test that simulates scenarios that involve working with customers for customer-oriented roles.
Here are two examples of AWS assessments you might face:
The Amazon Solution Architect (SA) online assessment is sent after you pass the initial resume screening for a range of Solution Architect roles at AWS.
This assessment takes about 75-90 minutes to complete and is divided into five different sections:
- Hiring Simulation with several real-life scenarios
- Amazon Work Style Assessment
- General Technical Knowledge section to assess technical skill
- Proficiency Interest Survey
- Technical Indicator Assessment
The general technical assessment focuses on system design, compute, cloud migration, and cloud design. You don’t need to have AWS-specific experience to successfully complete the assessment (it’s platform agnostic).
In the proficiency interest survey, you’ll self-rate your proficiency in four areas of technology, while the technical modules will assess your knowledge within those areas with questions that match your rated proficiency. Questions include a mix of multiple-choice and objective/situational-based questions. Note that there are no coding questions.
The behavioral test sections, Work Style assessment, and part of the Hiring Simulation are based on Amazon’s renowned 16 Leadership Principles.
The AWS Support Engineer assessment has almost the same structure as the AWS Solution Architect assessment.
It includes a job simulation, a multiple-choice assessment on general technical knowledge, a profile preference and proficiency questionnaire for the many AWS cloud support roles, and a work-style questionnaire.
The technical questions’ content is different from the SA assessment, as it requires different levels of technical knowledge.
Our Amazon Solution Architect assessment PrepPack™ and Amazon Cloud Support Engineer assessment PrepPack™ are ready for use.
Click here for a detailed guide and full practice for the AWS online assessment.
Amazon Maintenance Technician Test
The Amazon maintenance tech test is a proctored mechanical and electrical assessment given to candidates for various maintenance jobs. The assessment is a tailored adaptation of the Ramsay Mechanical Test.
The topics you’ll be tested on include the following:
- Print Reading
- Power Transmission & Preventative Maintenance
- Tools, Material, and Equipment
- Pneumatics and Hydraulics
- Electrical Theory and Control Circuits
- Test Instruments
The Amazon maintenance assessment is a tough test. Not only must you answer 75 questions with no breaks in between, but you’ll only have five days to prepare for it from the moment you receive the invitation email.
That’s why it’s crucial to familiarize yourself with its question types and sharpen the specific skills needed to ace the test.
In our complete Amazon maintenance test PrepPack™, you’ll get a chance to solve realistic practice tests that simulate the actual exam.
The practice tests include in-depth explanations for every question and real time constraints. These will help improve your abilities and your performance under time pressure, resulting in a higher test score.
Access the complete Amazon maintenance PrepPack™ here >>
Amazon Area Manager & Operations Manager Assessment
The Amazon Area Manager/Operations Manager assessment takes about 45 minutes to complete and includes five sections:
- Work Scenarios - a Situational Judgment Test (choose what you'd be Most or Least likely to do)
- Manage Your Day - prioritize tasks and activities based on their urgency
- Run Your Area - answer questions using information provided in data reports
- Tell Us Your Story - describe your background and work experience
- Describe Your Approach - a personality test in which you'll need to decide which statement is most like you
Watch this short video to learn more about this Operations Manager assessment:
As you can see, these question types are pretty tricky as the right answers are not obvious.
On top of that, every behavioral question you face on this assessment is based on Amazon’s 16 Leadership Principles, which Amazon is truly obsessed about.
This means you must learn these Leadership Principles inside out before you start the assessment.
In our complete Area Manager and Operations Manager Assessment PrepPack™, you’ll get dozens of practice questions that closely resemble the real Amazon Virtual Job Tryout question types.
Together with detailed explanations and solving tactics, these practice materials will tremendously increase your chances to pass the test.
Access the complete practice pack here >>
Amazon Financial Analyst Excel Test
To become a financial analyst at Amazon, you must first successfully pass an Excel test and a series of behavioral and case study interviews.
The Amazon Excel assessment test requires you to master the different features of the software. Most of the questions on this excel assessment will deal with formulas, macro creation, advanced formatting, and document properties.
These Excel assessments may be sent to you after you pass the initial resume screening and may also appear during the interview stage.
Additionally, one of your in-person (or virtual) interviews will likely include a case study interview. Usually, this case study will consist of a realistic work situation that you'll need to resolve while explaining your thought process.
To help you pass the Amazon Excel assessments and cases, we created a thorough prep kit that improves the Excel skills needed to ace the tests.
Learn more about the Amazon Financial Analyst test PrepPack™ on our dedicated page >>
Amazon MBA Online Assessment
Note: We have a new practice pack for the MBA assessment. Click here for more info.
The Amazon assessment test for MBA is the first online assessment given to MBA and master’s level graduates and interns applying to full-time roles and internships.
The online MBA assessment includes three sections, in which no specific Amazon or functional knowledge and skills are evaluated. Nevertheless, you must successfully pass it to advance to the interview stage.
These three sections are:
- Work simulation: a simulation that presents scenarios (mini business cases) you might encounter while working at Amazon.
- Work Style assessment: a personality test that evaluates your preferred work preferences, tendencies, and qualities.
- Career experience survey: a questionnaire in which you’re asked to provide your preferences for the MBA roles currently available.
Amazon Online Assessment FAQs
How to pass the Amazon assessment test?
The key to passing the Amazon assessment test is knowing exactly what to expect on the test and gaining the skills needed to ace it. Amazon’s assessment tests are unique to its hiring process, and you can’t find them on other company’s recruitment processes. That’s why preparation becomes invaluable before taking these tests.
Can you fail the Amazon assessment test?
Yes, you can fail the Amazon assessment test. In many cases, the assessment is the initial screening step, or it comes right after a phone interview. So, failing the assessment means that your application is terminated, and you’ll be able to re-apply after a given time that varies across positions.
How to prepare for the Amazon aptitude test?
Here are the best ways to prepare for the Amazon aptitude test:
- Solve Amazon practice tests that are as similar as possible to the real Amazon assessment tests. Generic practice tests usually won’t be enough.
- Improve the specific skills needed to ace the Amazon aptitude tests. Amazon’s tests will evaluate abilities and qualities that are important to working at Amazon. So, you should focus on sharpening them.
- Get used to working effectively under time pressure. Most of Amazon’s aptitude tests are done under tight time limits. So, you should strive to improve your performance under this type of pressure.
Are Amazon's Interviews hard?
The Amazon interviews can be hard, and their level of difficulty varies depending on the position you’re applying to and its competitiveness. For example, interviews for managerial roles are tougher because their interview questions are mostly based on Amazon’s Leadership Principles, and they also include the Bar Raiser interview.
What is the Amazon Bar Raiser?
The Bar Raiser is an interviewer whose job is to examine your answers and see how they relate to the Leadership Principles. The Bar Raiser will dive deep into your answers and ask lots of follow-up questions. The purpose behind that is to shortlist the most suitable candidates that could fit Amazon’s unique culture.
