Charityworks Assessment Centre, Aptitude Tests, Recruitment Process & Interviews Online Preparation – 2024
What Is Charityworks?
Charityworks is a talent development organisation in the UK that focuses on matching job seekers with charity and non-profit jobs. The organisation offers a 12-month paid trainee programme that gives employees the tools for a successful career in the UK’s non-profit sector. During the programme, trainees are placed in partner organisations working real jobs according to their skills and interests.
Trainees are also matched with a mentor who will provide guidance and help them make the most out of their year with the programme. In addition to the full-time job opportunity, trainees will also participate in a leadership programme that includes learning projects to equip them with skills and knowledge to help in their careers.
The organisation was founded in 2009 with the mission of creating a network of non-profit organisations that are committed to building capacity through collaboration with other organisations. They focus on growing leadership talent and creating a fun and healthy working environment for employees. Charityworks promotes a culture where people are:
Challenged
Curious
Conscious
Connected
Committed to innovation and change
Working for Charityworks
The programme will match trainees with positions that align with their preferred cause and skill set. Several types of roles are offered in the program, including:
Business development and fundraising
Communication and campaigns
Frontline or customer-facing
Internal communications
Technology
Human resources
Finance
Research and policy
What Is the Hiring Process at Charityworks?
Online Application
Recruitment for the Charityworks Trainee Programme opens in October or November and closes in February or March; check for the exact dates online. To work at Charityworks, you must have the right to work in the UK and a passion for your preferred cause. You’ll also need to demonstrate the following key competencies:
Adaptable
Build positive relationships
Beneficiary and customer focus
Communicate with impact
Commitment to personal development
Resilient
Innovative and entrepreneurial
Results driven
The application form can be submitted online. You’ll need to enter personal details such as your contact information, qualifications for the position, work experience, and educational background. There will also be questions to assess your motivations behind applying for a job with Charityworks.
Charityworks’ Assessment Centre
Your application will go through a screening process where it is assessed by two recruitment team members, and if they feel you’d be a good fit for the organisation, you will be invited to attend the assessment centre day. This is a full-day event that consists of several individual and group exercises designed to assess your skills and personality further. This event will include other programme applicants and typically takes place in May or June.
The exact activities you will complete may vary, but typical assessment centre tasks include:
Interviews: You should expect to complete at least one interview during the day. This may be one-on-one with a recruiter or a panel interview with several interviewers.
Psychometric Assessments: Applicants will typically complete several aptitude and personality assessments to assess specific skills required for the non-profit sector.
Group Exercise: In the group exercise, applicants must work together to solve an issue or complete a task.
Role-Play Exercise: The role-play exercise will involve a recruiter or another applicant. You will each be given a role, typically a worker and customer situation, and need to work through a simulated scenario similar to one you may encounter on the job.
Presentation: You may need to give a brief presentation on a designated topic. If this is part of your assessment centre, the hiring team will provide you with the topic beforehand so you can research and prepare. Be ready to answer questions about the topic after your presentation.
Charityworks’ Aptitude Tests
Charityworks asks their applicants to complete several aptitude tests during the pre-employment process. This will likely take place during the assessment centre. The exact exams may vary, but candidates should prepare to take the following:
Logical Reasoning Test – One exam you may take is the logical reasoning test. This test will assess your ability to think critically and logically come to conclusions. This skill is imperative for those working in the non-profit sector to help them make sound decisions and problem-solve. This exam is generally non-verbal and will show visual, image-based questions. For example, you may receive a series of shapes that follow an underlying rule or pattern. To answer this question, you must identify that pattern and then apply that logic to determine the following image or shape in the series. These questions are multiple-choice, and the test is usually timed. You’ll have less than a minute to answer each question.
Verbal Reasoning Test – Applicants will also take a verbal reasoning test to assess their ability to read and understand written information, then use critical thinking skills to apply the knowledge and draw conclusions. The ability to understand and interpret complex written information is essential for those in the charity sector. The test will present several text passages followed by multiple-choice questions. The questions may give a concluding statement that you must determine the validity of or ask about the passage’s context. Reading through the questions ahead of time can help you identify what information in the passage is most important. However, this test will also be timed, so you must read through the text quickly and efficiently.
Situational Judgment Test – All applicants should prepare for a situational judgment test (SJT). This is a psychometric exam that assesses your workplace behaviour. The test will present several simulated situations that include a conflict or issue that you must respond to. Each scenario will consist of potential response options that you will need to choose from to select the best course of action. Your responses on this test should align with the mission and values of Charityworks. They seek people who embody their purpose, act professionally, and with service in mind. Before taking this exam, research the organisation to learn more about what they are looking for in an employee. This information can guide your responses and help you do better on the exam.
Placement Matching – Candidates who do well at the assessment centre will go through placement matching before an official employment offer is made. This will match each applicant with a specific organisation and role. While your preferences will be considered during placement, there is no guarantee that you will receive your first choice for placement. After you have accepted your match offer, Charityworks will complete final reference and employment checks before making an official employment offer.
Feedback
All applicants, whether they receive a placement or not, will receive feedback on their performance. This is an excellent opportunity to learn more about your strengths and weaknesses, as well as how you perform during interviews. Because Charityworks uses a merit-based scoring system, you can clearly see where you did well and where you could improve.
This feedback is constructive for those who did not receive a placement so you can better understand what to do differently next time.
How to Prepare for the Charityworks Assessment?
Charityworks is looking for trainees who want to make a difference in the UK by working in the non-profit or charity sector. Those who get into the programme will receive a paid, full-time position as well as a mentor and career training.
To show the hiring team that you are a great candidate who should receive a placement, you must do well on all parts of the recruitment process, particularly the aptitude and psychometric assessments.
These assessments are used by the hiring team to assess the skills necessary to do well in a placement, so it is essential to receive a high score on each exam. Using online resources such as full-length practice tests is a great way to prepare yourself for the exams. These practice tests will present sample questions and answers to help you better understand how to answer each question type.
Working through a full-length practice test is also a great way to practice timing. Knowing that you can complete the exam within the allotted time will decrease your stress, boost your confidence, and allow you to focus on the exam’s content.
Applicants who include these resources in their preparation are more likely to succeed in the hiring process. Be sure to give yourself enough time to adequately prepare.
