According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job outlook for civil engineers is approximately 8% growth per year through 2030. This growth rate represents 25,300 new civil engineering jobs. However, many of these jobs are projected to go unfilled because there are not enough engineers to meet the growing demand.
As a result, businesses must compete for top talent in a shrinking pool of applicants. Companies that successfully navigate this shortage will be able to remain competitive. However, those that fail to reevaluate their hiring and screening practices will struggle to fill vacancies.
You need to use pre-hire skills tests to screen engineering candidates to overcome the engineer shortage and make better hiring decisions. Below, we discuss the benefits engineering skills tests offer and recommend assessments you should use in your hiring process.
What Are Engineering Skills Tests?
Engineering skills tests are screening tools you can use to gauge a candidate’s skills and abilities. Skills tests can measure soft skills, non-job-specific abilities, or technical aptitudes directly related to the engineering profession. These skills tests provide more detailed insight than screening practices like resume reviews or interviews.
Skills tests can easily be administered remotely, accessed via an online testing dashboard. HR personnel can assign skills tests to each applicant and send them a link to log in to the dashboard. After applicants complete and submit their assigned skills tests, HR staff can access detailed performance reports.
Using skills tests takes the guesswork out of screening and hiring engineers. Instead of relying on non-quantifiable screening practices, your staff can make data-driven decisions based on skills-test results.
There are many engineering skills assessment tests available. You can also create a custom skills test, but more on that below.
Why Use Engineering Skills Assessment Tests?
Incorporating skills tests into your engineering hiring protocol offers many significant benefits. First and foremost, engineering skills tests allow your team to make informed hiring decisions based on hard data. They can use the results of skills tests to eliminate unqualified candidates, identify the most talented applicants, and focus their efforts on recruiting and screening these top candidates.
Using engineering skills assessment tests results in better hiring and reduces the strain on hiring teams. Candidate skills tests can be administered early in the screening process so that recruiters can narrow down their search before scheduling interviews. This strategy will minimize the number of interviews they need to conduct, expediting the hiring process.
In addition, adding skills tests into your hiring protocols will drastically reduce the chances of poor hires. Even a single poor hire can cost your business thousands of dollars in lost productivity and wasted recruiting expenses. To make matters worse, hiring an engineer who cannot adequately carry out their assigned responsibilities can negatively impact team morale.
Which Engineering Skills Tests Are Most Effective?
There are several engineering skills tests that you can implement to improve your hiring process, including:
Mechanical Aptitude: The Mechanical Aptitude skills test includes 40 questions of various formats, such as multiple-choice, select-all-that-apply, and true/false. This skills test covers several topics, including Deflections, Dynamics, Manufacturing, Buckling of Compressed Columns, Mechanical Properties of Materials, and Structural Analysis. The Mechanical Aptitudes skills test is an excellent tool for screening engineering candidates.
Attention to Detail: The Attention to Detail skills test covers Finding Errors, Word Analysis, Pictures, and Word Meaning. The Attention to Detail skills test is considered a “soft” skills test because it measures abilities that are not directly related to the engineering field but are essential to a candidate’s success.
Communication Skills: The Communication skills test focuses on topics such as Writing Skills, Listening Skills, Communication in the Workplace, and Business Meetings. This skills test gauges an applicant’s ability to communicate in a business setting, something that’s essential for all engineers.
These are only a few examples of the skills tests available in the eSkill online testing library. In addition to pre-built skills tests, you can create custom multi-subject tests in seconds by hand-picking questions from other skills tests. This feature allows you to tailor the topics covered in the skills test to align with your organization’s unique needs.
eSkill also offers behavioral analysis tests to give your hiring team insight into candidates’ motivations, values, and work ethic. By deploying a mix of different tests, you can ensure that every new hire you onboard will have the skills and the attitude required to excel in your organization.
Online Engineering Skills Assessment Tests from eSkill
Are you wondering how engineering skills assessment tests can help you recruit qualified candidates? Request a demo to learn how they can.
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