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Candidate Selection: The Use of Psychometrics and Other Tools

Compare assessment methods used for candidate selection and discuss their reliability and validity.

  • Duration

    2 weeks

  • Weekly study

    10 hours
Overview
Requirements
Educators

Selecting the right candidate for the job involves both recruitment and selection. Recruitment being a positive process which encourages prospective people to apply for the job, and selection, a series of steps by which candidates are assessed in relation to their suitability for the role.

This course focuses on the assessment stage of the selection process. It covers the nature of interviewing and methods such as psychometric testing, highlighting the key benefits and limitations of each, and how organisations might avoid common pitfalls. Reliability and validity issues are also discussed.

What topics will you cover?

Psychometrics

  • The nature and history of psychometrics
  • Categories of tests
  • How psychometrics should be used for selection
  • Fairness in testing for selection: the pros and cons
  • Reliability and validity issues
  • Advantages and disadvantages of using psychometrics

Situational Judgement Tests

  • The nature and history of SJTs
  • How SJTs should be used for selection
  • SJT development process
  • SJTs and personality
  • Advantages and disadvantages of using SJTs

Interviews

  • The nature of interviewing: the procedures involved and types of interview
  • Fairness in interviewing: the potential errors
  • Advantages and disadvantages of using interviews
  • Reliability and validity issues
  • Steps in interview design
  • Conducting the interview
  • Improving the interview

Assessment centres

  • What are they and why do we use them?
  • The assessment criteria
  • Assessment examples, from work based samples to group discussions
  • Advantages and disadvantages of assessment centres

Other tools (eg references)

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Discuss the two main stages involved in the hiring process and the differences between them.
  • Explore the assessment stage of the selection process and understand what happens if things go wrong.
  • Describe a range of selection methods, including the interview, psychometrics, SJTs and assessment centres.
  • Evaluate the key benefits and limitations of the selection methods discussed and explain how organisations might avoid common pitfalls.
  • Assess the reliability and validity of selection methods.

Who is the course for?

This course is for individuals who would like to compare a range of assessment methods used for candidate selection including psychometrics and discuss their reliability and validity.

Who will you learn with?

Andrew Clements

Lecturer in occupational and business psychology at Coventry University.
Andrew (PhD, CPsychol.) conducts research on motivation and career behaviours, and wellbeing at work.

Who developed the course?

Coventry University

Coventry secured 5 QS Stars for Teaching and Online Learning in the QS World University Ranking 2020 and has received No. 1 in the world for Massive Open Online Courses in MoocLab’s World University Ranking 2021.

  • Established

    1992

  • Location

    Coventry

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