UK law firm uses battery of tests to assess qualified law school candidates

Despite what I said below, one UK law firm has decided to use a battery of psychometric tests, including one designed to measure critical thinking skills, in order to make "better" hiring decisions.  The firm has also made its application form more difficult to complete in order to weed-out the ambivalent.

As Legal Week reports:

Applicants will now visit the firm twice as part of the initial recruitment process but will only be interviewed by a fee earner if they pass a first-round assessment consisting of a number of written tests, including a newly-added psychometric testing element.

The top 15 UK law firm [Simmons and Simmons] said the changes were partly implemented in a bid to reduce the time fee earners spend on the recruitment process.

After a consultation earlier this year, Simmons has added the Watson Glaser test, which examines critical thinking, to its trainee recruitment process and plans to also roll it out to vacation scheme applicants next year.

Maybe Professor Henderon is right after all.

You can read more about this UK firm's new twist on job candidate assessment here.

Hat tip to the online ABA Journal blog.

(jbl).