Knowledge of candidates for a service career is either tested through traditional written examination or through their past educational performance. But their intelligence level is tested by the SSB Interviews through a wide range of unique intelligence and psychological tests. The Officer Intelligence Rating Test is one of the basic tests every SSB candidate has to give on the first day of their SSB Interview.
These tests are very reliable, especially in the case of adult candidates who seek a service career late in life and who generally are not put through any traditional method of test of their knowledge attained through the study of books.
Why SSBs use Officer Intelligence Rating Tests?
During his service career, an Indian Army Officer will be confronted with complicated situations in which not only his own life but the lives of innumerable men under his command will also be involved. If he does not possess a sharp intellect, what is he going to do, when he is confronted with heavy odds against him?
The modern age is an age of science and modern warfare is also based on scientific techniques. Officers of today’s Armed Forces need not necessarily be a physical giants but they must be basically intelligent, and to ascertain the presence of this quality, intelligence tests of various types are given to them. Some of the intelligence tests are designed to test both knowledges coupled with intelligence. These include questions based on everyday observation and elementary mathematical problems.
Nature of Intelligence Tests
Intelligence tests differ from the normal essay type of traditional tests. One does not have to make much use of acquired knowledge but to draw upon one’s inborn intelligence, or innate capacity to solve problems.
One is not required to write long answers but may be required to cross wrong answers out of a few suggested answers or put a tick or dash or circle around the correct answer or merely give the serial number of the correct out of a few suggested choices.
The questions are numerous and lengthy that require short answers. But please remember that the time at the disposal of the candidate is very short. He has to make decisions and respond lightning quickly. There is little or no time to think.
Does Practice of Intelligence Test Help?
A candidate who is to appear for SSB Interview must practice solving intelligence tests before appearing for SSB Interview. By practice, the candidate familiarizes himself with the types of tests that he may get in the SSB Interview.
Sometimes it becomes difficult to understand quickly requirement of the test. One may be able to find a solution to it, but may not understand in what way he has to express the answer. If he has sufficient practice in solving different types of Intelligence tests, he will be able to grasp the requirement of the test more easily and quickly than otherwise.
Secondly, if you put your intelligence to use, you are bound to show better results because your intelligence is being sharpened with use.
What does The Officer Intelligence Rating Test on day 1 of the SSB Interview consist of?
Officer Intelligence Rating Test or OIR Test consists of two sections Verbal and Non-verbal:
- The verbal section Intelligence Test consists of questions based on
- Relationship
- Jumbled words
- Coding/Decoding
- Multiple choice question
- Antonym and synonym
- Reconstruction of sentence
- One-word substitution
- Odd one out
- Common sense and alphabet test
- Arithmetic questions
- The non-verbal section of the Intelligence Test consists of questions based on
- Which figure is different from the other
- Completion of series
- Locate the concealed figure
- Fill in the correct figure.
These are basic Logical Reasoning Questions that you can practice from any book on Logical Reasoning.
Again, intelligence tests are designed to test a candidate’s capacity through performance. Therefore, if the candidate acquires sufficient practice in exercising this capacity, he has a greater chance of success at the SSB Interview.