Hiring glossary

A job simulation is a hiring assessment in which candidates do a realistic version of the work the role involves, in a setting built to resemble the job, so the employer can judge performance directly.

A work sample test is a pre-hire assessment in which candidates complete a task that is identical or closely similar to work they would do in the job, and are scored on the result.

A pre-hire assessment is any structured test or exercise an employer asks applicants to complete before a hiring decision, to measure job-relevant skills, abilities or behaviour in the same way for everyone.

A situational judgement test (SJT) presents realistic work scenarios and asks you to judge a set of possible responses, for example by rating each one, picking the best and worst, or ranking them.

A cognitive ability test is a timed assessment of general reasoning, such as numerical, verbal and logical or abstract reasoning, that employers use to gauge how quickly a candidate can learn and solve problems.

Adaptive testing is a way of delivering a test in which each question is chosen by the computer based on how the test taker answered the previous ones, so the difficulty adjusts to the person’s level.

Proctoring is the supervision of a test while someone takes it, to confirm who is taking it and that they follow the rules; online, it is done remotely through software, a live supervisor or both.

Criterion-related validity is evidence that scores on a selection procedure, such as a test or interview, are statistically related to an important measure of job performance.

A structured interview is a job interview in which every candidate is asked the same predetermined, job-related questions in the same order, and each answer is rated against the same scale and standards.

An interview scorecard is a form interviewers use to rate a candidate against the same predefined criteria for the role, with a rating scale and space for the evidence behind each score.

A one-way video interview is a job interview you record on your own: you open a link, see each question on screen and record your answer to camera, and the employer watches the recordings later.

A job requisition is an employer’s internal, approved request to fill a position, raised by the hiring manager and signed off by the people who control the budget before the job is advertised.

An open requisition is an approved request to hire that has not yet been filled, meaning the employer has budget and sign-off for the position and is recruiting for it.

“Requisition closed” on a job application means the employer has stopped hiring for that opening, usually because it was filled, cancelled or put on hold, and is no longer considering applicants for it.

An applicant pool is the full set of people who have applied for a specific job opening, before any screening or selection has narrowed it down.

A talent pool is a database of people an organisation has identified as potential hires for current or future roles, such as past applicants, sourced prospects, former employees and referrals.

A realistic job preview is information an employer gives candidates about the day-to-day reality of a role, including the hard or unappealing parts, so that people who would not be happy in the job can opt out before accepting.

Time to hire is the number of days between a candidate entering your hiring process, by applying or being approached, and that candidate accepting your offer.

Time to fill is the number of calendar days from when a job requisition is opened to when a candidate accepts the offer for that position.

Quality of hire is a recruiting metric for how much value new employees add to the organisation, usually judged by their performance, retention and the hiring manager’s rating after a set period.