Best way to prepare for Oliver Wyman Numerical Reasoning Test

Hi Anonymous,

when I prepared for it some years ago, I mainly focused on the GMAT, paying a lot of attention to the time constraint.

Topics of the test include:

• Probability
• Permutations
• Percentages
• Geometry
• Ratios

The questions are not super hard once you have understood the general logic. The most difficult thing – where many people fail – is the time management. You can find some sample questions at the link below:

https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/oliver-wyman-numerical-reasoning-test

As you pointed out, the test is 30 questions in 20 minutes, which means that you have less than one minute per question. Together with the fact that you get penalized for wrong answers, this implies that you should leave blank some questions initially. If you don’t do this you won’t manage to obtain a good performance.

When I did mine, I covered 23-24 questions, skipping 6-7. As I finished with a couple of minutes left, I went back to the previous questions, managing to complete 2-3 additional ones.

Hope this helps,
Francesco

Couple of points to add to previous responses:

If you haven't done basic highschool maths in a while, I would revisit the topics of geometry/trigonometry, probability and basic statistics.

While I agree GMAT quantitative section is a good way to practice, don't go overboard with buying GMAT material. Also, only do the "problem solving" questions - the OW test doesn't ask any of the "data sufficiency" type questions. You can find plenty of free content online - also, you can download the "Gmat test simulator" for free and do the math section. Unless you are planning on doing the GMAT soon as well, I would not invest into materials to prep for this.

Finally, being able to fast mental maths is not important, since you can use a calculator. So don't focus on this for the test (but definitely practice it for the actual interview).

Hi Anonymous,

when I prepared for it some years ago, I mainly focused on the GMAT, paying a lot of attention to the time constraint.

Topics of the test include:

• Probability
• Permutations
• Percentages
• Geometry
• Ratios

The questions are not super hard once you have understood the general logic. The most difficult thing – where many people fail – is time management.

The test is 30 questions in 20 minutes, which means that you have less than one minute per question. Together with the fact that you get penalized for wrong answers, this implies that you should leave blank some questions initially. If you don’t do this you won’t manage to obtain a good performance.

You can find some sample questions at the link below:

https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/oliver-wyman-numerical-reasoning-test

When I did mine, I covered 23-24 questions, skipping 6-7. As I finished with a couple of minutes left, I went back to the previous questions, managing to complete 2-3 additional ones.

Hope this helps,
Francesco

Hi,

Agree with Francesco. Several points on my side:

1. The best way is to go through GMAT Official Guide, concentrating on Math Part. Manhattan guide will give you the right math theory and topics.
2. Learn Fast Math:

• Learn how to multiply double digit numbers fast (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYrgjMubh-c)
• Learn the division table up to 1/11 (i.e. 5/6 = 83.3)
• Learn how to work with zeros (Hint: 4000000 = 4*10ˆ6)
• Use math tools (Mimir math for iOS), Math tool on Viktor Cheng website to practice

Best!

Hi, 

1. It's similar to GMAT Math part and covers the same topics. The best way is to go through GMAT Official Guide, concentrating on Math Part. Manhattan guide will give you the right math theory and topics. Also, you can purchase an official GMAT tool that will simulate the right experience.
2. The key thing - do all the GMAT tests with a time limit, similar to the real GMAT. You'll have 2/3 of a minute per question in the real test. Time management is the key.
3. You'll have less than a minute per question and wrong answers will decrease your score, thus don't hesitate to skip some. 
4. Learn Fast Math:

• Learn how to multiply double digit numbers fast (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYrgjMubh-c)
• Learn the division table up to 1/11 (i.e. 5/6 = 83.3)
• Learn how to work with zeros (Hint: 4000000 = 4*10ˆ6)
• Use math tools (Mimir math for iOS), Math tool on Viktor Cheng website to practice

Best!

Hello,

I would argue that the Oliver Wyman numerical and verbal reasoning tests are some of the hardest out there - both in terms of difficulty and time pressure (based on my experience from the recruitment process for the London office).

It's also worth noting that the style of the OW tests differs significantly compared to other companies (particularly the numerical reasoning test). The best examples I've seen online of typical questions can be seen here: 

https://skukre1.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/oliver-wyman-numerical-reasoning-test/

Several questions very similar to those shown in the link above came up during my assessment, so do make sure to complete and understand each question as part of your preparation - just in case! 

Hope that helps and good luck.

Best,

Harri

Hi, 

1. It's similar to GMAT Math Problem Solving part and covers the same topics. The best way is to go through GMAT Official Guide, concentrating on Math Part. Manhattan guide will give you the right math theory and topics. Also, you can purchase an official GMAT tool that will simulate the right experience.
2. The key thing - do all the GMAT tests with a time limit, similar to the real GMAT. You'll have 2/3 of a minute per question in the real test. Time management is the key.
3. You'll have less than a minute per question and wrong answers will decrease your score, thus don't hesitate to skip some. 
4. You can use a calculator

Best!

Hi!

As far as I know the numerical reasoning test at OW is quite sophisticated as it is only focused on maths. It's about 30 maths questions and you have about 20 minutes time. 

to prepare you should revise topics like general algebra, probability, geometry. As already mentioned it might indeed be very helpful to go through GMAT practice tests you can find for free on the internet (unfortunately I haven't found any practice tests on OW in particular).

the good thing is that you can use a calculator but you will still have trouble due to the time pressure, as with other online tests. so practice practice practice ;) 

Good luck!

Hi there! 

Thanks for asking your question in our Consulting Q&A.

If you haven't already, we recommend you to also check out our article: Cracking Oliver Wyman Numerical Reasoning Test - 8 Important Tips to Help You Crunch Those Numbers

Best of luck!

Astrid 

PrepLounge Community Management

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I have seen different cases, I remember colleagues who got an offer with a score of 12. Honestly, the best way to prepare is to find forums online where people share past questions. Best way to practice with questions that were actually asked instead of spending weeks with GMAT/GRE prep.

Hi,

it depends on the geography whether or not Oliver Wyman uses a numerical reasoning test.

In Germany, there is no numerical reasoning test anymore. Nevertheless, you should obviously still do your homework when it comes to your math skills for the life interview!

Best regards