CFAT Practice Test: Canadian Forces Aptitude Test

What the CFAT is

The Canadian Forces Aptitude Test (CFAT) is the aptitude test that applicants to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) write during the application process. The CAF Help Centre says every applicant must complete it, and that it helps show which military occupations you may be best suited for. After the test, a member of the recruiting staff reviews your results with you and tells you which occupations you qualify for, based on your results and your level of education. You then choose up to three of those occupations to apply for.

The CAF does not publish one pass mark for everyone. Different occupations need different results, so a higher score opens more doors. The CAF also runs an expedited application trial for some Regular Force applicants who meet set criteria (such as holding certain degrees or college diplomas): they do not write the CFAT before enrolment, but write it at the start of basic training instead. Ask a recruiter whether that applies to you.

The three sections

Each section is timed on its own and comes in a fixed order, so you cannot go back to an earlier section. All questions are multiple choice. Calculators, dictionaries, phones and online resources are not allowed, but you are given blank paper and a pen or pencil for working. The test is offered in English and French.

The CAF Help Centre says the problem-solving section has the most impact on your assessment, and that it is the section you can best prepare for with practice. It points to Grade 10 math (Secondary IV in Quebec), with a focus on long-hand multiplication and division, fractions and decimals.

How our practice test works

Our bank has 200 original questions: 60 verbal skills, 50 spatial ability and 90 problem solving. The timed simulation gives you 60 questions in the real mix of 15 verbal, 15 spatial and 30 problem solving. On the real test each section has its own clock; in our simulation you get one 60-minute clock, which is the same total time. Every practice question has four choices and a worked explanation.

A note on the spatial section: our site shows no images, so our spatial questions describe shapes in words. You will rotate and reflect letter grids, fold cube nets, track compass directions, punch holes in folded paper and count the faces of painted cubes. These train the same mental skills, but the real spatial questions will look different, so also take the free official Practice CFAT that the CAF links from its Help Centre.

How to prepare for each section

Verbal skills

Fifteen questions in five minutes is about 20 seconds each, so this section rewards a wide vocabulary more than careful thinking. Read every day and look up words you do not know. When you are asked for the word closest in meaning, pick the true synonym rather than a word that often appears near it.

Spatial ability

You have about 40 seconds per question. Practise turning things in your head: a quarter turn clockwise moves the left column of a grid to the top, and a half turn swaps opposite corners. For cube nets, faces two squares apart in a straight row of four end up opposite each other. Folding real paper and turning a die in your hand are good ways to build the skill.

Problem solving

This is the longest and most important section: 30 questions in 45 minutes, so about 90 seconds each. Without a calculator, speed comes from practice. Work through fractions, decimals, percentages, ratios, averages, speed and distance, time on the 24-hour clock, and simple equations, all by hand. Our bank also includes number series and short logic puzzles to sharpen the same reasoning skills.

On test day

• You are not penalized for guessing or for wrong answers, so never leave a question blank. If time is about to run out in a section, quickly guess on anything left.
• Do not get stuck: skip a hard question and come back to it if you have time in that section.
• Arrive rested, healthy and on time, and make sure you get the test in the language you want.
• If you feel unwell or very tired, the CAF advises writing the test another time.

Rewriting the CFAT

If you were not successful, or your results did not qualify you for the occupations you want, you can ask your recruiting centre to rewrite the test at least one month after your first attempt. You are limited to two rewrites, and for a third and final attempt you must show that you have completed a high school academic course related to CFAT performance since your last try. CFAT scores do not expire, and it is your most recent score, not your highest, that counts.

Aptitude Tests Canada is an independent practice platform. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Canadian Armed Forces, the Department of National Defence or the Government of Canada, and our questions are original practice items, not real CFAT questions.

Three worked examples

One question from different sections of the full pack, with the answer and explanation.