Marcus Delacor

Preparation for EPSO open competitions

Booklet 6

THE NUMERICAL REASONING TEST

TASKS AND STRATEGIES
 BOOKLETS

euphorum has published a range of booklets as prepara- Booklet 1

tion for the selection process of the European Person- EU open competitions: Overcoming the hurdles
nel Selection Office (EPSO).
Booklet 2
The pre-selection phase: The computer based tests

Booklet 3
The situational judgement test

Booklet 4
The verbal reasoning test: Part I: The principle of
compliance

Booklet 5
The verbal reasoning test: Part II: Methodical
approaches

Booklet 6
The numerical reasoning test: Tasks and strategies

Booklet 7
The abstract reasoning test:

Booklet 8
The accuracy and precision test

Booklet 9
The organising and prioritising test

Booklet 10
The assessment centre

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

The numerical reasoning test will test your ability to
grasp texts and figures (tables and graphs) quickly and to
choose the right answer from a selection. There are
usually more texts than tables and graphs (by a ratio of
2:1). You will have some 60 to 70 minutes to answer a
total of 40 questions. You do not need to have studied
maths at university for this test. Nevertheless, you will
have to have basic maths skills. The real challenge lies in
answering the questions in the time given. Below you
will find all you need to know in order to answer the
questions.
To answer the questions, you will need to be competent
in the four basic maths skills (addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division) and be able to do the
following:
 Convert a question into an equation,
 Change various weights, lengths, and time periods
into a particular unit, Distinguish between absolute
and relative values
 Use the rule of three,
 Do percentage, Calculate averages and weighted
averages

How to solve the nummerical reasoning test

The questions designed to test numerical reasoning
consist of either tables or graphs. Two or three maths
questions are posed in a text. There are four possible
answers, of which only one is correct. The questions tell
you which mathematical operations are required.
Graphs are often used to illustrate the questions and
tables provide the data.
Questions related to a table or a graph usually build on
each other. This means that Question 3 is more difficult
than Question 1 and often the answers to – or
calculations made in – previous questions are very
useful and sometimes necessary in later questions.

You do not necessarily have to be exact. Sometimes

estimates are enough. Other questions ask you to
complete mathematical formulae with data from a table.

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

How to convert a question into an equation How many millions of tons of tin were in total extracted
A simple calculation must be made to answer this type in Consacstan in 2001 and 2002?
of questions. Data are usually supplied in tables. These a.) 320
are very simple questions that are frequently found at b.) 180
the beginning of the numerical reasoning test. c.) 160
d.) 140

Metals extracted in 2000 in millions Metals extracted in 2001 in

of tonnes millions of tonnes

Abrarian Consacstan Abrarian Consacstan

Tin 80 60 Tin 100 80
Magnese 20 40 Magnese 10 40
Copper 40 20 Copper 40 10
Zinc 40 20 Zinc 20 80

To answer this question you will have to make a simple addition. You will find the data in the tables: 60 millions of
tons of tin were extracted in Consacstan in 2001 while the amount in 2002 was 80 millions of tons.
60 millions of tons + 80 millions of tons = 140 millions of tons
Answer d) is correct.

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

How to distinguish between absolute and relative A=B+C or A =B-C.

values
Most of the maths questions in the numerical reasoning
test ask you to calculate with absolute or relative values.
When using absolute values, you will always end up with
a quantity (as in kg, hours or population). Typical
questions include:
In which country was the most fruit harvested in year Y
compared to the previous year?
How many more people travel to work annually by
bicycle than by car?
Before 1994, life expectancy in the EU of 12 rose by
0.3%. What was the life expectancy of men in 1992?
In general, the formula takes the form of
Questions with relative values test your ability to pit one
value against another, either as a percentage or as a ratio.
Typical questions include:
In which country was the greatest percentage increase in
fruit yield from year X to year Y?
What percentage of cyclists say that they cycle to work
regularly?
Which country had the greatest percentage increase in
female life expectancy between 1994 and 1996?

Table of part-time employees by sex and country

(< 30 hours / a week)
Denmark Sweden France Norway Belgium Germany

Women 1990 29.6% 24.5% 21.7% 39.8% 29.8% 29.8%

2001 20.8% 21.0% 23.8% 32.7% 33.4% 33.9%

Men 1990 10.2% 5.3% 4.0% 6.9% 4.6% 2.3%

2001 9.0% 7.3% 5.0% 9.1% 5.6% 4.8%

216,000 men were part-time employed in Denmark in 2001. The total of the male workforce in Denmark
increased 2% between 2001 and 2003. The number of male part-time employees did not change. How big was
the male workforce in 2003 in Denmark?

A ) 220,320 B) 2,160,000 C) 2,400,00 D) 2,448,000

Answer:
(total number of employed in 2001) * 9% = 216,000
(total number of employed in 2001) = 216,000 / 9%
(total number of employed in 2001) = 216,000 *100 / 9
(total number of employed in 2001) = 216 / 9 * 10 (to the power of 5)
(total number of employed in 2001) = 2,400,000
2,400,000 + 2,400,000 * 2% = X (at this moment it becomes clear that D is the right answer)
2,400,000 + 48,000 = X

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

Use the rule of three and do percentage 138 dockworkers can unload 200 ships in 24 hours.
A common way to deal with ratios or proportions is to How many dockworkers are required to unload the
use the rule of three. When using the rule of three, the same cargo in 18 hours?
type of relationship between the elements is very Solution:
important. The relationship can be either parallel or Dockworkers Hours
inverse in nature. 138 24
In a parallel relationship, one element increases in value X number of dock workers 18
if the other increases in value. The converse is also true. This is an inverse relationship, so the mathematical
If we are told that a cyclist can cover 75km in 5 hours, equation looks like this::
then we can say that he would cover more distance in 10 138 workers * 24 hours = x workers * 18 hours
hours or he would need less time to cover 30km. x workers = 138 workers * 24/18
In an inverse relationship, one element decreases in x workers = 138 workers * 4/3
value if the other increases in value. The converse is also x dock workers = 184 dock workers
true. If we are told that 10 farmers need one day to till
100ha of field, then we can say that 10 farmers and 10
assistants would only need half the time or that 5 In order to do percentages, you need to be competent in
farmers could do the same work in two days. expressing relationships as a percentage and in
It is important to know whether you are describing a determining portions as a percentage. The skill is in
parallel or inverse relationship when writing a finding the right fraction and in being able to cancel in
mathematical equation and using the rule of three. A your head so that the maths are as simple as possible.
parallel relationship is described with a fraction or ratio When using fractions, the denominator needs to be 100
while an inverse relationship is described by or 10. For example, ½ = 50/100= 50% = 0.5 = 5/10.
multiplication. A cyclist covers 75km in 5 hours. After 2 hours, he has
covered 30km. What percentage of the total distance
Parallel relation A B does he still have to cover?
C D
A/B= C/D Answer:
Inverse relation A B Time Distance
C D 5 hours 75 km
A*B= C*D 2 hours 30 km
Example: A cyclist covers 75 km in 5 hours. How much 1.) Determine the remaining distance as a percentage of
time does he need to cover 30 km? the total distance
(75km-30km)/75km = 45km/75km = x
Solution:
2.) Cancel and take to the lowest common denominator:
Time Distance
45km/75 km = 3/5 = 6/10 = 0.6 = 60% =x
5 hours 75 km
Or:
X hours 30 km
1.) Determine the remaining time as a percentage of the
This is a parallel relationship, so the mathematical
total time
equation looks like this:
(2 hours – 5 hours) / 5 hours= 3/5
5 hours / 75km = x hours / 30km
2.) Take to the lowest common denominator:
5 hours / 75km * 30km = x
3/5 = 6/10 = 60/100 = 60% = x
2 hours = x

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

Reason of death in the EU (1999)

Men Women
Total number of Number of dead men Total number of Number of dead
dead men per 100,000 men dead women women per 100,000
women
Heart diseases 597,471 322 841,158 444
Heart infarct 278,325 150 265,230 140
Cancer 460,164 248 413,000 218
Respiratory diseases 155,862 84 83,358 44
Diseases caused by external 107,619 58 41,679 22
factors

How many men lived in the EU in 1999?

a. 150,000,000 b. 130,924,080 c. 159,944,000 d. 185,550,000

Answer:
460,164 men died of cancer in 1999. The number of deads per 100,000 was 248.
Number of dead men: Number of men who This exercise is about parallel relations.
100.000 died of cancer: 248 X/460,164 = 100,000/248
Total number of men? Number of men who X= 460,164*(100,000/248)
died of cancer: 460,164 X= 460,164/248*100,000
X= 185,550,000

The following problem is a question about a percentage change:

Table of part-time employees by sex and country

(< 30 hours / a week)
Denmark Sweden France Norway Belgium Germany
Women 1990 29.6% 24.5% 21.7% 39.8% 29.8% 29.8%
2001 20.8% 21.0% 23.8% 32.7% 33.4% 33.9%
Men 1990 10.2% 5.3% 4.0% 6.9% 4.6% 2.3%
2001 9.0% 7.3% 5.0% 9.1% 5.6% 4.8%

Question:
The male workforce in France increased 5% between 1990 and 2001. What was the increase (in percent) within part-
time employed men between 1990 and 2001?
a. 1.00 b. 10.00 c. 25.00 d. 31.25

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

Answer: How to calculate averages and weighted averages

The number of part-time employees in France increased
from 4% to 5%. At the same time the total male
workforce increased by 5%. The share of 5% of part-
time-employess should include this change. How much
(in %) is the increase with view to the 4% from 1990?
Answer: (5%*1.05- 4%) / 4% = 1.25 / 4 = 31,25%
By adding together a set of numbers and then dividing
the result by the number in the set, you arrive at the
(arithmetic) mean, more commonly known as the
average.
Mathematically, this looks like this:
Mean=(X 1 +X 2 +X 3 +....+X n )/n

Examples of questions from the EU-competition: (to Averages are not the same as weighted averages. The
answer the questions you would use tables and graphs) numbers added together here are not of equal value or
Question: equal importance, but rather go into the sum according
Renting an average apartment in Zagreb cost 20% with a specified weighting. In order to get a weighted
more than in Athens. The same type of apartment cost average, the sum must be divided by the sum of the
3 450 euros per quarter in Madrid and 13 200 euros weighted components.
per year in Prague. In which city were rents the Mathematically, this looks like this:
highest? Weighted average = [(X 1 A+X 2 B+X 3 C+X n
Question: D)]/(A+B+C+...+D)
A fast-food restaurant in Tokyo sells 1 500 meals at a
total price of 5 250 euros. The price of a meal in this
restaurant was 30% lower than the average price of a
fast-food meal in Tokyo. What was the difference in
average price between a fast-food meal in Dublin and
Tokyo?
Question:
In 2004 the Commission levied 17.5 million euros in
Italy as a result of the overrun of the national quota for
deliveries. By how many tonnes did Italian producers
exceed this quota?
Question:
Irish GDP had an annual growth of 2% between 1999
and 2000. What was it in 2000? Question:
In 3 years' time, by what percentage will the total
number of works owned by French public libraries
have increased?

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

Climate in the EU in 2000

Austria Belgium Denmark Finland France Germany
Rainfall per year (average in 615 780 641 672 654 598
mm)
Average January -0.7 2.2 0.1 -6.9 3.4 -0.4
temperature
July 19.7 17.2 16.4 16.6 18.4 17.9
(degree Celsius)

Question: The average temperature in France increased constant between January and July. What was the
temperature in May 2000 in France?
a. 13.4 °C b. 14.1 °C c. 15.4 °C d. 15.9 °C
Answer:
The temperature increased 15C in France between January and July. The temperature increased constantly
during the six months. The average rise of temperature per month was 2.5C and the temperature in May was
therefore 13.4°C.

Another exercise tests your ability of weighing single values and finding the correct overall result.

Men Women
Total number of Number of dead men Total number of dead Number of dead women
dead persons per 100,000 men persons per 100,000 women
Cancer 460,164 248 413,000 218

Question: The European Union had 375 millions of inhabitants in 1999. How many inhabitants died of cancer
per 1,000,000 inhabitants?
a. 2,328 b. 2,765 c. 4,660 d. 8,731

Answer:
If the total number of EU inhabitants is 375 millions, there will be 185,55 millions of men and 189,45 millions
of women in the European Union. By rule of thumb this means a 50-50 relationship between male and female
population. (To be precise, the men represent 49.48% of the population while the women represent 50.52%)
The number of men dying from cancer would be 2,480 per 1,000,000 men. The number of women would be
2,180 per 1,000,000 women. You will have to do a gender-specific calculation:
248*10*49.48%+218*10*50.52% = total number of persons dying from cancer per 1,000,000 inhabitants =
2,328
You will now see that it is not necessary to do precise calculations. The correct result will have to be between
2,180 and 2,480. Answer a) must therefore be the correct answer.

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 THE NUMMERICAL REASONING TEST

Survival tips In the numerical reasoning test only a few advanced

skills – e.g. the rule of three and percentages – are
required. Practise these.

In most cases, estimates are sufficient, since the exact

answer is to be found in the choice of answers provided.

Do not calculate everything to the last digit, but rather

focus on the possible answers and choose one as quickly
as possible.

Remember that English and continental number

formats differ. English uses commas as separators and a
full stop as a decimal point and other languages use the
reverse– 125,000.00 on an English test paper would be
125.000,00 on a German test paper.

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