EIAT Practice Test: the Elevator Industry Aptitude Test
The EIAT is the entrance test for an elevator mechanic apprenticeship with the International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC), run by the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP) at each local's recruitment. It is 100 questions on paper, pass or fail at 70%. Practise each section, the whole paper and the tape-measure reading in the separate Tool Assessment.
Also called the NEIEP test, the IUEC aptitude test or the elevator apprenticeship test.
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EIAT Tool Assessment: Measuring
Tape-measure reading for the separate Tool Assessment, which counts toward the interview score: 20 readings to a sixteenth of an inch, ending with distances between two marks. Measuring only; the real format is not published.
The paper, section by section
NEIEP's 2024 study guide fixes the EIAT at 100 multiple-choice questions on paper. The 70% pass line is counted over all of them, so no section has a mark of its own. The Tool Assessment is a separate step, scored into your interview.
| Section | Questions | What it looks like | Our practice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading Comprehension | 35 | Fill the gaps: a passage with numbered blanks and four words for each. | EIAT Reading Comprehension |
| Mechanical Aptitude | 35 | A drawing of gears, pulleys, levers or hydraulics, with three choices. | EIAT Mechanical Aptitude |
| Mathematics | 30 | Pencil arithmetic and simple algebra, with five choices, the last "No answer". | EIAT Mathematics |
| Tool Assessment (separate) | Not published | Basic tools and their use, and basic measuring. Counts toward the interview score. | EIAT Tool Assessment: Measuring |
Reading Comprehension
Questions: 35
Fill the gaps: a passage with numbered blanks and four words for each.
Practise: EIAT Reading ComprehensionMechanical Aptitude
Questions: 35
A drawing of gears, pulleys, levers or hydraulics, with three choices.
Practise: EIAT Mechanical AptitudeMathematics
Questions: 30
Pencil arithmetic and simple algebra, with five choices, the last "No answer".
Practise: EIAT MathematicsTool Assessment (separate)
Questions: Not published
Basic tools and their use, and basic measuring. Counts toward the interview score.
Practise: EIAT Tool Assessment: MeasuringWant all 100 in one go? The Full EIAT (100 Questions) runs the three sections as one paper, marked against the real pass line.
From application to the hiring list
Step 1
Apply
Apply online to your local’s recruitment with proof of a high school diploma or GED. There is a $25 testing fee.
Step 2
The EIAT
100 questions on paper, pass or fail. You need 70% correct to be scheduled for an interview.
Step 3
Tool Assessment
Basic tools and measuring. Correct answers count toward your interview score.
Step 4
Interview
Two members of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee, one from the union and one from the employer side, with the same questions for everyone.
Step 5
Hiring list
You are ranked by your interview score, and need at least 70% on it to be ranked at all.
The EIAT is a gate, not a ranking. Passing with 71% or with 99% earns the same interview. Your place on the list comes from the interview, with the Tool Assessment counted in, so once you are safely over the line the time is better spent on tools, measuring and interview answers.
Failing ends that recruitment. Applicants who fail are not interviewed and are removed from the pool. You can re-apply at the next recruitment, but a local recruits only when its list runs out or expires, which lists do every two years.
Three things most guides get wrong
The reading section is a gap-fill
Every sample in NEIEP's guide is a passage with numbered blanks and four words to choose from for each, not a passage followed by questions. Practise the format you will actually sit.
Tool knowledge is not in the 100
The paper is reading, mechanical and maths. Tools and measuring are a separate Tool Assessment, and its correct answers count toward your interview score.
There is no competitive EIAT score
NEIEP scores the EIAT pass or fail at 70%. The hiring list is ranked by the interview score, so a promise of a high EIAT score that beats other candidates misdescribes the process.
What NEIEP does not publish, and what our practice does instead
The time limit. It is set at your recruitment. Prep sites report up to about 60 minutes for all 100 questions, which is not official. Our games have no time limit: the clock counts up, and a marker shows the reported 60 minutes, or a section's share of it, labelled reported, not official.
The calculator rule. NEIEP's sample maths is pencil work: decimal division, mixed numbers and order of operations. Our maths has no calculator, which is our assumption.
Penalties, section order and "No answer". Whether a wrong answer costs marks, the order of the sections and how often "No answer" is the right maths choice are all unpublished. We deduct nothing, follow the study guide's order, and key "No answer" on about one maths question in six.
The Tool Assessment's format. Its length and weight are not published. We practise the measuring half, reading a tape to a sixteenth of an inch, and not tool identification, because a drawing of a tool is not a fair test of knowing the real one.
Official resources
- NEIEP EIAT Study Guide (2024)
The section breakdown, what to revise and sample questions for each section. The only study material NEIEP approves.
- NEIEP IUEC apprenticeship FAQ
Eligibility, the testing fee, the pass mark, the interview and how the hiring list works, in NEIEP's own words.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is on the EIAT?
100 multiple-choice questions on paper: Reading Comprehension 35, Mechanical Aptitude 35 and Mathematics 30. The reading section is a fill-the-gaps test, the mechanical questions are drawings with three choices, and the maths questions have five choices, the last always "No answer".
What score do I need to pass the EIAT?
70% correct. NEIEP scores the EIAT pass or fail, with 70% the minimum passing grade, and applicants who reach it are scheduled for an interview.
Is there an official EIAT study guide?
Yes. NEIEP publishes an approved study guide with the section breakdown, the topics to revise and sample questions for each section. It is the only material NEIEP endorses.
How long is the EIAT?
The time limit is not published; your local’s recruitment sets it. Prep sites report up to about 60 minutes for all 100 questions.
What is the tool assessment?
A separate step from the 100 questions, described in a local’s recruitment notice as covering basic tools and their use, and basic measuring skills. NEIEP says correct answers count toward your interview score.
What happens if I fail the EIAT?
You are not interviewed and are removed from that recruitment’s pool of applicants. You may re-apply during the next or a later recruitment period.
How is the hiring list ranked?
By your interview score, the average of the two interviewers’ scores, with tool assessment points counted in. The EIAT score itself does not rank you: it is pass or fail.
When does my local recruit?
Each IUEC local recruits on its own, when its hiring list has been used up or expires, which lists do every two years. Openings are posted on NEIEP’s Apprenticeship Opportunities page.
Guides and Tips
Read up before you practise: what the tests reward, what catches candidates out, and why shortcuts do not work.
EIAT mechanical aptitude test: how it works
Mechanical Aptitude is 35 of the EIAT’s 100 questions: drawings of gears, pulleys, levers, rods and hydraulics, each with three choices, one of which means there is no difference.
Can You Cheat the EIAT?
A paper test at the recruitment, scored pass or fail, with the rank decided at an interview. Why there is nothing to gain from a shortcut.
EIAT reading comprehension test: how it works
The EIAT’s Reading Comprehension section is not passages with questions after them. It is 35 numbered gaps in short passages, and for each gap you choose one of four words.
EIAT Pass Mark, Tool Assessment and Interview: How the Hiring List Works
The Elevator Industry Aptitude Test decides whether you are interviewed, not where you rank. What the 70% line means, what the Tool Assessment and interview add, and what a fail costs.
EIAT math test: how it works
Mathematics is 30 of the EIAT’s 100 questions: pencil arithmetic, fractions and simple equations, each with five choices, the fifth always "No answer".
EIAT tool assessment: how it works
The Tool Assessment is a separate step from the 100-question EIAT. It covers basic tools, their use and basic measuring, and your correct answers count toward your interview score.
Practice by Test Type
Compare the same format across every provider that uses it, and see what each one is really measuring.
Numerical Reasoning Test Practice
Tables, charts, percentages and ratios against the clock. The most common screening test on graduate schemes and analyst roles.
Verbal Reasoning Test Practice
Short dense passages and true, false or cannot say answers. Judged on what the text supports, never on what you already know.
Mechanical Reasoning Test Practice
Drawn gears, pulleys, levers and fluids. Predict which way things turn, what balances and what moves fastest.
About CogniPrep EIAT Practice
CogniPrep provides practice for the Elevator Industry Aptitude Test (EIAT), the entrance test for apprenticeships in the International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC), given by the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP) at each local's recruitment. Candidates also call it the NEIEP test, the IUEC aptitude test, the elevator apprenticeship test or the elevator union test. CogniPrep is not affiliated with NEIEP, the IUEC or any local.
- 5 practice tests: EIAT Mechanical Aptitude, EIAT Reading Comprehension, EIAT Mathematics, Full EIAT (100 Questions), EIAT Tool Assessment: Measuring
- 100 multiple-choice questions on paper: reading 35, mechanical 35, maths 30
- Pass or fail at 70% correct; the hiring list is ranked by the interview score
- A separate Tool Assessment of basic tools and measuring, counted into the interview
- Time limit and calculator rule not published
- United States
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