How the CORE test works
Every question is a pattern of figures with one missing, and you choose the missing figure from six options. There is no language and no maths, which is why employers use CORE across countries. Master positions it for early screening of large applicant pools, with ACE kept for later rounds.
It is a fixed test: everyone gets the same 19 questions, unlike the adaptive ACE. It is also a power test with a generous clock. The limit is 35 minutes, the average is about 18, and the test opens with practice questions.
You can skip a question and it comes back at the end, so a hard item does not have to block the ones after it. You must answer more than four questions for the result to count. Master recommends a laptop or desktop rather than a phone or tablet.
How to solve a CORE matrix
Work out the missing figure before you look at the six options:
- Look along the top row and name what changes: position, rotation, number, shading or shape.
- Check that the same change holds in the second row. If it does, it is the row rule.
- Do the same down the columns. Many CORE-style matrices have a different rule each way.
- Describe the missing figure in words, then find the option that matches every rule.
- If two options are close, find the single feature where they differ and check that feature against the rules.
Worked example
Along each row, the number of small squares goes 1, 2, 3. Down each column, the fill goes white, grey, black. The missing figure is at the bottom right: row 3 means black, and column 3 means three squares.
The answer is three black squares. Three grey squares breaks the column rule, and two black squares breaks the row rule; both are typical wrong options.
Tips for the real CORE test
- Do the practice questions properly. They show the figure style before the scored items begin.
- Use the skip button. A question you are stuck on comes back after the last one.
- You have nearly twice the average time, so check your answer on the hard questions rather than finishing early.
- Before time runs out, answer every skipped question. A blank scores the same as a wrong answer.
- Sit it on a laptop or desktop, not a phone.
Practise CORE on CogniPrep
Each run draws 19 matrices from a pool of 76, easy to hard, with six options and a 35-minute clock. Skipped questions return after question 19 for as long as time remains, and a confirmed answer is final. Your score is the share of the 19 you got right, with a percentile against other CogniPrep users rather than Master’s norms. The matrices are our own.