How the Sova verbal test works
You get a short passage and a statement about it. You decide whether the statement is True, False or Cannot Say on the basis of the passage alone, then press Next. One prep site reports that some versions play the passage as audio.
Sova offers the test at a foundation and an advanced level. Like its other ability tests it adapts, moving you to harder material after a run of correct answers and to easier material after errors.
No time limit is reported, but your response time is recorded and part of the score. That changes the strategy: you cannot bank time, and lingering over each statement costs you even when you get it right.
How to judge a statement
Ask three questions in order:
- Does the passage state the statement, or make it follow directly? Then it is True.
- Does the passage say something that cannot be true at the same time? Then it is False.
- If neither, it is Cannot Say, even if the statement sounds likely or you know it to be true.
- Before you choose, find the one sentence in the passage your answer rests on. If you cannot point to it, think again.
Worked example
Passage: “Harbour Foods moved its customer helpline to a new supplier in June. Since the move, the average wait to reach an adviser has fallen from eight minutes to three. The helpline’s opening hours are unchanged, and the contract with the new supplier runs for two years.”
“Callers now wait less time, on average, to reach an adviser than before June.” True: the wait fell from eight minutes to three.
“The helpline is open for longer each day than it was before the move.” False: the opening hours are unchanged.
“The new supplier costs Harbour Foods less than the old one.” Cannot Say: the passage says nothing about cost, however likely a saving sounds.
Tips for the real Sova verbal test
- Read the statement before the passage, so you know what to look for.
- Watch words that change the scope: all, some, only, most, will, may.
- Treat your own knowledge as off limits. Cannot Say is right whenever the passage does not settle it.
- Keep a steady pace. Speed on correct answers is scored, so do not reread a passage you already understand.
- Do the practice question at the start of the section to get used to the screen before anything counts.
Practise Sova Verbal Reasoning on CogniPrep
Ours gives you 16 statements drawn from a bank of 80 business passages, each to judge True, False or Cannot Say. Nothing counts down, though your time is recorded. Statements come in blocks of four, starting at medium difficulty, and the level moves up or down with your results in each block. There is no Back and no skip. At the end you get a score out of 100 built from accuracy, speed on correct answers, the level you reached and pacing, a percentile against CogniPrep players, and feedback on which of the three answers cost you most. The count of 16 is ours, as Sova does not publish one.