Alva Labs logic test: how it works and how to prepare

You may be sent the Alva Labs logic test when you apply through a recruitment and staffing company like Academic Work, or to a Swedish government agency such as the Swedish Post and Telecom Authority. The test is made of matrix puzzles that adapt to how you are doing, and the result lands on a scale from 1 to 10. This page explains how the Alva logic test works, what your score means and what you can do to prepare.

How the test works

The format is fixed, and it helps to know it by heart before you start:

• 20 scored tasks, plus two practice tasks at the start that don’t count.
• Two minutes per task. A countdown shows the time left, and you get a notice at 30 seconds. The whole test can take up to 40 minutes, but most people finish in 15 to 20.
• The difficulty adapts to your answers.
• You can’t skip a task or go back to change an answer, and a task you leave unanswered counts as wrong.
• You can pause, but only a limited number of times. Alva shows a notice when you get close to the limit.

Since you can’t skip, you have to answer each task before moving on. If you get stuck, an educated guess inside the time limit is better than letting the clock run out, because an unanswered task is scored as wrong anyway.

The tasks: 3×3 matrices with six options

Each task is a 3×3 grid with one empty cell. You pick the piece that fits from six answer options, and exactly one of them is correct. The patterns run across the rows and down the columns, never diagonally. The tasks are pictures, so language plays no part in solving them.

The rules in the matrices can be learned. They usually involve the number of shapes, how shapes move or rotate and what happens when two shapes are laid on top of each other. Harder tasks combine several rules at once. If you have seen the rule types before, you can start testing an idea right away instead of staring at the grid.

Why the test feels hard even when it goes well

The test is adaptive, so correct answers bring harder tasks. You will almost certainly reach tasks that feel too difficult, whatever your level. Many people find that stressful, because there is no way to tell how it’s going.

It also explains something that surprises people. Two candidates with the same number of correct answers can get different results, because they were given tasks of different difficulty. Counting your correct answers during the test tells you very little.

Your result on the 1 to 10 scale

Alva reports the result on a standardized scale from 1 to 10, along with a percentile range. You are compared with the working population. Scores of 5 and 6 are the most common, and scores above 9 or below 2 are rare. If you land on 5 or 6, you are where most people are.

You get the full report right after the test, and it is the same report the recruiter sees. Alva says there are no hidden scores, and you can download a copy for yourself. The employer decides what level the job requires.

Retakes: one test per organization

This rule is the reason preparation matters:

• You take one logic test per organization.
• A new attempt with the same organization opens automatically after 24 months. Before that, only the organization’s admin can reset the test, for example after a technical problem.
• With a new employer, you can choose to share your earlier result or take the test again.

If you have a bad day with an employer you really want to work for, it can be two years before you get another try there. Take the test when you are alert and have time, and avoid squeezing it in between two other things.

Who uses Alva Labs

Academic Work, which recruits and places many young graduates, uses the Alva Labs logic test and personality test. The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority uses both parts too. If you are also sent Alva’s personality test, our guide to personality tests explains how these questionnaires work.

How to practice for the Alva Labs logic test

Alva says no prior knowledge is needed, and you get two practice tasks before the test starts. We haven’t found a separate official practice test. What you gain from practicing is mostly familiarity with the format. A meta-analysis of 50 studies found that scores rose by 0.26 standard deviations on average at the second attempt, and TRR, a Swedish career transition organization, saw three hours of practice improve results by up to 20 percent before the effect leveled off.

• Learn the rule types so you recognize them on sight.
• Practice with two minutes per task, so you know how long that really is.
• Practice on adaptive tasks, so a run of hard tasks doesn’t throw you.
• Read the explanation for every task you miss.

Practicing is allowed. Having someone else take the test for you is not. The format is close to Assessio’s logic test, so the page on Matrigma may help too. Our tasks are our own and imitate the task type; they are not Alva Labs’ tasks.

Our Alva Labs practice test follows the same setup: 20 matrices, at most two minutes per task, no going back and difficulty that adapts to your answers. For a shorter warm-up first, the free logic test has 12 matrix tasks with an explanation for each one. Neither needs an account.