Bocconi Test: how is the test structured and run?


Test structure

The Bocconi test consists of 50 multiple-choice questions, divided into 4 parts:

1.Logic (15 questions)

Logic questions are designed to assess the student’s ability to reason and analyze information rationally.

The student must be able to distinguish between relevant and irrelevant information to answer the question.

These questions are not based on specific concepts learned during the school curriculum, but test transversal logical reasoning skills. For example, to assess the validity of a proposition, students may be asked to evaluate the validity of propositions derived from it, using logical connectors (operators that transform one or more propositions into other propositions, whose validity will depend on the validity of the original proposition).

Examples of logical connectors are “no” (negation), “and” (conjunction) or “or” (disjunction). The student may also have to apply theoretical set logic or probabilistic reasoning.

2. Mathematics (15 questions)

Specific mathematics questions relate to the high school curriculum, or are considered solvable by reasoning. From year to year, questions are developed around one or more of the following themes, by way of example:

  • Understand information given in elementary statistical terms;
  • Solve simple concrete problems involving 1st or 2nd degree equations or simple exponential equations;
  • Use simple linear equations;
  • List the solution to a given problem ;
  • Calculate numerically, test the student’s numerical sensitivity ;
  • Solving simple inequalities ;
  • Solve elementary probability problems;
  • Solve simple geometric problems (straight lines and parabolas) ;
  • Solve elementary logic problems (true/false), Euler-Venn diagrams;
  • Interpret passages describing complex situations.

3. Reading comprehension (13 questions)

The Bocconi test includes a series of questions designed to test the student’s ability to understand passages and process the information they contain. It is essential to read the passage carefully. The questions immediately follow the passage. To answer them correctly, the student will need to have assimilated the meaning of the text and the information it contains: some of these questions are designed to assess comprehension of information that has been clearly presented, while others will focus on the implicit meaning of the passage as a whole or of certain parts of it.

4. Reasoning digital (7 questions)

No advanced mathematical knowledge is required, as the task will be limited to solving the problem mainly by reasoning and paying attention to the data provided.

Whenever the student is required to perform sums, these will usually be straightforward. More often than not, the main challenge is to be able to read a graph or table correctly, to understand it and to differentiate between critical and superfluous information in order to solve the problem.

Test procedure

The online Bocconi test takes 75 minutes.

The questions in the test are of mixed difficulty and subject matter.

It’s important to try to answer all the questions, as the student probably won’t have time to review those that have been ignored. Some problems may take less than a minute to solve, while others may take longer. Each student independently chooses the answers to be given and the number of questions to be dealt with, bearing in mind that the aim of all participants is to answer as many questions as possible correctly, and to complete the whole test right up to the last question. This means moving from one subject to another quickly, without wasting time.

Test results are calculated according to the following rules:

+1 point for each correct answer

0 points for each missing answer

-0.2 points per wrong answer

Candidates who obtain a total score (including penalties) of less than 17 will not be considered in the selection process.

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