Get Accurate Practice for the GardaWorld Pre-Board Screening Officer Test [2022]

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Garda Pre-Board Screening Officer Tests and Hiring Process

GardaWorld aims to provide only exceptional services to its clients and thus exercises selective recruitment. Its recruitment process is diverse, difficult, and consists of two tests and two interviews:

Garda Pre-Board Screening Officer X-Ray Object Recognition Test (ORT)

This is the most challenging task of the screening officer’s pre-employment assessment, which 70% of candidates usually flunk. To pass the X-Ray ORT, you will need to rotate objects mentally, differentiate between their overlaying shapes, perform figure-ground segregation, and quickly identify specific patterns in complex images.

The exam includes 20 pictures (questions) and you'll only have 20 seconds to inspect each X-Ray image. To pass it, you'll need to correctly answer 16 out of 20 questions (80%).

Garda Pre-Board Screening Officer Basic English and Basic Math Test

If you pass the first test (X-Ray Object Recognition Test), you will be asked to take another examination, designed to assess your English language proficiency, your math skills, your reading comprehension, and your logical thinking. This test is comprised of 100 questions and should be completed within 60 minutes. To pass it, you'll need to correctly answer at least 80 questions.

The questions are distributed as follows: 

Here's an example for a spelling question, taken from the preparation pack:

 Once you pass both assessments, you'll move on to the interview process:

Interviews

The final stage of the hiring process is two face-to-face interviews with the company’s representatives.

You will be invited to the first interview immediately after your second test (if you pass it successfully). This is a short interview (5-10 minutes) with GardaWorld’s assessors that is mostly competency-based. The second interview is usually scheduled a day after the first one and lasts about half an hour.

Note: if you fail any of the interviews, you'll be able to reapply only after six months.

An Inside Look into the X-Ray Object Recognition Test

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On your X-Ray Object Recognition Test, you will be asked to look at x-ray images of passenger bags and to judge whether objects appearing on the screen can be allowed to enter an aircraft.

The major difficulty you will encounter on the X-Ray Test is the wide variety of pictures. Some of the images will contain threatening items, such as guns, knives, or grenades.

Others will only depict harmless objects. Screened bags will be of different complexity. Some of them will contain more items than others. Objects in some bags will be more mixed with each other than in other bags.

Consequently, some objects may appear more hidden from view and may be rotated at different angles, thus significantly obstructing your ability to identify dangerous objects on the screen. When you look at x-ray screens, you will need to quickly decide whether the screened bag is free of threat and can be safely carried on board.

Garda’s assessment tests are similar to the Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) X-Ray ORT exam, which contains writing skills assessment tests and an x-ray test. 

Below are images of the types of items you may be asked to find including guns, knives or grenades.

'This PrepPack is a really great refresher! Pay ATTENTION to everything they say. You should plan ahead of time, do your research, practice, be confident, and make sure you eat before your exam or interview. First I took the X-ray test, if you pay attention to the instructions it should be fiarly easy and stragihtforward.'

Dula M., Pre-board Screening Officer

GardaWorld Interview Questions

Most of the questions asked at the interviews for a screening officer position with GardaWorld are competency-based.

Such questions are designed to learn more about your motivation to work at the company and about your general aptitude for the position. Interviewers might ask you the following questions:    

• Why do you want to work as pre-board officer?
• What would you do on your first working day, if you are hired?
• Give an example of a time you gave exceptionally good customer service.
• Give an example of a time when you tried to do something better in the office and you were told that this wasn't a good idea. How did you deal with this?
• What qualities do you possess to make you a good candidate for this position?
• What do you think customer service as a pre-screening officer means?
• What would you do if a customer refused to show his or her bag?
• Why do you want to work at GardaWorld?
• What would your references say about your work qualities and what would they might say about something  you could improve upon? 

To create a favorable impression at these interviews, it is essential to familiarize yourself with the company and its goals, as well as with the specificity of the job you wish to get.

Note that before starting your training process at Garda, you must obtain security clearance so that you can access restricted areas of the airport.

Who Is the Pre-Board Screening Officer?

A pre-board screening officer is part of aviation security. The major task of pre-board screeners is to conduct a reliable security check of passengers and their luggage to ensure that no threatening goods are brought onboard the aircraft.

A friendly attitude to passengers even in the most stressful circumstances is another prerequisite for the role of a screening officer.

Luggage Screening and Hand Searching

The most important tasks that screeners perform at the airport checkpoint are x-ray screenings of passengers’ bags and searching them manually.

Performing x-ray screenings effectively is crucial—when screening officers cannot correctly identify objects in passengers’ bags, they can put lives in danger but also create long lines at the checkpoint by sending many bags to be hand searched.

Excellent visual abilities and familiarity with the form and appearance of prohibited objects in the X-ray screening are, therefore, crucial for performing well in this job. 

Body Checking

Pre-boarding screening officers also conduct body checks to prevent passengers from bringing prohibited objects on boards underneath their clothes. Body checks at the checkpoint are done by a metal detector or manually.

Effective communication with passengers helps officers quickly understand what unclear objects are used for and whether they might be threatening.  

Language and communication skills, together with the ability to analyze the x-ray images on the screen, are defined as basic requirements for the job of the pre-boarding screening officer. With our practice materials, you will hone each of these skills and stand out as the most qualified candidate for the job.

What Is GardaWorld?

GardaWorld is a Canadian company that provides a wide range of security services. Headquartered in Montreal, The number of its well-trained, skillful employees is now over 62,000 strong, and its workforce is still increasing. Salaries at GardaWorld range from $31,000 to $60,000 a year, depending on the position. GardaWorld extends its helping hand as far as the United States, Africa, and the Middle East.