MTA Jobs Exams 2024 Preparation

Do you want to work at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority? For most jobs at the MTA, applicants need to pass both interviews and MTA employment exams. Learn more about the hiring process for jobs at the MTA, and get on your way to a new job today.

Many candidates are curious about the various steps that they will have to take to get hired at the MTA. Below we have outlined all of the stages of the hiring process, as well as tips for passing each one exam with ease.

You can apply for jobs at the MTA via their website. You need to have an email address in order to apply via the online system. Be sure to check the requirements for the job you are applying to before sending in your application.

For example, many jobs require a high school education (or a GED), and bus and train operator positions require a valid New York State driver's license. You can review your application before submitting it to ensure that you have included all the necessary parts, your contact information is correct, and you don't have any spelling mistakes.

Every position at the MTA has a different assessment test.

The MTA Police Exam includes 200 questions and has a time limit of two and half hours. This test covers a wide variety of subjects, including logical reasoning (inductive and deductive reasoning), spatial orientation, verbal information processing, and visualization.

This test evaluates the skills that MTA Conductors must use in their daily tasks. This includes understanding and utilizing information, solving problems and making decisions, displaying good interpersonal skills, knowing the major points of interest in New York City, and understanding military time.

The exam for bus operators is called the BOSS and it is essentially a psychological or personality test. It is comprised of 200 questions which help to determine whether a candidate possesses the necessary personality traits to be a successful bus operator. Key qualities include patience, helpfulness, and keeping calm under stressful conditions.

This exam tests basic math skills, logical reasoning skills, problem sensitivity, and verbal reasoning skills, among others. Because the questions are of many different types, it is helpful to practice beforehand to pinpoint your strengths and weaknesses.

This test evaluates your basic math and arithmetic skills, your reading comprehension skills, and your ability to provide quality customer service.

Learn more about the requirements of this challenging test and try some sample questions in our MTA Station Agent Exam page. 

Most jobs require a drug test, and others require candidates to pass a physical as well. 

This is the final stage of the hiring process and only candidates who successfully pass all of the previous stages will be invited to an interview. Be sure to dress neatly and professionally for your interview, even if the dress code for your desired job is casual. 

For some positions, such as police officer, additional exams are required. These include job-specific exams which test job-related skills, knowledge tests following a course, and personality tests.

JobTestPrep can help you ace every part of the hiring process. It is critical that you do well on your assessment tests because candidates are contacted for interviews based on how well they do on the exam. For example, even if two candidates both pass the test, the candidate with a higher grade will be contacted weeks or months earlier than the candidate who scored lower. JobTestPrep's tailored MTA study materials, which include realistic practice exams and study guides, can help you become familiar with the test's content and format, allowing you to go into your exam feeling confident and ready to succeed.

JobTestPrep's study guides, practice tests, and answer explanations can help you prepare for the application process for any of the following positions.