What the test is
An online assessment usually comes before the first interview. Optiver lists the order for its trading roles as application, online assessment, behavioural interview, then a final interview day (Optiver Sydney campus recruiting FAQs).
Candidates describe the arithmetic part as a long list of short questions under one clock, mostly addition, subtraction, multiplication and division with two and three digit numbers. Reports differ on the details, such as whether you type the answer or pick it from a list, and the firms do not publish them. Optiver states the rule that shapes the whole thing: the use of calculators is not permitted during the assessment.
Optiver and IMC do not publish a question count, a time limit or a scoring rule on their careers pages. When candidates ask which of the claims online are true, Optiver tells them to ask a recruiter rather than trust what is passed around.
This site is not affiliated with Optiver, IMC or any other firm. Nothing here is any firm’s test, and no result here is seen by anyone but you.
What it measures, and what it does not
It measures speed and accuracy on arithmetic you already know, under a clock, with nothing to write on. Doing it well means recalling facts rather than working them out, and not stalling on the one question that is harder than the rest.
It does not say whether you will be good at the job. Optiver puts it plainly: being good at mental math is necessary but insufficient to thrive as a trader there, and quick decisions under pressure are judged across the whole process.
It is also narrow: it tests arithmetic and nothing else. IMC says its assessments vary depending on the role, so ask your recruiter what yours will cover.
Where the numbers come from
Every figure below about a firm comes from that firm’s own careers page.
Optiver allows one attempt at its assessment every 8 months, across all offices and roles. Optiver Europe adds that it cannot offer resets or retakes within those 8 months once an attempt has started. Treat the test as a single sitting and prepare before you open the link.
Question counts and time limits circulate widely. Optiver and IMC do not publish them, so this guide does not repeat them as fact. The practice on this site offers an 8 minute, 80 question format because that is the format people search for, not because a firm confirmed it.
How to prepare in the weeks before
Start with the facts, because a fact you recall costs no time and a fact you work out costs seconds you do not have. Times tables to 12, squares to 25, and the common fractions as percentages.
Then learn the methods that turn a two digit product into two easy steps: split one factor, multiply by 11, by 5 and by 25, and work near 100. Optiver’s own advice for the assessment is to practice activities that involve quick problem solving, such as mental math and strategy games.
In the last week, practice under a clock, on the device you will use, with no paper. Decide your skip rule first. If a question has not resolved in a few seconds, skip it and move on. On the practice here a wrong answer costs a point and a skip costs nothing, so a skip is the cheaper mistake.
On the day, read the scoring rules on the first screen. They decide whether guessing pays.
Practice it here
Quant interview arithmetic has the same shape: typed answers, a clock that stops when you leave the tab, and a score of correct answers minus wrong ones. Its lesson, Keep the pace, covers skipping what stalls you, the sign rules, and anchoring a decimal to a whole number.
For a plain sprint without the interview framing, use mental math and its lesson Multiply in parts.
Related on this site
- Mental multiplication tricks. The six methods, each with a worked example.
- Times tables. The facts every method ends in.
- Math practices. Everything else in the same subject.
Questions people ask
What is on a trading firm's mental math test?
Candidates usually describe a long list of short arithmetic questions under one clock, mostly with two and three digit numbers. Reports differ on whether you type the answer or pick it from a list. Optiver states that calculators are not permitted. Optiver and IMC do not publish a question count, a clock or a scoring rule, so check the details with the firm's recruiter.
Can you retake the Optiver assessment?
Not for a while. Optiver allows one attempt at its assessment every 8 months, across all offices and roles. Optiver Europe adds that it cannot offer resets or retakes within those 8 months once an attempt has started. Treat the test as a single sitting, and prepare before you open the link.
How should you prepare for a quant interview math test?
Learn the facts first: times tables to 12, squares to 25, and the common fractions as percentages. Then learn the methods that turn a two digit product into two easy steps. In the last week, practice under a clock, on the device you will use, with no paper. Decide your skip rule before the test, and read the scoring rules on the first screen.
Is the 80 questions in 8 minutes format real?
Optiver and IMC do not publish it. Question counts and time limits circulate widely, but none is confirmed on a firm's own pages, so treat them as unconfirmed. The practice on this site offers an 8 minute, 80 question format because that is the format people search for. Optiver tells candidates to ask a recruiter rather than trust what is passed around.
Is being good at mental math enough to become a trader?
No. Optiver says being good at mental math is necessary but insufficient to thrive as a trader there, and it judges quick decisions under pressure across the whole process. IMC says its assessments vary depending on the role. An arithmetic test tests arithmetic, and the rest of the process looks at the rest.