NAV CANADA’s current air traffic controller assessment pathway has three main selection-testing stages: a timed online assessment of about 30 minutes, an invitation-only in-person cognitive test day of about six hours, and a half-day assessment centre for candidates who continue.

This page is the main overview for the NAV CANADA assessment test. For worked examples, use the free practice questions; for a longer unofficial drill, use the NAV CANADA practice test. Official Workday messages and invitation emails control your actual assessment.

Independent site notice: ATCPracticeTest.com is not affiliated with NAV CANADA. Assessment details can change. Always verify current requirements through official NAV CANADA sources.

Why NAV CANADA uses assessments

Air traffic control is safety-critical work. Interviews alone cannot show how a candidate processes information under time pressure, updates memory, or maintains attention across competing tasks.

NAV CANADA therefore uses assessment stages to evaluate competencies linked to training success and operational readiness. Passing one stage does not guarantee progression.

Assessment pathway overview

A typical published pathway includes:

  1. Eligibility screening after a Workday application.
  2. A timed online assessment (about 30 minutes, remote).
  3. Regional in-person cognitive testing when invited (about a full day).
  4. A short same-day pre-screening interview after successful in-person testing.
  5. An assessment centre when invited.
  6. Language testing when required for the role or region.
  7. Selection and pre-employment conditions before training.

For the full organisational pathway, read the NAV CANADA hiring process guide.

Skills commonly evaluated

For the in-person cognitive stage, NAV CANADA publicly lists abilities such as:

  • memory;
  • working speed;
  • spatial visualization;
  • thinking and reasoning;
  • attention;
  • information processing;
  • simple math.

Do not invent unpublished interfaces, item banks, or scoring rules. Prepare the underlying skills and follow any preparation platform link NAV CANADA sends with your invitation.

How this cluster is organised

Page Purpose
Assessment test overview Main page for the full assessment pathway
Test format Public stage structure and skill areas
Preparation guide Study strategy
Practice questions Short free worked examples
Practice test Longer unofficial practice session
Online assessment Official first-stage detail
In-person assessment test Regional six-hour testing-day detail

Preparation principles

Effective preparation is ethical and skill-based:

  • practice memory, attention, spatial reasoning, and logical thinking;
  • add time pressure gradually;
  • read instructions carefully;
  • never seek leaked or proprietary NAV CANADA content.

Start with the preparation guide and practice questions.

Sources