USPS Employment Exams 101: Everything You Need to Know

1.  Postal Exams 474, 475, 476 & 477

This blog will focus exclusively Postal exams 474, 475, 476, and 477 which are used to fill over 95% of all entry level jobs. Click on any of those exam titles for details on these tests and on the jobs they fill. There are other exams used to fill different jobs … typically trade specific positions. Such jobs are not often posted, so few people take these other exams. See our Postal Exams page for info on all tests and the jobs they fill.

2.  Purpose of exams 474, 475, 476 & 477

Exams 474, 475, 476, 477 are different from any tests you’ve ever taken. They are best described as very extensive personality tests. The purpose of these exams is to identify applicants who most closely match the Postal Service’s vision of an ideal employee.

3.  Format of exams 474, 475, 476 & 477

Exams 474, 475, 476, 477 are very similar, so similar that many of the same questions appear on all four of these tests. Each of these exams consist of either four or five sections as follows. Click on any section title for details on that section.

The Work Scenarios section appears on all four exams. These questions are about actions you would take ― and not take ― in unusual work situations. Success requires answers that comply with USPS policies and protocols.

The Tell Us Your Story section appears on all four exams. This section asks about your experience and background. Your answers demonstrate your potential as an employee. To succeed, your answers must match their requirements.

The Describe Your Approach section appears on all four exams. 70% of all the exam questions are in this section. The questions and answer choices are quite strange, and it is never clear which answer is best. To ace the exam, you must choose the exact answers they want.

The Check for Errors section only appears on exams 475 and 476. In this section you compare 8-digit numbers to see if they are exactly alike or different in any way. Practice and strategies for quickly and accurately identifying differences are needed for success.

The Work Your Register section only appears on exam 477 which is used to fill customer service jobs. Here you calculate the smallest number of bills and coins for making change from a purchase. Accuracy on this section is essential.

4.  The strange content of exams 474, 475, 476 & 477

Many applicants fail because they are simply blown away by all the weirdness on these exams. They are formatted strangely, the questions are odd and can be difficult to understand, the way you answer questions is bizarre, and the answer choices are often quite similar. Any or all the answers choices for a particular question can seem to be the best.

5.  How exams 474, 475, 476 & 477 are scored

The scoring software uses your answers to create a profile of you. Then it compares your profile to their theoretical profile for an ideal employee. The closer you match their theoretical profile, the higher your score. Your goal is to match their ideal profile as exactly as possible.

6.  What score do you need to get a job?

The highest score is 100, and 70 is passing. Among all applicants for a particular job, a job offer is sent to only one person ― the one with the highest score. So, your goal is to make a score of 100 or as close to that as possible. Unfortunately, 80-90% of applicants fail these exams. Effective test preparation is essential for success.

How to Prepare for Exams 474, 475, 476 & 477

•   You need an up-to-date and 100% accurate test prep guide

You need a crystal-clear understanding of what you’re up against. And obsolete study guides are a huge problem. See our Consumer Alert for details on identifying and avoiding obsolete exam test prep material.

•   Realistic interactive practice tests are a must

You need ultra-realistic and fully interactive practice tests so that, when taking the practice tests, it’s exactly like taking the actual exams. We mentioned above that many applicants fail because they are simply blown away by all the weirdness on these exams. Realistic, interactive practice tests enable you to become intimately familiar with the strange content so you will not be blown away when taking the real exam. Only one test prep guide offers ultra-realistic and fully interactive practice tests.

•   Actual vs. similar questions and answer choices

In most study guides, the practice test questions and answer choices are supposedly similar to the real exams. What if you had a test prep guide whose practice tests had the actual questions and answer choices from the real exams? Which would prepare you better … similar or actual questions? Only one test prep guide has the actual questions and answer choices from the real exams.

•   Recommended answers proven to ace these exams

Only one test prep guide gives you recommended answers for every question that are proven to match their ideal profile … proven to ace these exams. The author of our guides, T.W. Parnell, has taken exams 474, 475, 476, and 477 many times, and he continues to take them, to learn exactly what answer choices match their ideal employee profile. Using the answers developed from this experience, he consistently aces the tests. Our test prep guide gives you his recommended answers for each question on these exams. Per hundreds of customer reviews, applicants who use Mr. Parnell’s recommended answers regularly ace their exams as well.

Order the only test prep guide that offers ultra-realistic interactive practice tests, actual exam questions and answer choices, and the proven best answers today to assure you ace the exam and get the job!