I Took the Bank of Uganda Aptitude test in 2026: Everything you need to know

The Bank of Uganda released a call for application to 31 IT roles in August 2025 and like many young Ugandans, I applied for the role that fit my competencies. Fast forward 6 months later (February 2026 if you’re following), I got an email telling me I had been shortlisted for a pre-selection test in a month. Details of what was entailed in the pre-selection test were not shared except for a reporting time and venue.

I started my research on BOU aptitude tests by doing what any reasonable person does: scouring the internet. I found almost nothing insightful. A few reviews on Glassdoor and some forum threads, but it was a whole lot of silence. So I’m writing a post I wish I had found.

First, a huge clap for the coordination team — ABS Consulting

Prior to my test date, I’d never heard of this team of professionals but I want to give them their flowers before going further. From communication to coordination to organisation of the day, they were a breath of fresh air. The team was professional, organised and genuinely helpful. In terms of time management, the team was not on par but that was simply because of how organised they had to be. And despite the miss in time management, we were comfortably sat under tents and provided with water for refreshment as we waited to take our tests.

Here’s exactly how my aptitude test went:

We each received time slots by email ahead of the test. On arrival at the venue (COCIS), we waited in tents until our index numbers were displayed. Once we each had seen our index numbers, we were ushered into the building where preparation steps unfolded:

1. Luggage Check: Our bags/luggage were tagged with a ticket and kept safely for us. No smart phones, smart glasses, smart watches, calculators etc were allowed in the test so they were to be left in the luggage room. All you needed was your valid ID. Very straightforward.
2. ID wristbands: On the next floor, we received wristbands printed with our individual index numbers and signed the attendance register.
3. Test Guidelines: We then moved to an adjacent room for a full briefing on the test. Key things we needed to know going in: “The test is 75 questions in 1 hour, you receive a password linked to your index number to access it, results are sent to a valid email address you provide, once you click start the timer begins immediately, nobody is allowed in or out once the session starts, etc”. This was also the time to visit the restroom.
4. The Waiting Room: After the briefing we moved up another level to receive our test passwords. This wait was the longest part of the day because those sitting multiple tests had to finish their sessions before the group could proceed together. We eventually entered the test room an hour later.

Time for the test. Dah, dah, dahhhhh

Each person sat at their own computer. A pen and plain paper were provided for any working (Spoiler alert: There was no working needed).

The Test itself — Not what I expected

This is the main reason I’m writing this post. To add much needed context to pre-selection tests. This one was different and I kind of liked it.

There was no numerical reasoning. No verbal reasoning. No logical sequences or Spatial diagrams. What I got instead was 75 scenario-based questions in 60 minutes, all directly tied to the role I applied for.

Think less “what comes next in this sequence” and more “here is a real problem on a live system, what do you do?”

It was still multiple choice questions with 4 options for each question. These are some questions paraphrased from memory. They’ll give you context to what I mean:

• A payment gateway is throwing encryption errors after a WAF signature change. What do you do?
• A security vulnerability has been found in the web servers after a recent vulnerability test. How do you address it?
• A website allows users to upload documents for compression. What will ensure full protection of the service?
• You notice the website CMS is using an unsupported plugin. How do you proceed?
• Pages of a website underwent a recent redesign and the site is no longer showing up in the search index results. How do you troubleshoot?
• An external partner has been granted access to a SharePoint library but keeps getting “Access Denied”. What could be the issue?
• A website CMS has been updated with new content, but users in a certain region are still seeing the old content. What do you investigate first?
• A new compatibility policy was ran on all cores of a bank node but progress stopped halfway. How do you proceed?
• A partner service’s gateway still uses TLS 1.0 but all bank services are using a higher version. What should be done?
• Trusted CMS editors want direct access to the website’s production environment to reduce time to publication. What workflow do you recommend?

Every single question was rooted in the practical realities of the role.

If you have a pre-selection test coming up, you can feed these questions into a GPT model to give it context on how to set questions for you to practice with.

What this means if you are preparing

Unless your test has been specifically titled “Aptitude Test” then forget generic aptitude test prep for these pre-selection tests. The best preparation is deeply understanding the concepts relevant to your specific role.

You are not being tested on how fast you can calculate. You are being tested on whether you actually know your field.

Remember: Time is against you. If you already have a hard time reading in calm environments, you definitely won’t like this type of test. It’s sentences from question 1 to question 75. Polish up on your reading and comprehension speeds.

Final Thoughts

The whole experience was well-run, calm and professional. If you’re going in anxious about maths puzzles, logic diagrams, banking formulas — relax. Have some breakfast, arrive in time, go in prepared with knowledge in your domain, pray before the test begins and you’ll be fine.

Don’t have less than 8 hours of sleep the night before. You don’t want a foggy brain in the test…

For me personally, I was unaware of this pre-selection test format and spent my preparation time dying with aptitude practice. However, because I didn’t lie on my resume, knowledge from work experience carried me through the test and I passed with above 80%.

Now because you read this article, your results will also be in the greater percentile. Good luck, there’s nothing in your way now!