CritiCall Test: What's On It, Scoring and How Hard It Is

If you are applying for a 911 dispatcher, call taker or telecommunicator job in the United States, there is a good chance you will sit CritiCall, the computer-based pre-employment test from Biddle Consulting Group. Biddle says it is used by over 1,500 agencies. Most of what circulates about it is secondhand — someone's cousin took it, it was brutal, there was a lot of typing — which is not enough to prepare against. This guide sets out what the test contains, how it runs on the day, how hard it really is and how to prepare, using Biddle's own candidate material wherever it says something specific.

If you would rather start practicing, the CritiCall practice test page lists drills for each component, and the typing and data entry drills on free practice need no account.

The CritiCall test at a glance

Question	What Biddle says
What it is	A computer-based "work sample" test that simulates a generic dispatch environment without needing job knowledge
What is on it	The software holds over 20 tests; each agency selects the ones that fit its positions
How long	On average between one and three hours
Where	Online or on site, depending on how the agency sets it up; expect a headset for audio sections
Emergency messages	15 seconds to respond to each one, often while you work on something else
Skipping questions	Penalized, unless the instructions for a section say otherwise
Passing score	Set by each agency, not by Biddle
Official practice test	None, but there is a free preparation guide, free sample tests, and unscored practice items at the start of each section

It is not one test. It is a library.

CritiCall is not a single exam with a fixed running order. Biddle's applicant FAQ says the software "contains over 20 different tests, however each agency will select only the most appropriate tests for their positions." The agency chooses which components to include, and two agencies in the same county can run meaningfully different batteries. Biddle's newer version, CritiCall 3D, adds behavioral and situational measures to the operational skills tests of the classic version.

That is why nobody on a forum can tell you exactly what you will face. The honest answer to "what is on the CritiCall test" is: a selection from the components below, chosen by the agency you applied to. What you can do is understand every component type well enough that none of them is a surprise.

The components agencies choose from

Biddle's published test list includes data entry, keyboarding, multi-tasking and advanced decision making, call summarization (listening comprehension), cross-referencing, map reading and position locating, memory recall (including audio and numeric audio versions), numerical ability, frequency of information and probability, perceptual ability, reading comprehension, sentence clarity, spelling and proofreading. Here is what the main types involve. The examples are our own inventions to show the shape of each task; they are not exam content.

Data entry

You see or hear information — a name, a phone number, an address, a plate, a vehicle identification number — and type it into fields. Biddle's guide shows a form with fields for last name, first name, telephone, address, city, zip, VIN, license plate and driver's license, and notes you can move between them with Tab and Shift+Tab. Many parts accept only uppercase letters, which mimics real dispatch systems, and the guide says many test takers find it helpful to have Num Lock on. Accuracy counts alongside speed, and the numeric and alphanumeric strings are where most candidates lose points, because ordinary typing practice contains almost no digits. Timed data entry practice is one of the highest-yield things you can do, and our guide to data entry on dispatcher tests goes deeper.

Keyboarding

A typing test on written paragraphs, reported as words per minute. Biddle does not publish a required speed; your agency sets it. See the dispatcher typing test guide for how those minimums work.

Multi-tasking and decision making: the emergency messages

This is the component that gives the test its reputation. While you work on another task, an "emergency message" appears describing an incident, and you click which agency to send: police, fire, EMS or a public utility. Biddle's guide says you have 15 seconds to respond, and no credit is given for the wrong agency or a late answer. Candidates rarely fail because either task is hard. They lose points on the seam — the few seconds of disorientation after each switch, when they lose their place in the primary task. We cover that failure mode in why candidates fail the multitasking sections.

The four decision rules

Biddle publishes the rules for these items in its candidate guide and tells candidates to learn them before the test and to use only those rules, not what they know about any real agency. In summary:

• Police when someone is harming, trying to harm or threatening to harm another person, or is damaging someone else's property.
• Fire when there are immediate signs of a fire (flames or smoke), a fire alarm is sounding, or someone trapped or confined needs rescuing.
• EMS when there is an emergency medical condition that needs medically trained personnel.
• Utility when there is a problem with broken or malfunctioning public water, electric power (including power lines, streetlights and traffic signals), home-heating natural gas, or blocked sewer drains.

Read the exact wording in Biddle's guide before you test. Then practice applying rules like these at speed while you are busy with something else, which is what our data entry with interruptions drill trains.

Cross-referencing

You are given a value and a reference list, and you find the matching entry and report or enter something from it — Biddle's example is finding a name in an alphabetical telephone book and entering the address. It rewards a disciplined eye more than raw speed. Cross-referencing drills train the scanning pattern.

Perceptual ability (character comparison)

You decide whether two pieces of information, such as addresses or names, are the same or different. The strings are built to defeat casual reading: transposed digits, a one against a lowercase L, a doubled letter. Fluent readers lose marks here because their brains silently repair the exact discrepancy being tested. Compare in chunks rather than reading. Our character comparison drill trains that habit.

Memory recall

Information is shown or played, removed, and then you answer questions about it — descriptions such as a red car or a green shirt, or numbers such as a phone number or plate heard once. The job equivalent is a caller who gives a detail once. Recall improves with an encoding habit rather than raw memory; see our guide to memory and recall sections.

Call summarization

You listen to information told in short story form and then summarize it or answer questions about it. It tests listening comprehension, and it rewards noting the location and the nature of the incident first.

Map reading and position locating

You work out routes or locations on a simple map. Biddle says no map-reading training is needed, but you should be comfortable with left, right and the compass directions. It is spatial reasoning, not local geography. See map reading on dispatcher tests.

Reading, spelling, sentence clarity and proofreading

Reading comprehension asks what a short passage does and does not say. Spelling focuses on commonly used words where a mistake could delay help — Biddle's example is patience written for patients. Sentence clarity asks you to pick the version that says what it means, and proofreading asks you to spot errors. All exist because dispatchers write records other people act on. Our guide to spelling and grammar on dispatcher tests covers the written side.

Numerical ability and probability

Basic arithmetic under time pressure, plus Biddle's frequency of information and probability test. Nothing beyond high school math, but the clock makes it feel harder.

What test day looks like

A few details from Biddle's guide are worth knowing in advance, because they are the kind of thing that costs a few points if they surprise you:

• Each section opens with practice items. They are not scored, and you can skip them — but using them is the cheapest way to learn each format.
• Skipping is penalized. Unless a section's instructions say otherwise, skipped questions count against you, so answer everything. That is the opposite of the California POST dispatcher test.
• Expect a headset. Some sections play spoken information you use to answer questions or enter data, and you can usually adjust the volume.
• Use single left clicks. Multiple-choice answers and the emergency-message agency icons are selected with one click.
• Uppercase and Num Lock. Many entry fields take only uppercase letters, and Num Lock on helps if you use the number pad.

Biddle says the test can be delivered online or proctored locally, so whether you test at the agency or from home is the agency's choice. Your invitation will say which, and what equipment you need.

How hard is the CritiCall test?

Almost every answer online gives a single verdict — brutal, easy, a filter that washes most people out — as though difficulty were a fixed property of the software. It is not, because the test is not one test. Difficulty depends on which components your agency drew and what it decided counts as enough.

That is also why you should distrust any figure quoted as "the CritiCall pass rate." A national pass rate would have to average across different component sets, different weightings, different local cut scores and different applicant pools, which means it describes nothing measurable. The widely repeated low figure is unsourced.

What catches people is concentrated in a few places, and none of them are hard because the task is intellectually demanding:

• The clock, not the content. Most components are things you could do perfectly with unlimited time. The timer is what makes them demanding, and working against a timer is trainable.
• Numbers and alphanumeric strings. People who type a clean paragraph fall apart on "4417 NW 82ND TER APT B" or a VIN. That gap between prose speed and data-entry accuracy is the most common unpleasant surprise.
• Comparison, where reading fluency works against you. Confident readers see what they expect to see.
• The switch between two tasks. Fifteen seconds is plenty to answer an emergency message and not much time to also keep your place in a record.
• Stamina. One to three hours of precise work is new for many people, and accuracy drifts in the back half.

Notice what is not on that list: education, general intelligence or knowledge of dispatch. Biddle's guide says you do not need specialized dispatcher knowledge to answer the items. The difficulty is mechanical and specific, which is exactly why preparation helps. A more useful question than "how hard is it" is: how clean is my numeric typing under a clock, do I compare strings or read them, and can I resume a task cleanly after an interruption?

Scoring and passing scores

There is no national CritiCall passing score. Each agency decides which components to use, how to combine them and what minimum its process requires, and Biddle's software collects input from the agency's own job experts to help set those cutoffs. Some agencies require a minimum on each component; others combine components. Typing and data entry are often set as separate minimums, in words per minute and keystrokes per hour. The only numbers that apply to you are the ones your agency uses — they are in the posting more often than candidates expect, and asking the recruiter is normal. Dispatcher test scores explained covers the mechanics.

How to prepare for the CritiCall test

Biddle's own preparation hints are practical, and they line up with what moves scores:

• Enter names, addresses and phone numbers, reading and listening. Biddle suggests reading them and typing them in, and having someone read them to you while you type, building both speed and accuracy.
• Type numbers from memory. Biddle suggests having someone read a seven-digit phone number, typing it from memory, and repeating with about five seconds between numbers until you are very accurate.
• Learn the decision rules. Then practice applying them while doing something else.
• Practice simple maps. Describe the quickest route between two points using left, right and compass directions.
• Get comfortable with a mouse. Quick, accurate single clicks on small targets.

On top of that, four habits make the biggest difference because they feed several components at once:

• Numeric and alphanumeric accuracy. It feeds data entry, audio entry and the multitasking sections. If you fix one thing, fix this.
• Comparison discipline. Verify character by character, in chunks, rather than reading for meaning.
• Interrupt recovery. Practice with interruptions built in, finishing the field you are in before you switch, so the screen holds your place rather than your memory.
• Sustained attention. Do at least a couple of full-length sessions so fatigue is not new information on test day. The mock exam strings drills together under one clock.

If your test date is close, the order matters more than the volume; our two-week preparation plan front-loads diagnosis. If you are not sure CritiCall is even the test you will sit, what is on the 911 dispatcher test explains how to tell from the posting.

Sources

• Biddle Consulting Group, CritiCall and the dispatcher applicant FAQ
• Biddle Consulting Group, CritiCall Candidate Test Preparation Guide (2023)
• Biddle Consulting Group, CritiCall candidate resources (free sample tests)
• Biddle Consulting Group, TestGenius CritiCall test list

CritiCall is a registered trademark of Biddle Consulting Group, Inc. DispatchDrills is an independent practice provider and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Biddle Consulting Group, Inc. We do not reproduce exam content; every example in our material is original and illustrative only.

Common questions

How long does the CritiCall test take?

Biddle says the testing process takes on average between one and three hours. The exact length depends on how many components your agency selected; your invitation or the agency's testing coordinator can tell you.

Is there an official CritiCall practice test?

No. Biddle says there is no practice test and the software is only available to agencies. It does offer a free candidate preparation guide and free sample keyboarding, proofreading and spelling tests, and each section of the real test starts with unscored practice items.

How hard is the CritiCall test?

It depends on which components your agency uses and where it sets its minimums, so there is no single answer. The difficulty lives in speed and accuracy under a clock, numeric data entry, comparison and switching between tasks — all trainable — rather than in any knowledge you are expected to have.

What percentage of people fail CritiCall?

No trustworthy figure exists. Because the battery is modular and cut scores are set locally, a national failure rate would average incompatible things. The low pass rate that circulates online is unsourced.

What score do you need to pass CritiCall?

Each agency sets its own minimums, sometimes for each component and often separately for typing and data entry. Check the posting or ask the agency's HR contact.

How fast do you have to type for CritiCall?

Biddle does not publish a standard. The keyboarding test reports words per minute and the agency sets the minimum, often with a separate data entry minimum in keystrokes per hour. The figure in your posting is the one that counts.

How long do you get for the emergency messages?

Biddle's candidate guide says 15 seconds per emergency message, with no credit for the wrong agency or a response after the 15 seconds.

Can I retake the CritiCall test if I fail?

Retake rules are set by the agency, not by Biddle, and waiting periods differ from one agency to the next. Ask the agency before you plan around a date.