Network Engineering Test
The Network Engineering Test is an intermediate screening assessment for hiring teams filling hands-on network roles. It checks whether candidates can reason through switching, routing, VLAN, subnet and performance issues, and helps identify people who can troubleshoot common office and branch connectivity problems.
Summary of the Network Engineering Test
The Network Engineering Test is an intermediate screening assessment for hiring teams filling hands-on network roles. It checks whether candidates can reason through switching, routing, VLAN, subnet and performance issues, and helps identify people who can troubleshoot common office and branch connectivity problems.
3 dimensions, scored separately
Switching & routing
This measures whether a candidate understands how traffic moves through switches and routers, and how common configuration choices affect reachability. It matters because many day-to-day outages come down to incorrect routes, interface settings or path decisions.
VLANs & subnets
This measures whether a candidate can work with network segmentation, IP addressing and basic Layer 2 to Layer 3 boundaries. It matters because users often lose access when ports, VLAN assignments or subnet settings do not match the intended design.
Performance
This measures whether a candidate can recognise common causes of slow or unstable network behaviour and choose sensible first checks. It matters because support teams need people who can separate reachability issues from congestion, misconfiguration or device-level problems.
Everything about the Network Engineering Test
This test is one part of screening every applicant from one link: add a one-way video interview and resume scoring, and compare candidates in one report.
01What is the Network Engineering Test?
This test measures practical network engineering skills used in day-to-day support and infrastructure work. Candidates answer scenario-based questions on switching and routing, VLAN and subnet configuration, and basic performance diagnosis. The content focuses on problems they are likely to face on the job, such as users losing access after a route change or after moving to a different switch port. Questions are drawn from a larger bank so each candidate sees a varied set. In Springhire, this gives hiring teams a quick way to compare applicants on core networking judgement before interviews.
02How does the Network Engineering Test work?
Candidates complete 20 multiple-choice questions in 10 minutes. Questions are served from a bank of 60, randomised per candidate, so no two sittings are exactly the same. The test is set at an intermediate level, is auto-scored, and is designed to check applied networking knowledge rather than memorised definitions alone.
03Why is the Network Engineering Test important to employers?
A resume may list routers, switches and TCP/IP, but that does not show whether someone can diagnose a broken path, spot a VLAN mismatch or reason through a subnet issue. This test reduces the risk of moving forward with candidates who know terminology but struggle with real network behaviour under common support and operations scenarios.
How to interpret Network Engineering Test results
Every candidate report scores each dimension separately. Here is what high and lower scores typically look like at work, and how to use them in your hiring decision.
Switching & routing
High scorers: A high score suggests the candidate can follow traffic flow, evaluate route and switch behaviour, and troubleshoot common connectivity faults with confidence.
Lower scorers: A low score suggests the candidate may struggle to diagnose basic pathing problems or understand how switch and router settings affect access.
VLANs & subnets
High scorers: A high score suggests the candidate can reason accurately about segmentation, addressing and why hosts can or cannot communicate across network boundaries.
Lower scorers: A low score suggests the candidate may miss common port, VLAN or subnet issues that interrupt access for users and devices.
Performance
High scorers: A high score suggests the candidate can identify likely causes of degraded network behaviour and prioritise useful checks early in the troubleshooting process.
Lower scorers: A low score suggests the candidate may have difficulty separating performance symptoms from configuration or reachability problems.
What job roles can you hire with the Network Engineering Test?
- Network Engineer
- Network Administrator
- Systems Administrator
- Infrastructure Engineer
- IT Support Engineer
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Frequently asked questions
It measures practical knowledge in switching and routing, VLANs and subnets, and network performance. The questions focus on applied troubleshooting rather than theory alone.
This test fits candidates applying for intermediate networking and infrastructure roles. It is useful for Network Engineers, Network Administrators, Systems Administrators and similar positions with hands-on support or operations responsibilities.
Use the score as an early screening signal, not as the only decision point. Strong results suggest the candidate can reason through common network issues, while weaker results show where to probe further in an interview.
Yes. The questions are based on common support and network operations situations, such as reachability failures after route changes or loss of access after a desk move.
Randomisation helps you compare candidates fairly while reducing the chance of repeated answer sharing. Each person receives 20 questions drawn from a 60-question bank, with the same skill areas still being measured.
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