CritiCall is the pre-employment testing platform many public safety agencies use to screen 911 dispatchers, call takers and emergency communications operators. If you have been invited to a dispatcher assessment in North America, there is a good chance this is the software you will sit in front of. The typing section is only one part of it, but it is the part candidates most often fail, and the part you can most reliably improve before the day.
The test above mirrors the typing component: a timed run on mixed operational text. It is not the CritiCall software itself, and this site is not affiliated with it, but the skill being measured is the same one.
What the CritiCall typing section measures
The assessment is modular, and agencies choose which modules to include, so no two sittings are identical. The typing-related parts generally break down like this:
- A straight typing speed test. Copy displayed text for a fixed period. Scored in net words per minute after errors are deducted.
- Data entry. Enter details into labelled fields. Accuracy is weighted heavily because the fields represent real incident data.
- Call summarisation. Listen to a simulated caller and type the relevant details. This is the module that separates candidates, because you cannot read ahead and you must decide what matters while typing.
- Cross-referencing. Compare information across sources and enter the correct result, testing attention rather than finger speed.
Beyond typing, expect memory and recall, map reading, prioritisation, spelling, sentence clarity and multi-tasking exercises where two things demand your attention at once.
What score do you need?
This is the most common question and the honest answer is that there is no single passing score, because each agency sets its own cut-off and weights the modules differently. Typing minimums advertised by agencies using the platform commonly fall between 30 and 45 net words per minute. Some agencies publish the figure in the job posting; many do not, and will only say that a typing assessment forms part of the process.
Two practical rules follow from that. First, find the posting and read the requirements section carefully, because the number is often there. Second, if no number is given, prepare to about 45 WPM with accuracy above 95 per cent. That clears nearly every published minimum with enough margin to survive a bad day.
Why candidates underperform
Almost nobody fails because they cannot type. They fail because the test removes the conditions their typing depends on:
- They rely on looking at the keyboard, which becomes impossible when the information is audio.
- They are practised on flowing prose, and the test is full of names, streets and digits.
- They try to type every word of what they hear instead of capturing the facts.
- They lose the accuracy score by backspacing constantly to fix small errors.
- They have never done a long test and their accuracy falls apart in the final minute.
A four-week preparation plan
- Week one: technique. Fix your hand position and stop looking down, using the finger placement guide. Speed will dip. Let it.
- Week two: accuracy. Daily accuracy practice until you can hold 97 per cent without thinking about it.
- Week three: the hard material. Numbers, proper nouns and street names. Type from audio for ten minutes a day.
- Week four: simulation. Full-length runs in exam mode with background noise, no pausing and no second attempts.
If you want the schedule built for you around your current numbers, generate a personalised practice plan instead of following a generic week-by-week list.
A note on what this page is
We are an independent typing practice site. We do not sell, licence or reproduce the CritiCall assessment, and practising here does not give you the questions. What it does give you is the underlying skill the typing modules measure, which is the only part of a pre-employment assessment anyone can legitimately train for.
What the testing session is like
Sessions are usually held at the agency or a testing centre, in a room of computers with other candidates, and commonly run between one and three hours depending on how many modules the agency has selected. You will normally be given headphones for the audio sections, there is often a short break in the middle, and you are typically not allowed to bring a phone or notes in with you.
Two things about the environment catch people out. The keyboard will not be yours, and it may be a different size or have a different key feel from the one you practised on. And the room is not silent: other candidates are typing, which is distracting during the audio modules in a way that practising at home never prepares you for. Both are good arguments for doing at least a few practice runs on an unfamiliar keyboard with background noise playing.
After the test
Results are usually reported to the hiring agency rather than to you, and agencies vary widely in how much detail they share. Some tell you only whether you passed; others give a score per module. Where a score is shared, pay attention to which module let you down, because that is the one to work on before any retake.
Most agencies allow retakes after a waiting period, and some accept a recent result transferred from another agency using the same platform. Ask about both, because if your result is valid elsewhere you may not need to sit it again for every application you make.
If you did not pass, the most common cause by a wide margin is the audio data entry section rather than the plain typing speed test. That is genuinely trainable: type along to recorded speech for fifteen minutes a day, using material where names and numbers appear, because those are the fields that get scored.
Other job typing tests
Preparing for a different role? These tests are set up the same way: 911 Dispatcher Typing Test · Pre Employment Typing Test · Data Entry Typing Test Practice · Transcription Typing Test.
Start practising now
Scroll back up and take the test on this page as many times as you like. When you want a structured plan rather than repeated attempts, our personalised practice plan builds a schedule around your current speed and the keys that slow you down, and the full lesson library covers everything from the home row to numbers and punctuation.