Prepare for your in-tray exercise

It is a workplace simulation in which you use messages, documents and a role brief to make decisions. You may prioritize work, delegate, arrange a schedule, check information or draft a reply. E-tray usually describes an electronic version. It is an exercise family, not one standardized exam.

Six drill types with three mini-cases each, plus six full linked-inbox cases. The drills cover prioritization, delegation, scheduling, analysis, data checking and written response. Each longer case has eight tasks across these skills, with its own original documents and constraints.

Our full practice has a 45-minute clock; the short drills are untimed. Actual employer exercises can use different durations and tasks. The 45-minute setting is our original practice design, not a universal in-tray time limit.

Objective checks assess explicit facts and constraints, such as deadlines, calculations, authority and scheduling feasibility. Editorial judgment checks are reported separately. Your written draft is not automatically graded: you review it beside an example response and a transparent checklist.

Not necessarily. Practice checks the stated dependencies and constraints. Priority items can share a band when appropriate, and different schedules can satisfy the same requirements. The model is an example; a different feasible plan is not rejected just for being different.

No. You write inside a fictional practice case. Your draft is saved with your practice results for review; it is not sent to a customer, colleague or employer. No reply is composed for you during the exercise.

If your account includes free first attempts, you can try each focused drill once. One In-Tray / E-Tray pass covers full exercises and all drill replays during your chosen period. Some accounts require a pass before starting a drill. The public example and study guide are free.

Submit the entire mini-case or finish the timed case to see review. You can revisit tasks and documents during the exercise without receiving intermediate grades. The full-exercise clock continues while the tab is hidden or after reloading.

No. This is independent practice for inbox and document-handling skills. Deloitte’s current UK early-careers guidance describes other named online and job-simulation stages. The current Fast Stream assessment centre includes Written Advice, Stakeholder Communication and Personal Development Conversation. Follow the exact format in your invitation.

No. Employers can use different cases, marking criteria and role expectations. Practice results identify missed constraints and reasoning to improve. They are not employer scores, validated leadership ratings or hiring predictions. Written self-review is not an assessed writing score.