NAPOLCOM exam practice test: free questions from every area, and the way to drill that actually moves a score.
Searching for a NAPOLCOM practice test turns up two different things under one name: single-area question sets you work through untimed, and full papers you sit against a clock. They do different jobs, and most examinees only do one of them. This guide draws the line, explains how to drill each of the four areas so the practice transfers to the paper, and gives sample items with worked answers so you can start today.
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Exam guide
NAPOLCOM Exam Practice Test: Free Questions by Area, and How to Drill
Short answer
A practice test drills one area, untimed, with an explanation on every item; a mock exam sits all four under a clock. You need both. Use practice tests to fix the area a mock named as weakest, and use mocks to check that it moved. Sample items from all four areas are below, with answers.
Quick facts
- Practice test
- One area, untimed, explained
- Mock exam
- All four areas, timed, scored
- Order
- Mock first, then practice, then mock
- Free here
- Diagnostic mock, daily challenge, 4 flashcard decks
- Paid here
- Unlimited drills by area, explanations, retakes
Primary keyword: napolcom exam practice test
Key takeaways
- A practice test is for learning; a mock exam is for measuring. Confusing the two wastes both.
- Drill the area a mock named as weakest, not the area you like. That is where the cheapest marks are.
- Read the explanation on every item, including the ones you got right by guessing.
- Short timed sets of twenty items are the bridge between untimed drilling and the three-hour paper.
- General information is drilled by reading first and testing second; the other three areas are drilled by doing.
Practice test or mock exam?
A practice test drills one area at a time, untimed, with the answer and an explanation after every item. Its purpose is learning: seeing the item types, learning the traps, fixing the method. A mock exam sits all four areas in one timed sitting and returns a score by area. Its purpose is measurement: finding out whether the learning transferred, and which area is weakest now.
The order matters. Mock first, so you know which area to drill; then practice on that area; then mock again to see whether it moved. Drilling without a diagnosis means drilling what you already like, and mocking without drilling means measuring the same gap repeatedly.
| Practice test | Mock exam | |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | One area | All four areas |
| Timing | Untimed, or short timed sets | Three hours, no pause |
| Feedback | Explanation after every item | Score by area on submission |
| Purpose | Learn the item types and methods | Measure readiness and find the weakest area |
| How often | Daily, in short sessions | Every one to two weeks, then weekly in the last month |
Source: NAPOLCOM's examination information page (Regional Office CALABARZON)
How to drill each area
The four areas reward different kinds of practice, and the biggest waste in most reviews is drilling general information as if it were logic, or logic as if it were reading.
- General Information: read first, test second. Read RA 6975, RA 8551, RA 11200, the Bill of Rights and Article XVI Section 6 once, closing the source and writing what you remember after each section. Then drill items to find the gaps in the reading, and reread those parts.
- Verbal Reasoning: a daily word list of ten to twenty words met in sentences, with the nearest synonym and the tempting wrong answer noted. Grammar by naming the rule before choosing. Reading by going back to the passage for every answer.
- Quantitative Reasoning: fundamentals by hand until automatic: times tables, fraction-decimal-percent conversions, percentage shortcuts. Then word problems by type, reading the last sentence first. Always without a calculator.
- Logical Reasoning: analogies by naming the relationship in a sentence before reading the options; deductions by writing the facts down; patterns by running the same checklist (additive, multiplicative, alternating, positional) on every sequence.
Source: Republic Act No. 6975, the DILG Act of 1990 that created the PNP, Republic Act No. 8551, the PNP Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998, Republic Act No. 11200, the PNP rank classification act
From untimed to timed
Untimed practice builds method. It does not build pace, and pace is where the NAPOLCOM paper takes its marks. The bridge is the short timed set: twenty items from one area in fifteen minutes, then in twelve. When a timed set on your weakest area comes in above 80%, it is time for a fresh full mock. The practice drills on this site run in exactly that shape, with a fresh set every session and an explanation after each answer.
Source: NAPOLCOM's examination information page (Regional Office CALABARZON)
Sample practice questions
Original items in the style of each area, with the answer and the reasoning. Work each one before reading the answer, and note which area's explanation you needed most.
Source: the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 8551, the PNP Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998
Sample questions
A few example items in the style of the real exam, with worked answers.
General Information
The 1987 Constitution provides that the State shall establish and maintain one police force that is national in scope and what in character?
Answer: Civilian in character, administered and controlled by a national police commission (Article XVI, Section 6). 'Civilian' is the word the item tests; the tempting wrong answers say 'military' or 'paramilitary'.
General Information
Which body was created by RA 8551 to investigate misconduct within the PNP?
Answer: The Internal Affairs Service (IAS). The PLEB hears citizen complaints; the IAS is the PNP's own inspection and investigation arm under Title V of RA 8551.
Verbal Reasoning
Identify the error: 'Each of the applicants were required to submit their birth certificate.'
Answer: 'Were' should be 'was'. 'Each' is singular, so the verb is singular regardless of the plural noun in the phrase that follows it.
Quantitative Reasoning
A recruit's monthly pay is ₱32,000. It increases by 12.5%. What is the new monthly pay?
Answer: ₱36,000. 12.5% is one eighth; 32,000 ÷ 8 = 4,000; 32,000 + 4,000 = 36,000. Recognising 12.5% as an eighth avoids decimal multiplication by hand.
Quantitative Reasoning
What number comes next: 3, 7, 15, 31, ___?
Answer: 63. Each term is double the previous plus one (3×2+1 = 7, 7×2+1 = 15, 15×2+1 = 31, 31×2+1 = 63). The differences 4, 8, 16 also double, which is the faster check.
Logical Reasoning
Five recruits stand in a line. Ana is to the left of Ben. Carlo is to the right of Ben but left of Dina. Eli is at the far right. Who is in the middle?
Answer: Carlo. The order left to right is Ana, Ben, Carlo, Dina, Eli. Writing the line out is the whole method; holding it in your head is how the item is lost.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I find free NAPOLCOM practice questions?
The items on this page are free, as are the daily five-question challenge and four flashcard decks on this site with a free account. Unlimited drills by area with explanations are part of the paid plans.
Should I practise timed or untimed?
Both, in order. Untimed first to learn the method, then short timed sets of twenty items, then full three-hour mocks. Skipping the timed stage is how people who know the material still fail.
How do I practise general information?
Read the source laws and the relevant Constitution articles first, testing yourself after each section, then drill items to find the gaps. It is the one area where practice items alone do not teach the material.
Now find your floor.
Forty questions across all four subtests, forty minutes, and a per-subject breakdown against the 80.00 pass mark.
Read next
Studying from scratch? Work through the full NAPOLCOM exam reviewer, free to read, subject by subject.