Final Fantasy VIII SeeD Test Answers: What Most People Get Wrong

So, you’re playing Final Fantasy VIII. Maybe it's the Remastered version on your Switch, or maybe you dug out the old four-disc PlayStation case for a hit of pure 1999 nostalgia. Either way, you’ve probably realized by now that enemies don't drop gold.

They don't drop a single cent—or "Gil," in this case.

Instead, you’re a mercenary. You’re on a salary. And your paycheck is tied directly to your SeeD rank. If your rank is low, you’re basically living on scraps. If you hit Rank A, you’re pulling in 30,000 Gil every time you walk a few thousand steps.

The fastest way to boost that income is through the written exams. But honestly? The game is kinda weird about how it handles these. You can't just spam all thirty tests at once unless Squall is actually high-leveled enough to "qualify" for them. If Squall is Level 20, you can only take up to Test 20.

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Below is the "cheat sheet" everyone looks for, but stick around after the answers. There's a specific reason your rank probably keeps dropping even after you ace these, and it’s not because you’re bad at the game.

Final Fantasy VIII SeeD Test Answers: Levels 1 to 30

To find these in-game, hit Menu, go to Help, and select Test. You need a 100% score on a test to gain a rank. If you miss even one, no promotion for you.

Tests 1 – 5

• Test 1: Y, N, Y, Y, Y, N, N, Y, N, N
• Test 2: Y, N, Y, Y, Y, N, Y, Y, N, N
• Test 3: N, N, Y, N, Y, Y, Y, N, Y, N
• Test 4: N, Y, Y, Y, N, N, Y, Y, N, N
• Test 5: N, N, N, Y, Y, N, N, Y, Y, Y

Tests 6 – 10

• Test 6: Y, N, Y, Y, N, N, Y, Y, N, Y
• Test 7: Y, Y, Y, Y, Y, Y, N, Y, Y, N
• Test 8: N, Y, N, N, Y, Y, N, N, Y, N
• Test 9: N, Y, N, N, N, N, N, N, Y, Y
• Test 10: Y, N, N, N, N, N, N, N, Y, N

Tests 11 – 15

• Test 11: Y, Y, N, Y, Y, N, Y, N, N, Y
• Test 12: N, Y, N, N, Y, N, Y, N, Y, N
• Test 13: Y, N, N, N, Y, N, N, N, N, N
• Test 14: Y, Y, Y, Y, N, Y, Y, N, Y, N
• Test 15: Y, Y, N, N, N, N, N, Y, N, Y

Tests 16 – 20

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• Test 16: Y, N, N, Y, N, Y, N, N, Y, N
• Test 17: Y, N, N, N, Y, N, N, Y, N, N
• Test 18: Y, N, N, N, Y, N, N, N, N, N
• Test 19: Y, N, N, Y, N, N, N, N, N, Y
• Test 20: Y, Y, N, Y, N, Y, Y, Y, N, N

Tests 21 – 25

• Test 21: Y, Y, Y, Y, N, N, Y, Y, Y, N
• Test 22: N, N, N, Y, N, N, N, Y, Y, N
• Test 23: Y, N, N, N, N, Y, Y, Y, Y, Y
• Test 24: Y, Y, N, N, Y, Y, N, N, N, Y
• Test 25: Y, N, Y, Y, Y, N, N, Y, N, N

Tests 26 – 30

• Test 26: Y, Y, N, Y, N, Y, N, Y, N, N
• Test 27: N, Y, N, N, N, N, Y, N, Y, N
• Test 28: Y, N, N, Y, Y, Y, N, Y, N, N
• Test 29: N, N, N, Y, Y, N, N, N, Y, N
• Test 30: N, Y, N, N, N, N, Y, N, N, N

Why your SeeD rank keeps falling (The "Hidden" XP)

You just finished Test 30. You're Rank A. You're feeling like a god. Then you walk around the world map for ten minutes, the "You received a salary" notification pops up, and suddenly you're Rank 30 again.

What gives?

Basically, your SeeD rank is governed by a hidden point system. Think of it like a bucket that holds 100 "SeeD Experience" points per level.

• Killing an enemy (with a physical attack or magic, not a GF) gives you 1 point.
• Getting paid (receiving your salary) subtracts 10 points.

When you take a test, the game doesn't give you 100 points. It just bumps you up to the very bottom of the next rank.

Example: If you are Rank 9 and have 910 points, and you take the Level 10 test, you are now Rank 10 with exactly 1000 points. The second you get paid, you lose 10 points. Now you have 990 points. You just dropped back to Rank 9.

How to maintain Rank A

Rank A is the only rank that has a hard cap at 3110 points. Since you lose 10 points every payday, you must kill at least 10 enemies between every single paycheck to stay at Rank A.

If you're using "Enc-None" (Diablos’s ability) to avoid fights while exploring, your rank will tank. It's inevitable. Honestly, unless you're trying to buy 99 Power Wrists in Esthar, don't stress it too much. Gil isn't actually that important late-game once you learn the infinite money trick using the Recov Med-RF ability to turn Tents into Mega-Potions.

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Pro-tips for the Dollet Field Exam

If you haven't started your playthrough yet, or you're willing to restart to get a better "base" rank, the mission in Dollet is where your career starts. Most people mess this up by being too slow or too "cowardly" according to the game's hidden modifiers.

1. The Fire Cavern Timer: When you go to get Ifrit, pick the 10-minute timer. If you finish with less than 7 seconds left on the clock, you get a massive boost to your "Judgment" score.
2. The Dog in Dollet: When the X-ATM092 (the big robot spider) starts chasing you, there’s a dog in the town square. Talk to it. If you don't, and the robot hits it, you lose points for "Conduct."
3. Seifer's Murder Spree: Early in the Dollet mission, you have Seifer in your party. Since he isn't a permanent member, you can let Squall and Zell get KO'd and have Seifer kill every soldier in sight. This racks up your "Attack" score without leveling up Squall (which is good, because enemies scale with Squall's level).
4. The Bridge Shortcut: When Selphie jumps off the cliff at the communication tower, the game asks if you want to follow. Don't. Take the path. Jumping off is a deduction.

Actionable Next Steps

To maximize your efficiency right now, don't take every test the moment you hit the required level. Instead, save your tests. Since your rank naturally decays when you aren't fighting, use the written exams as a "buffer" to repair your rank after long periods of exploration or card playing. If you notice you've slipped from Rank 15 down to 13, go into the menu and take the Level 14 and 15 tests to instantly teleport back to where you were.

Also, make sure you have the GF Diablos. You get the Magical Lamp from Headmaster Cid before leaving for Timber. Use it, beat him (blind him first!), and learn the Enc-None ability. It makes navigating the world much less annoying, even if it does mean your SeeD rank will drop over time. Just remember: you can always get that rank back with ten minutes of grinding in the Fire Cavern or by using the test answers provided above.