Hydroconversion of n-heptane and toluene has been studied over a commercially proven Ni-W/SiO2-Al2O3 amorphous base hydrocracking catalyst (suitable for maximizing middle distillates production from heavier feedstocks) under a wide range of operating conditions (pressure : 400-1200 psig; temperature : 315-360 degrees C, liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV) similar or equal to 1 h(-1) and molar hydrogen/hydrocarbon feed ratio : 6-8) to assess the hydrogenation and cracking activities of the catalyst as part of the development of a quick methodology for catalyst screening. Hydroisomerization followed by hydrocracking, and hydrogenation followed by isomerization have been found to be the major reactions with n-heptane and toluene respectively as the feeds. The hydroconversion of toluene gives a very high selectivity of hydrogenated product. With n-heptane, a very high selectivity of hydroisomerized product, together with a high ratio of hydroisomerized to hydrocracked product, is obtained.