Attempt a bit of personality assessment on the way up (5)
I believe the answer is:
essay
'attempt' is the definition.
(essay is a kind of attempt)
'a bit of personality assessment on the way up' is the wordplay.
'a bit of' indicates the answer is hidden within the clue (I've seen 'a bit' mean this (the answer is formed by a bit of the clue)).
'on the way up' says the letters should be written in reverse.
'yasse' is hidden within 'personality assessment'.
'yasse' reversed gives 'ESSAY'.
(Other definitions for essay that I've seen before include "Composition; attempt" , "Attempt; written piece" , "What may be written in exam" , "Attempt - written work" , "Make an effort to write one" .)