The Civil Service Judgement Test, usually shortened to CSJT, is an online test used in some Civil Service recruitment campaigns to assess how you respond to workplace situations.
The difficult part is often deciding whether each possible action is Effective, Fairly Effective, Ineffective or Counterproductive.
This guide explains how the test works, how the ratings should be interpreted, how scoring works and how to approach the scenarios more methodically.
Practise Before You Take the CSJT
Our Civil Service Judgement Test Practice Pack contains 40 practice scenarios with detailed answer explanations, so you can practise making the judgement yourself and then understand why each action receives its rating.
Get the 40 CSJT Practice Questions
Want to see exactly what is included first? View the CSJT Practice Pack .
What Is the Civil Service Judgement Test?
The Civil Service Judgement Test is a situational judgement test used alongside other recruitment methods for some Civil Service vacancies.
It looks at how you respond to situations that could arise in the workplace. The scenarios you receive are relevant to the level of job you have applied for.
You do not need specialist Civil Service knowledge to complete the test. You need to consider the information you are given and judge how useful or damaging each proposed action would be.
How Does the Civil Service Judgement Test Work?
The current CSJT has two sections.
Part 1: Your Workplace Preferences
The first section asks about your typical behaviour and preferences at work.
You rate yourself against statements relating to areas such as motivation, ambition and flexibility.
This self-assessment section accounts for 15% of your overall CSJT score.
These questions concern how you typically behave at work, so answer based on your normal preferences rather than trying to guess a perfect response.
Part 2: Workplace Scenarios
The second section presents workplace situations followed by several possible actions.
You assess how effective each action would be in responding to the situation.
Each action is judged independently. You are not simply choosing one correct answer from a list.
More than one action can be Effective. More than one can be Ineffective. Judge what each action would achieve if it were actually taken.
CSJT Effectiveness Ratings Explained
There are four possible effectiveness ratings.
| Rating | What it means |
|---|---|
| Effective | A good action that would help deal with or resolve the situation. |
| Fairly Effective | A useful action that would help, but would deal with only part of the situation or could be improved. |
| Ineffective | An action that would do little to help the situation. |
| Counterproductive | An action that could make the situation worse or create an additional problem. |
How to Answer Civil Service Judgement Test Questions
A useful way to approach the scenario questions is to judge the consequences of an action rather than whether the wording simply sounds positive.
Read exactly what the action says. Avoid adding sensible extra steps that have not been mentioned.
For each action, consider:
- Does it deal with the actual problem?
- Would it improve the situation?
- Could it create unnecessary risk or conflict?
- Does it show an appropriate level of responsibility?
- Does it take account of the people affected?
- Would important work, quality or service suffer?
Then decide which of the four effectiveness ratings fits the action best.
Civil Service Judgement Test Example
Scenario
You are helping prepare a report that must be sent to a senior manager this afternoon. A colleague tells you that some figures may be wrong because information supplied by another team has not been checked properly.
Action A
Send the report anyway because meeting the deadline is more important and correct the figures later if a problem is found.
Suggested rating: Counterproductive
This knowingly sends information that may be inaccurate. It could lead to poor decisions and create more work later. The deadline matters, but ignoring a known quality concern makes the situation worse.
Action B
Speak to the colleague who raised the concern, establish which figures are affected and arrange for them to be checked as quickly as possible.
Suggested rating: Effective
This deals directly with the concern, establishes the size of the problem and allows the team to decide what needs to happen next based on accurate information.
Action C
Remove the questionable figures without telling anyone and send the rest of the report.
Suggested rating: Ineffective
This avoids resolving the issue and may leave the report incomplete or misleading. The person receiving it would not know that information had been removed.
Action D
Check how quickly the figures can be verified and alert the person responsible for the report that there may be a delay if confirmation cannot be obtained before the deadline.
Suggested rating: Effective
This protects the quality of the report while making sure the deadline risk is raised with the appropriate person.
This is an Interview Detectives practice-style example. It is not taken from a live Civil Service test.
Try 40 More CSJT Scenarios
The Interview Detectives practice pack gives you 40 workplace scenarios to assess, followed by suggested ratings and detailed explanations.
Make your own decision first, then compare your reasoning with the suggested answer.
How Is the Civil Service Judgement Test Scored?
Your CSJT result is reported as a percentile.
A percentile compares your performance with a representative group of people who have taken the test.
For example, a result at the 60th percentile means you performed better than 60% of the comparison group.
The first self-assessment section contributes 15% of the overall score. Your responses to the workplace scenarios contribute the remainder.
What Is the Civil Service Judgement Test Pass Mark?
There is no single permanent CSJT pass percentage that applies to every vacancy.
You need to meet the minimum standard required for the job level. A recruitment campaign can also use a higher threshold when deciding which candidates progress.
Meeting the minimum test standard therefore does not automatically mean you will move to the next stage of the application.
Is the Civil Service Judgement Test Timed?
The CSJT itself is not timed.
Most candidates should still allow plenty of uninterrupted time to complete it properly. Rushing makes it easier to miss important details in a scenario or action.
Are CSJT Questions Text or Video?
The scenario section can contain text scenarios, video scenarios or a mixture of both.
The judgement process remains the same. Consider each possible action independently and rate how effective it would be.
How Difficult Is the Civil Service Judgement Test?
The hardest questions are often those where two actions both appear sensible.
The difference may be that one deals fully with the problem while another only addresses part of it. That can be the difference between Effective and Fairly Effective.
You may also see actions that sound decisive but carry consequences that make them weaker than they first appear.
Focus on what the response actually achieves.
Common Civil Service Judgement Test Mistakes
Looking for one correct answer
You rate each action independently. Several actions can receive the same effectiveness rating.
Improving the action in your head
Judge what is written. If an important step is missing, do not assume the person would automatically take it.
Ignoring the main problem
An action may be positive in isolation while doing very little about the situation you were actually asked to address.
Overreacting
A response that escalates a routine issue unnecessarily or creates avoidable conflict may be less effective than a proportionate solution.
Ignoring consequences
Consider what is likely to happen after the action is taken. A quick solution can be poor if it creates a larger problem later.
How to Prepare for the Civil Service Judgement Test
Start by becoming familiar with the four effectiveness ratings and the fact that actions are assessed independently.
Then practise workplace scenarios without looking at the suggested answers first.
- Choose your rating for each action.
- Decide why you chose that rating.
- Check the suggested answer and explanation.
- If your rating differs, identify what consequence or issue you interpreted differently.
This develops the way you judge unfamiliar situations rather than encouraging you to memorise individual answers.
Civil Service Judgement Test Practice Questions
40 practice scenarios
Effectiveness ratings for the possible actions
Detailed explanations showing the reasoning behind each answer
Digital access so you can work through the questions at your own pace
Civil Service Judgement Test FAQs
What does CSJT stand for?
CSJT stands for Civil Service Judgement Test.
Do you need Civil Service experience to take the CSJT?
No specialist knowledge or previous Civil Service experience is required.
Can more than one CSJT action be Effective?
Yes. Each action is assessed independently, so more than one response can receive the same rating.
Can more than one action be Counterproductive?
Yes. The same principle applies to all four ratings.
Can you practise for the Civil Service Judgement Test?
Yes. Practising the format can help you become more comfortable assessing individual workplace actions using the four effectiveness ratings.
When do you get your CSJT result?
Your result and feedback are made available through your Civil Service Jobs application centre after the test has been completed and processed.
How should I practise for the CSJT?
Rate each workplace action independently, decide why you chose that rating and then compare your reasoning with the suggested answer.
Ready to Practise?
Work through 40 Civil Service Judgement Test scenarios and compare your decisions with detailed suggested answers and explanations.
Get the 40 CSJT Practice Questions
Prefer to look through the product information first? View the full practice pack details .
