Civil Service Exam Online Preparation– All-Inclusive

What is the Civil Service Exam?

Government employees in the public sector, other than political appointees or the military, are considered civil servants. Many different departments and positions use the Civil Service Exam to recruit potential candidates for different positions. The exam can include various categories, based on the specific position in question.

Getting a high score on this exam is crucial since you are competing with other would-be employees- Your score is the difference between getting the job, or giving it to someone else.

 

Civil Service Exam Sample Questions

 

Reading Comprehension

This category includes questions that require you to deduce information from written text. It includes Verbal Reasoning, Reading, Understanding, and Interpreting Written Material.

 

Verbal Reasoning Sample Question

Read the text and answer the following question.

Rachel has decided to move to North London and has been deliberating between Hampstead and Regent's Park. Lately she noticed several news reports about car thefts around Hampstead and consequently has decided to move to Regent's Park as she believes that vehicle theft is much more common in Hampstead.

Rachel has made an availability heuristic.

An availability heuristic is a mental shortcut that relies on immediate examples that come to mind. When you are trying to make a decision, a number of related events or situations might immediately spring to the forefront of your thoughts. As a result, you might judge that those events are more frequent and possible than others. You give greater credence to this information and tend to overestimate the probability and likelihood of similar things happening in the future.

The term was first coined in 1973 by psychologists Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman. They suggested that the availability heuristic occurs unconsciously and operates under the principle that "if you can think of it, it must be important." Things that come to mind more easily are believed to be far more common and more accurate reflections of the real world.

Availability heuristics can be helpful and important in decision-making. When faced with a choice, we often lack the time or resources to investigate in greater depth. Faced with the need for an immediate decision, the availability heuristic allows people to quickly arrive at a conclusion.

 According to the passage, it is helpful to use availability heuristics in decision making when:

A. The subject is of high importance
B. There is danger involved
C. The decision is fairly easy to make
D. There is a lack of knowledge
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is D.

The answer to this question can be found in the fourth paragraph, which starts with the words ”Availability heuristics can be helpful and important in decision-making.” The paragraph continues on to explain that availability heuristics are helpful when: ”we lack the time or resources to investigate in greater depth”. Thus, the correct answer is (d) as lack of knowledge is equated with lack of resources.

 

Written Expression

The questions here cover different aspects of the English language and include written communication, paragraph organization, restatements, punctuation & capitalization, sentence completion, vocabulary, synonyms & antonyms, word analogy, and spelling.

 

Restatements Sample Question

This part consists of several sentences, each followed by four possible ways of restating the main idea of that sentence in different words. For each question, choose the one restatement which best expresses the meaning of the original sentence:

The black widow spider's name comes from the female's habit of eating the male after mating.

A. As the male black widow usually dies in the course of mating, this species of spider has gained a reputation for being especially prone to death as its name indicates.
B. The black widow spider has earned its name by preying on other spiders of its type, with the female typically preying on the male.
C. Because the female spider consumes her male partner post mating, this species of spider is called black widow.
D. While both the male and the female spiders of the species known as black widow are killers, the female is especially dangerous inasmuch as she has a habit of consuming her partner after mating.
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is C.
Answer A doesn't include the fact that the female eats the male.
Answer B has no mention of the female praying on the male after mating.
Answer D says both the males and females are killers, information that is not expressed in the original statement.

 

Reasoning Skills

These questions require one to understand the directions given properly and accordingly make correct decisions. They may also be categorized as Following Directions, Rule Interpretation, and Law Deductive Reasoning.

 

Problem Sensitivity Sample Question

You will be presented with multiple-choice questions usually offering 4 answer options, of which only one is correct. Your task is to choose the best answer to each question from the options given.

Read the text, and answer the following question:

Officer Noah interviewed four witnesses to shoplifting. They each described the suspect as follows:

Witness 1: “She was a White, elderly female woman, probably in her seventies. She was walking with a cane, was around five feet tall, maybe 120 pounds, and had very short grey hair. She had glasses strung around her neck and was wearing a red shirt with a dark green sweater and brown pants.”

Witness 2: “She was a short, White woman, no taller than five feet. She had very short grey hair, bright blue eyes and was around 130 pounds. She was wearing a red shirt with a green sweater and dark pants. Her grey hair, big glasses strung around her neck, and cane made her look old, but her face looked very young.”

Witness 3: “She was a White woman, no older than sixty, slightly under five feet tall and under 130 pounds. She had very short grey hair, was wearing a red shirt with a green sweater and black or brown pants, and walked with a cane.”

Witness 4: “She was a White female, who looked to be around seventy with grey hair. She was about five and a half feet tall and 115 pounds. She walked with a cane, had glasses around her neck, and was wearing a green sweater and black pants.”

Given this information, there is a problem with the description given by witness number-

1
2
3
4
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is 4.

All of the witnesses agreed that the woman was White, had grey hair, and was around 120-130 pounds. They also all reported that she had a cane and was wearing a green sweater, and brown or black pants.

Witness 1 reported that the woman was five feet tall, witness 2 said she was no taller than five feet tall and witness 3 said she was slightly under five feet tall. It is therefore reasonable to assume that the woman is somewhere between 4’9” – 5’1. Witness 4 however reported that the woman was five and a half feet tall.

Distractors

Witnesses 1 said the woman was seventy, witness 4 said she was in her seventies, and witness 3 said she was no older than 60. This is a large age difference which should raise suspicions about witness 3. However, witnesses 2’s report regarding the woman’s age can explain this discrepancy in a very reasonable way. Witness 2 said that it was very difficult to determine her age, because her grey hair, cane, and glasses strung around her neck made her look old, but she had a young face. Witnesses 1 and 4 must have thought her to be older because of her cane and grey hair, and witness 3 thought her to be younger because of her young-looking face.

This is further supported by the fact that witness 3 did not make any mention of the woman’s glasses around her neck.

Spatial Abilities

These questions include Visualization and Spatial Orientation.

Visualization refers to the ability to imagine how something would look when it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged. Spatial aptitude refers to the ability to remain oriented in relation to the surrounding environment, both while in motion and at rest.

 

Visualization Sample Question

The letters near the sides of each shape point out where exactly should the different shapes be joined together. Which of the following options shows the joint shape?

spatial_reasoning_sample
A
B
C
D
E
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is E.

Here is how combining the three shapes works:

spatial_reasoning_answer

 

Attention to Details

In this section, you will need to use your observational ability, pay attention to details and errors in data and compare information accurately.

 

Comparing and Checking Sample Question

Compare the names given and determine how many are exactly the same.

Peter R. Daniels
Peter R. Daniels
Peret R. Daniels
Peter R. Daneils

A. All of the names are different
B.Two of the names are exactly the same
C. Three of the names are exactly the same
D. All four names are exactly the same
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer
Explanation
The first two names are exactly the same. The third and fourth names are different- here are the four names, with differences in bold.

Peter R. Daniels
Peter R. Daniels
Peret R. Daniels
Peter R. Daneils

 

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