PublicServicePathway
Walk into your publicjobs assessment already knowing the format.
Start practising freeIf the practice you've found doesn't match the real test, you're not imagining it
You've maybe sat the publicjobs familiarisation test two or three times and come away none the wiser. The free SJT sample won't let you rank the answers, which is the one thing the real assessment makes you do. And nearly every paid option is built for the UK and never mapped to the 2024 Capability Framework.
You're not underprepared. You've been rehearsing the wrong exam.
Where most people fall
The assessment, not the form, is where the cycle ends
You sit it once a cycle, you get no breakdown of where you lost marks, and there is no retake until the next round. "Just busy" practice the night before is not the same as knowing you're ready. That gap is exactly what this fixes.
The core mechanic
The one thing the publicjobs sample won't let you do
Rank the responses most to least effective. Scored against a calibrated key, and tagged to the capability it tests. Scroll to watch it resolve, then do it for real on a free taster.
Worked example. Ranked most to least appropriate: 1 Speak with your colleague privately, 2 Inform your manager, 3 Monitor the situation for now, 4 Adjust your own deadlines, 5 Email the team to raise it. Scored against the Working Together capability.
What you practise here
Four things, built to the real format
The ranked-answer SJT
Rank the responses most to least effective, scored against a calibrated key and tagged to the capability it tests. This is the core mechanic the publicjobs sample leaves out, and the reason most candidates walk in having never rehearsed the thing they're actually marked on.
Numerical, in the EO format
Percentages, ratios, data tables and the budget-style questions that actually come up, at the real 35-minute timing, with worked solutions that show you why an answer is right.
Verbal reasoning
Read the passage, judge each statement True, False or Cannot Say, against the clock, so the format stops being the thing that throws you.
A dashboard that shows progress
Track your scores across attempts and see which capabilities you're weakest on, so your last week of practice goes where it counts instead of everywhere at once.
Why it's Irish, and why that matters
The same money, a different exam
| PublicServicePathway | UK aptitude sites | The €199 Irish course | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ranked-answer SJT | Yes, scored | Multiple-choice only | No self-serve practice |
| 2024 Capability Framework | Every question tagged | Not mapped | Workbook, not practice |
| Format and timing | publicjobs EO/HEO | UK timing, £ sums | Irish |
| Entry price | Free, then €39/mo | One-time UK pack | €199 upfront, one grade |
JobTestPrep's Irish packs are UK content adapted, with no Capability Framework. careerservices.ie is genuinely Irish but locks everything behind €199 a year for a single grade. Nobody sells affordable, Irish-accurate practice you can start tonight. That's the whole reason this exists.
Whichever stage you're staring down
It meets you where you are
- Sitting the EO or HEO assessment soon? Drill the SJT, numerical and verbal in the real format until the timer stops being the enemy.
- A graduate breaking in with no insider to ask? Start with a free taster that shows you exactly what the test and the application form really look like.
- Through the tests and facing the capability interview? Rehearse a mock built on the 2024 framework with STAR feedback, for €49 instead of €375 a session.
What it costs
Start free. €39 a month, or €149 for the year.
No card to start. The interview mock is €49, against roughly €375 a coaching session.
Start where every candidate should: with a free go
No card, no commitment. Do a short set in the real Irish format, see your score, and find out where you actually stand before the invite lands. The best time to practise is before the assessment email arrives, not after.