Civil Service SJT Practice: Scenarios and Explanations

A situational judgement exercise asks you to evaluate actions in a workplace situation. Useful practice explains the consequences of each action, rather than teaching you to guess a hidden personality type. Try the original scenarios below, then open the free six-point SJT scenario.

Applying from outside the civil service? Our plain-English civil service glossary explains grades, reporting lines and workplace terms. Read it alongside the guide to all 18 Irish government departments to become familiar with the setting of the scenarios. Use the facts and instructions in your own assessment rather than assuming a particular internal procedure.

Choose your grade’s SJT practice

SJT practice is available for EO, HEO and AP. Every grade uses independent six-point action ratings, and repeated ratings are allowed. The HEO bank contains 300 original scenarios and 30 numbered mocks. Choose coached or untimed practice with explanations, or a 10-scenario, 50-minute HEO session with feedback at the end. Each link selects that grade directly.

Sign in to try an available free sample. The complete banks require paid test access. The no-account taster is a general example, not the complete grade-specific library. These are independent practice materials; your invitation confirms your competition’s format.

Ranking is different from rating

In a ranking exercise, you place responses in an order from most to least effective. Each position is used once. In a rating exercise, you judge each response on a scale; the instructions determine whether ratings can repeat. Other exercises ask you to select a response.

PSP’s free taster and EO, HEO and AP banks use independent six-point ratings: five actions shown together, with the six choices across the table. You may use the same rating for several actions. Our practice score gives full credit for an exact rating, half credit for an adjacent rating and zero otherwise, with no negative marks. It is not publicjobs’ marking scheme or a pass prediction.

Your competition’s familiarisation material determines the actual format, timing and scoring. There is no universal SJT question count or scoring formula. The candidate-supplied HEO 2026 Stage 1 familiarisation booklet reviewed on 11 October 2026 confirms 10 scenarios, five actions each, independently rated from 1 (highly inappropriate) to 6 (highly appropriate), with repeated ratings and a 50-minute overall limit. Our suggested ratings and practice scoring are independent of the official marking scheme. Read the HEO assessment guide and follow your own invitation.

Sample 1: a request to skip the queue

Original PSP scenario: You process applications in the published order of receipt. A colleague asks you to move a friend’s complete application ahead of older complete applications as a personal favour. There is no urgent-case exception in this scenario. You have authority to follow the published process.

Rate each action independently from 1 Highly Inappropriate to 6 Highly Appropriate. Ratings may repeat:

• A: Keep the published order and explain the fair process to the colleague.
• B: Ask your manager to decide, without first explaining the published rule.
• C: Move the application ahead as a favour.
• D: Keep the order but say nothing to the colleague about the request.
• E: Mark an older application incomplete to conceal the change.

PSP suggested ratings: A = 6, B = 3, C = 1, D = 5, E = 1. This is our learning rationale, not an official answer key. C and E share a rating because both deliberately subvert the fair process.

A combines impartial treatment with clear communication. D protects the queue but leaves the colleague without an explanation. B avoids taking responsibility for a decision already within your authority. C gives an unfair advantage. E also falsifies a record. Both C and E are highly inappropriate, despite their different consequences.

The detail that matters is the stated absence of an exception. If a different scenario specifies an approved urgent-case process, apply that process. Do not memorise “never prioritise” as a universal rule.

Sample 2: an unclear handover

Original PSP scenario: A colleague is unexpectedly absent. A service update is due tomorrow. Their handover lists two conflicting totals. You can access the source records and have time to reconcile them today. Your manager is available if a discrepancy remains.

Rate each action independently:

• A: Use the larger total because it makes the team’s results look better.
• B: Check the source records, reconcile the totals, record the correction and raise any unresolved discrepancy before the deadline.
• C: Delay the update without telling anyone.
• D: Forward both totals without explanation and let the recipient choose.
• E: Ask your manager to choose a total before you check the accessible source records.

PSP suggested ratings: A = 1, B = 6, C = 2, D = 2, E = 3. B combines evidence, ownership, a clear record and proportionate escalation. A chooses presentation over accuracy. C creates an avoidable communication failure. D transfers an unresolved problem to someone who may not have the context to resolve it.

C and D both create avoidable service risks and share a rating. E seeks help but passes on an analysis you have the information and time to carry out.

How to explain your choice

For each action, ask:

• What does the scenario actually say, and what am I adding?
• Is the action within the person’s authority?
• Does it protect accuracy, fair treatment and service quality?
• Does it address the problem in time?
• Who needs to be informed, and what record should remain?

The official Capability Framework can help you understand expectations for a role. It is not a published scoring key for every assessment. Use the framework and instructions specified for your grade and competition.

Avoid fixed tactics such as always escalating, never escalating or always choosing extreme ratings. A sound action depends on the authority, risk and timing supplied in the scenario.

Try one free rating scenario

The free SJT taster lets you rate five actions independently and see a practice score, suggested ratings and explanations. No account or card is needed. It has no enforced countdown.

If it reveals a useful practice need, compare Premium at €39 per month, recurring until cancelled. Buy for confirmed preparation needs, not a promised order-of-merit improvement.

Related preparation

• More SJT examples.
• Verbal reasoning samples.
• Numerical reasoning samples.
• Civil service grades.
• Interview preparation, when you are invited forward.

Sources and update log

Checked 12 September 2026: official publicjobs test advice. It directs candidates to their competition booklet and familiarisation instructions for timing, question counts and permitted materials. PSP examples on this page are original learning exercises, not official questions or a prediction of a live assessment.

12 September 2026: added worked practice, linked directly to the relevant free taster, and removed unverified universal format and scoring claims. PublicServicePathway is independent of publicjobs and the Public Appointments Service.