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Civil Service Styles Assessment Practice: Statement Pairs on the Nine Behaviours

Civil Service Styles Assessment practice: choose between pairs of statements on a scale, then see a profile on the nine Behaviours and your middle answers.

Practice: 36 pairs (each behaviour against every other once), untimed, about 10 minutesAlso called “CSSA”Also called “Civil Service Behaviours styles assessment”

How the practice module works

  1. 01Each screen shows two statements, A and B. Both describe good practice at work.
  2. 02Choose how much more like you one statement is than the other. Use the middle point only when both fit you equally.
  3. 03You can go back and change any answer until you submit, as in the real assessment, which has 276 pairs.
  4. 04There are no right answers. Afterwards you see an estimated profile on the nine Civil Service Behaviours and two checks GOV.UK’s guidance points to: middle answers and answers too fast to have read both statements.

Controls

  • Choose a point on the five-point scale between the two statements
  • Previous and Next move between pairs; any answer can change until you submit

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Format
276 pairs of statements with a scale between each pair
What you choose
Which statement is more like you, and by how much
Measures
Your work behaviours against the Civil Service Behaviours
Navigation
Move back and forth and change answers until you submit
Time
Untimed; usually 45 minutes to an hour
Warning
Random answers or overusing the middle option can mean no score

What the Civil Service Styles Assessment looks at

GOV.UK describes the Styles Assessment as a self-assessment of how effective your work behaviours are against the Civil Service Behaviours.

There are 276 pairs of statements. For each pair you choose which statement is more like you and how much more, on a scale between the two.

GOV.UK warns that answering at random or overusing the middle option may mean no score can be produced, and you may be asked to take it again, up to three attempts.

How the Civil Service Styles Assessment practice works

  1. Read the two statements, A and B. Both describe good practice, so neither is the "right" one.
  2. Choose a point on the five-point scale: much more like A, a little more like A, equally like both, a little more like B or much more like B.
  3. Use Previous and Next to move between the 36 pairs and change any answer until you submit.
  4. At the end, see an estimated profile on the nine Civil Service Behaviours, how many middle answers you gave and how many answers came too fast to have read both statements.

Civil Service Styles Assessment tips

  • Answer as you really work. The statements all sound good, so trying to pick the "best" one only adds noise.
  • Keep the middle point for pairs where both statements really fit you equally.
  • Read both statements to the end before you answer; GOV.UK warns against random responding.
  • Read the job advert: the behaviours it lists are often assessed again at interview.
  • Set aside 45 minutes to an hour with no interruptions for the real assessment.

Common Civil Service Styles Assessment mistakes

  • Choosing the middle point whenever a pair feels hard.
  • Clicking through quickly once the statements start to feel similar.
  • Picking the statement that sounds more senior rather than the one that is more like you.
  • Forgetting you can go back: if a later pair changes your mind, review your earlier answers before you submit.

A short Civil Service Styles Assessment practice routine

  1. Run the free official Styles Assessment practice once to see the real interface.
  2. Do one practice run here and check your middle answers and fast answers.
  3. Read the behaviours your profile shows less of, and think of an example of each from your own work.

Civil Service Styles Assessment FAQ

How does the Civil Service Styles Assessment work?

GOV.UK says it has 276 pairs of statements. For each pair you choose which statement is more like you and by how much, on a scale between them. You can move back and forth until you submit. It is untimed and usually takes 45 minutes to an hour.

Can I use the middle option?

Yes, but sparingly. GOV.UK warns that overusing the middle option, or answering at random, may mean no score can be produced and you may be asked to retake it. This practice counts your middle answers so you can see how often you use it.

Is there a right answer for each pair?

No. Both statements describe good practice, and this practice never marks an answer right or wrong. It shows an estimated profile from Candidate Falcon’s own model, not GOV.UK’s report.

How many pairs are in this practice?

Thirty-six: each of the nine Civil Service Behaviours is paired once with each of the other eight, with different statements each run. The real assessment has 276 pairs. The five-point scale is Candidate Falcon’s: GOV.UK does not say how many points its scale has.

Is my result reused for other jobs?

GOV.UK says scores are banked for the Civil Service Behaviours report at the job’s grade. Applying at a higher grade, or for a job that uses a different report, means taking it again.

Independent practice by Candidate Falcon, based on the format in GOV.UK’s guidance; the statement pairs and the estimated profile are Candidate Falcon’s own. Not affiliated with the UK Civil Service, Civil Service Jobs or the Government People Group, and not their scoring. Practice results are not Civil Service scores. For scores, pass marks, banked results and GOV.UK's free official practice tests, read the free guide to the Civil Service online tests.