Checked 14 October 2026. From the GOV.UK guidance for the Civil Service Judgement Test (last updated 24 May 2024), Civil Service online tests (27 January 2026), the reasonable-adjustments guide for online tests (28 January 2026), the official CSJT Practice Test and the official video, read on 14 October 2026. Counts for our own practice set are read from the set itself and change if the set changes. Our set is independent practice material, not an official test.
There is free practice for the Civil Service Judgement Test (CSJT), and the most important piece of it is official. This guide lists what exists without payment, says exactly what each thing is and is not in the words of the page that offers it, and suggests an order for using them. It also sets out what is free in our own practice set, with the numbers read from the set and not rounded up. For a scenario worked rating by rating, see CSJT questions and answers, worked; this guide is about where to practise and how.
The short answer
Take the official CSJT Practice Test first. It shows you the real screens and is not scored. For practice with ratings explained, the official material has none, so that part has to come from independent practice.
GOV.UK says the practice test “is designed to show you the look and feel of the real test while keeping the questions easy to respond to”, and that it “is not scored”. Our practice set has 12 scenarios; 1 is free, with our rating and the reason for each of its four actions.
Official: GOV.UK, Preparing for the Civil Service Judgement Test and Civil Service online tests, read 14 October 2026. Ours: counted from the ProSyllabus practice set on the same day.
Free practice at a glance
| What | Who made it | What you get | Scored or explained? | What it asks of you |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Official CSJT Practice Test | The Civil Service; linked from GOV.UK | The look and feel of the real test, with an example of each question type | No. “The practice test is not scored.” | Its introduction says no personal information is needed to open it |
| Example questions inside the real test | The Civil Service | Example questions “at the beginning of each section” | The page does not say they are scored or explained | An invitation to the real test |
| Official video guide | Credited to Civil Service HR in the video’s description; linked from GOV.UK | About four minutes on how the test works, with tips from previous test takers | Not applicable | Nothing |
| GOV.UK guidance and the behaviours document | Published on GOV.UK | The format, the four ratings in words, and the published examples of each behaviour by grade | Not applicable | Nothing |
| Free part of the ProSyllabus practice set | ProSyllabus; independent, not official | One scenario, four actions each, to rate on the CSJT scale | Yes: our rating and the reason for it, for each action | Nothing to try it |
| Our older guide of eight practice scenarios | ProSyllabus; independent, not official | Eight teaching scenarios with explained ratings, written before the practice set | Explained in the text | Nothing |
A word on the word “free”. No official page we read calls the practice test free, and none mentions a charge for it or for the real test. What the practice test says about itself is: “We do not ask for any personal information to access it, and you are able to view it as many times as you need.” We report that and do not add to it.
The official CSJT Practice Test: what it is
GOV.UK’s instruction is direct: “Before taking the Civil Service Judgement Test, you should get used to what the test looks like by taking the CSJT Practice Test so you are fully familiar.” The practice test opens with its own statement of purpose. It says its purpose is to:
- “Familiarise you with test questions and their format.”
- “Help you feel more comfortable about the assessment.”
- “Show you example questions before completing the real test.”
- “Provide useful tips in preparation for the real test.”
From the first page of the official CSJT Practice Test, read 14 October 2026.
Its introduction then says: “In this practice test, you will see an example of each potential question type.” It lists three kinds of assessment: your preferences and behaviours; decisions based on typical workplace situations “presented as video and text”; and decisions based on typical workplace situations “presented as text”. It adds: “This practice test is purely designed to familiarise you with the real test.” Because it contains video, it asks you to “make sure you have audio enabled on your computer”.
What it is, and what it is not
| Question | Answer from the official pages |
|---|---|
| Is it the real test’s screens? | Yes, by design. It shows “the look and feel of the real test”. The reasonable-adjustments guide says the practice tests “look exactly like the actual tests”. |
| Is it as long as the real test? | No. The reasonable-adjustments guide calls the practice tests “a shorter version”. |
| Is it as hard as the real test? | It is built “keeping the questions easy to respond to”. No page says the questions are of real-test difficulty. |
| Does it give you a score? | No. “The practice test is not scored.” |
| Does it tell you whether your answers were good? | For the first section it says: “You will not receive any performance feedback on these example questions.” We did not go further into it, so we do not say what the scenario sections show. |
| Can you take it more than once? | Yes: “you are able to view it as many times as you need.” |
| Does it need an account or an invitation? | “We do not ask for any personal information to access it”. The link on GOV.UK opens it directly. |
Three official descriptions, side by side
Three GOV.UK pages describe the practice tests, and they stress different things. None contradicts another outright, but a reader who sees only one may expect too much or too little, so here are all three.
| Page | Its words |
|---|---|
| Preparing for the Civil Service Judgement Test | “The practice test is not scored. It is designed to show you the look and feel of the real test while keeping the questions easy to respond to.” |
| Civil Service online tests | “Practice tests provide an authentic test-taking experience, so you can understand how our tests work” |
| Reasonable adjustments for online tests | “These are a shorter version and look exactly like the actual tests, so you can use them to identify any difficulties you could have while completing the actual test.” |
Our reading of the three together: the practice test is authentic in how it looks and works, shorter than the real thing, easier to respond to, and unscored. It is a rehearsal of the mechanics. It is not a measure of how you will do.
What its first section shows
The first section is called “Preferences and behaviour”. It says: “This assessment concerns your typical behaviour and preferences at work.” and “Its purpose is to see whether your preferences and work behaviour align to those of the Civil Service.” You are shown statements and “must indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each statement”. The first example statement is “I step in whenever someone in my team needs help.”, with seven options from Completely Disagree to Completely Agree. Its tips for this part include: “The questionnaire concerns your preference at work and not in your social life, so answer in a work context.” and “Try to relax, remember that the test is not timed or trying to trick you.”
The strongest reason to take it: checking access
The guidance says: “Taking a practice test can be particularly helpful if you use assistive technology to access web content and want to know if it will work on the real test.” The reasonable-adjustments guide goes further: “To check if you need an adjustment, you should make every effort to take one of our Civil Service practice tests.” One of its case studies (the guide says they are fictional but based on real requests) is a candidate who “tried the Judgement Test practice test and found it difficult to understand the nuances in the question responses”, contacted the recruiter, and was given “a one-to-one supported session with a trained support worker”. The practice test is the way to find out, before the deadline, whether you need to ask for something.
The other free official material
The video. GOV.UK links a short official video guide to the Civil Service Judgement Test. It describes the two parts, gives an example statement (“I adapt to change quicker than other people”), and passes on tips from previous test takers, the first of which is: “Take the practice test to see how it works then reflect and plan for when you want to take the real test.” Note that the video names the ratings as “effective, slightly effective, ineffective, or counterproductive”, while the guidance page says Counterproductive, Ineffective, Fairly Effective and Effective. Both are official; the page’s four names are the ones to learn.
The guidance page. Preparing for the Civil Service Judgement Test is where the four ratings are defined in words. Those four sentences are the only description GOV.UK gives of what each rating means, and they are short enough to learn.
| Rating | Official description (GOV.UK) |
|---|---|
| Counterproductive | An unacceptable action that would make the situation worse. |
| Ineffective | A poor action that would not help the situation. |
| Fairly Effective | A useful action that would be of some help to the situation. |
| Effective | A good action that would help to resolve the situation. |
The behaviours document. The test is built on the Civil Service Behaviours, and Success Profiles: Civil Service behaviours publishes examples of each behaviour at each grade band. Reading the behaviours named in your job advert, at your grade, costs nothing. Our tips guide has a lookup of those examples by grade.
The example questions in the real test. The guidance says: “Practice questions are included at the beginning of each test, and no specialist knowledge or experience is required.” and “The real test also includes example questions at the beginning of each section.” So even a candidate who skips everything else gets a warm-up, though by then the test has been launched.
If your application has more than one test
A job advert can ask for more than one online test. GOV.UK’s Civil Service online tests page lists eight official practice tests, and says: “You should also take the appropriate practice test before taking an actual test.”
| No. | Official practice test, as named on GOV.UK |
|---|---|
| 1 | Civil Service Judgement practice test |
| 2 | Civil Service Numerical practice test |
| 3 | Civil Service Verbal practice test |
| 4 | Civil Service Management Judgement practice test |
| 5 | Civil Service Work Strengths practice test |
| 6 | Civil Service Styles Assessment practice test |
| 7 | Customer Service Skills practice test |
| 8 | Casework Skills practice test |
What the free part of our practice set contains
The ProSyllabus Civil Service Judgement Test practice set has 12 scenarios and 48 actions to rate, across four behaviours: Managing a Quality Service, Delivering at Pace, Working Together and Communicating and Influencing, three scenarios each. One scenario is free: “A mailbox nobody owns” (Managing a Quality Service). You rate its four actions as Counterproductive, Ineffective, Fairly Effective or Effective, check, and see our rating and the reason for it beside each action. The other 11 scenarios are in the paid set; without paying you can see their titles and behaviours, which are listed below, and nothing else of them.
| No. | Scenario | Behaviour | Free or paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A mailbox nobody owns | Managing a Quality Service | Free to try, with ratings and reasons |
| 2 | The third transfer | Managing a Quality Service | In the paid set |
| 3 | Two forms, one set of details | Managing a Quality Service | In the paid set |
| 4 | Sixty applications by Friday | Delivering at Pace | In the paid set |
| 5 | Two jobs, one afternoon | Delivering at Pace | In the paid set |
| 6 | The system is down | Delivering at Pace | In the paid set |
| 7 | Handed over at the last minute | Working Together | In the paid set |
| 8 | One case in five arrives incomplete | Working Together | In the paid set |
| 9 | The new starter who works from home | Working Together | In the paid set |
| 10 | Explaining a refusal | Communicating and Influencing | In the paid set |
| 11 | The guidance nobody absorbed | Communicating and Influencing | In the paid set |
| 12 | An out-of-date figure in the room | Communicating and Influencing | In the paid set |
What the set is: original workplace scenarios in text, written by us, rated on the four-point scale that GOV.UK publishes for the test, with a reason for every rating. What it is not: it is not written or endorsed by the Civil Service, its scenarios are not real test items, and its ratings are our reading of the published scale, because no official key exists. It has no video scenarios, and it leaves out the self-assessment part of the test, which is 15% of the score and has no right answers to practise.
If you would rather read a worked scenario than rate one, the same free scenario is set out in full, with every rating and reason and a commentary, in CSJT questions and answers, worked. Separately, our older guide of eight practice scenarios is free to read. Those eight were written as teaching examples before the practice set existed and are not part of it.
How to use both, in order
The official material and independent practice do different jobs, so the order matters more than the amount. This is the sequence we suggest. The reasons in the right-hand column are official where they are in quotation marks and ours where they are not.
| Step | Do this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Read the GOV.UK guidance page and learn the four rating descriptions | They are the only published statement of what each rating means |
| 2 | Take the official practice test on the device you will use | “so you are fully familiar” with what the test looks like; and to check assistive technology before the deadline |
| 3 | Watch the official video | About four minutes; it shows the two parts and gives tips from previous test takers |
| 4 | Read the behaviours in your job advert at your grade | The test measures judgement “regarding specific Civil Service Behaviours, which have been selected as important for success in your chosen job” |
| 5 | Rate our free scenario, then read the reason for each rating | The official practice test is not scored, so this is where you find out whether your reading of the scale matches someone else’s |
| 6 | Note the direction of any misses | Ours: rating too generously and rating too harshly are different habits, and each has a different fix |
| 7 | Sit the real test early, in one quiet sitting | “you should try to do so as early as possible, so you have time to resolve any technical or access issues before the deadline” |
One caution about step 5 onward. GOV.UK says of the real test: “Your test answers should be your own; you must not ask for input from anyone.” Practising beforehand is preparation and is what the official pages encourage. Having anyone, or anything, help you during the test itself is not.
What free practice cannot tell you
The limits, stated plainly
- The official practice test will not tell you how you would score. It “is not scored”.
- No free or paid practice, ours included, uses real test scenarios. They are not published.
- No practice key is the official key. We found no answers released by the Civil Service, which says it “cannot provide feedback on answers to specific questions”.
- A practice score does not convert to a percentile. The real result compares you with “a representative group of applicants who have also taken the test”.
- Text practice does not rehearse the video scenarios. Only the official practice test shows you those screens.
- Nothing prepares the self-assessment part except honesty. The guidance says to answer honestly, “as you may be asked about them at interview”.
Quotations are from GOV.UK, Preparing for the Civil Service Judgement Test, read 14 October 2026.
For why no pass mark is published, see CSJT pass mark and scoring; for reading your result, what a CSJT score means.
What we could not find
What we could not find
- Any official page that calls the practice test, or the real test, free, or that states a fee for either.
- How many example questions the official practice test contains, and how long it takes.
- Whether the scenario sections of the official practice test show any feedback. We read only its introduction and first example and did not answer anything.
- A second official CSJT practice test, or official practice scenarios by grade. One practice test is linked.
- Any official statement on whether practising improves CSJT results.
- Official practice material for the scenario part that explains a rating.
Read on 14 October 2026: the GOV.UK pages listed under Sources and the first six pages of the official CSJT Practice Test.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free Civil Service Judgement Test practice test?
There is an official CSJT Practice Test linked from GOV.UK. Its introduction says no personal information is needed to open it and that you can view it as many times as you need. None of the official pages we read mentions a charge for it. It is not scored.
Is the official CSJT practice test the same as the real test?
It is designed to show the look and feel of the real test while keeping the questions easy to respond to. The reasonable-adjustments guide describes the practice tests as a shorter version that looks exactly like the actual tests. It gives no score.
Does the official practice test give answers?
GOV.UK says the practice test is not scored, and its first section says you will not receive any performance feedback on the example questions. We did not complete its scenario sections, so we do not describe what they show.
How many times can I take the CSJT practice test?
The practice test says you are able to view it as many times as you need.
What is free in the ProSyllabus Civil Service Judgement Test practice set?
One scenario of the 12, with our rating and the reason for each of its four actions. The titles and behaviours of the other 11 are visible; their content is in the paid set. The set is independent practice material, not an official test.
Should I do the official practice test or independent practice first?
The official practice test first. GOV.UK says you should take it before the real test so you are fully familiar with what the test looks like, and it is the only way to check that any assistive technology you use will work. Independent practice with explained ratings is a second step.
Do I need to practise for the Civil Service Judgement Test at all?
GOV.UK says no specialist knowledge or experience is required, and that you should take the practice test first. Beyond that it makes no claim about practice. The published material worth reading is the four rating descriptions and the Civil Service Behaviours at your grade.
More in this series
- CSJT pass mark and scoring
- What a CSJT score means
- CSJT tips from the behaviours
- Seeing the Big Picture: examples by grade
- Changing and Improving: examples by grade
- Making Effective Decisions: examples by grade
- Leadership: examples by grade
- Communicating and Influencing: examples by grade
- Working Together: examples by grade
- Developing Self and Others: examples by grade
- Managing a Quality Service: examples by grade
- Delivering at Pace: examples by grade
- CSJT questions and answers, worked
- Civil Service Judgement Test: 8 original practice scenarios
- Fast Stream online tests: a different test with a different scale
- Fast Stream vs direct entry and the other routes
Sources
- official — GOV.UK: Preparing for the Civil Service Judgement Test (last updated 24 May 2024)
- official — GOV.UK: Civil Service online tests (last updated 27 January 2026)
- official — GOV.UK: Reasonable adjustments for online tests, a candidate guide (last updated 28 January 2026)
- official — Civil Service: official CSJT Practice Test (unscored)
- official — Civil Service: “Guide to the Civil Service Judgement Test” (the short video linked from the GOV.UK guidance, about four minutes, with English captions)
- official — GOV.UK: Success Profiles, Civil Service behaviours (updated 29 January 2025)
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
