How the Casework Skills Test works
Part 1: you read a scenario and its background documents, such as customer emails, letters and messages from colleagues. For each statement about the case you decide whether it is definitely true, probably true, definitely false, probably false, or cannot be told from the information.
Part 2: six casework scenarios with four actions each, rated Counterproductive, Ineffective, Fairly Effective or Effective. Part 3: ten minutes of case details such as addresses, account numbers and dates, where you spot differences between two versions or type a detail exactly.
It is used for Administrative Officer and Executive Officer casework jobs, and your result is a percentile against other applicants.
How to judge a statement in Part 1
Answer in two steps:
- Direction: does the pack point to true, to false, or nowhere?
- Certainty: choose Definitely only when a document settles it. Choose Probably when the documents point one way but leave a gap.
- Choose Cannot say only when nothing in the pack bears on the statement.
- Most statements depend on two documents read together, so check dates, names and reference numbers across the pack.
Worked example
The pack: an email from Mr Patel dated 2 June, quoting reference CW-4471 and saying he posted his renewal form last week; the post room log, showing CW-4471 received on 29 May; and a colleague’s note of 10 June: "CW-4471 scanned, signature page missing."
"The form arrived before Mr Patel sent his email." Definitely true: the log and the email share the reference, and 29 May is before 2 June.
"Mr Patel signed his form." Probably false: the signature page is missing from the scan, which points to no signature, but the page may simply have been lost.
"Mr Patel has phoned about his form." Cannot say: nothing in the pack mentions a call.
Tips for the real Casework Skills Test
- Skim every document in the pack once before the first statement, noting dates, names and amounts.
- Be wary of Definitely. It is the over-confident answer when the pack leaves a gap.
- Take your time in Parts 1 and 2. Only Part 3 is timed.
- In Part 3, check fields in a fixed order and flag only real differences.
- Ask the recruiter about extra time on Part 3 if you need it.
Practise the Casework Skills Test on CogniPrep
Our version has all three parts: two case packs of emails, letters and policy extracts with eight statements each on the five-point scale, six rated casework scenarios, and a 10-minute checking section. The pack count and statement numbers are ours, because the Civil Service does not publish them, and so are the part weights. Feedback separates over-certain answers from missed details. Your result is a percentile against other CogniPrep users.