Originally Posted by MuneezaRafiq

Name: Moneeza Rafiq

Merit no: 60th (General Merit)

Group Allocation: OMG



The Psychological Assessment for CSS lasts two days.



Psychological Assessment Day 1: April 7, 2021



First thing that happens on Day 1 is the checking of your original documents as well as any relevant degrees/awards/certificates/achievements which may help you get allocated. You are also required to submit photocopies of your documents, and for details you will be given a list of instructions and guidelines via post.



You are required to bring two 2B lead pencils, an eraser and a sharpener. You are also allowed to bring any light snacks with you, and will be given a 5 to 10 minute break for eating/relaxing etc in between rigorous testing.



After the checking of your original documents, you are seated in a hall with other candidates for psychological testing. A psychologist will give you instructions regarding what the test entails and the time you will be given to complete it. There is no preparation needed for these tests at all. Just relax and be yourself.



Tests include the following:



1) General ability/math/vocabulary test

2) Intelligence test on comparing figures and picking the next in sequence

3) Personality test (mainly testing you for introversion or extroversion)

4) Personality test in form of MCQs and Sentence Completion (mainly testing your moral compass and how you feel about yourself )

5) Story-writing based on given picture (you are asked to be as wild in imagination and as creative as possible. There are 5 different pictures and you are given roughly 2 minutes to write separately based on each of them.)

6) A short narrative written about yourself aside from what you have already mentioned in your application/educational background, as well as questions regarding whom you consider most influential personalities of the century and why, narration of experiences where you felt embarrassed or you lied, your relationship with your family members, and so forth.

7) Your personal bio data form is handed to you so that you may give updated information regarding addresses, phone numbers, etc (considering it's been nearly a year since you gave your application for written css test)



Many of these above mentioned tests last somewhere between 30 to 40 minutes and are usually composed of 80-120 questions. The time limit is short so that you have no time to make up lies about your personality or try to pick what will make a good impression. After each test is completed, you are immediately handed the next sheet and told to begin after brief instructions. You will feel slightly exhausted in a few hours, but luckily most of these tests do not require a whole lot of brain power. The psychologists encourage you to complete as many questions as possible and avoid leaving out blanks.



Some questions you might want to prepare for:

1) What living personalities have influenced you

2) Any important events in your life apart from those achievements mentioned in your application

3) Any three most important world events of the year, aside from the very obvious ones such as covid-19 pandemic



Day 1 activities typically last about 5 hours, and you are asked to leave after collecting your original documents as soon as the testing is over.



I went completely unprepared for the psychological assessment and had no issue doing the tests. So yes, you don't need any preparation for Day 1. Do bring a water bottle, a snack, and avail the 5 minute break to go to the bathroom.



Psychological Assessment Day 2: April 8, 2021





On this day, you need not bring anything with you. No documents are required, nor any other tools such as pencil or paper. You will be provided with a paper and pencil when the need arises.



Day 2 activities are all group activities, save for the individual interview with the psychologist panel at the end of the day.



The activities begin with you being herded into a room with numbered tables and chairs, and three psychologists seated against a wall waiting to observe you.



Activity 1: Group Discussion in Urdu (topic is provided, based on general current affairs such as 'economic situation of Pakistan has been like this since the country's very inception'). Here you are asked to ignore the panelists and discuss among your group members freely in Urdu. Turn-taking is very important here, as well as acknowledging each others' point of views while bringing forth your own. Roughly 10 to 15 minutes are allotted here.



Activity 2: Individual Improptu Speech in English. Here, you are asked to approach the desk of a panelist and presented with a short scrap of paper bearing your topic. Mine was 'Promulgation of law cannot ensure gender equality'. You are not told to either argue for or against the topic. It is up to you to decide how to interpret it. You are given roughly one to two minutes to go outside of the room and think (no writing tools given) of what to say. Afterward, the next candidate in line will come outside for his/her time and tell you to go back in to give the speech. You will be given two minutes to speak, and a bell will be rung signaling when you should stop.



Activity 3: Command Task. In this case, you are told that no bell will be rung to indicate when you have gone beyond time. You are typically given 15 minutes and told to keep your own time based on a wall clock in the room. Each candidate is asked to take and pass on a folder bearing one page long tasks. You are given time to read and make notes if any, on a given rough sheet. You are provided with a pencil and sharpener here. Candidates go to a desk in the center of the room one by one to brief the others about their own task, ask for suggestions and make concluding remarks. Be prepared to act according to the role given to you, greet your candidates and announce the task as you would in an official meeting, thank them for their suggestions and make your remarks in a professional manner.



Activity 4: Individual interview with psychologists. For me, this was the most nerve-wrecking part of the day. Psychologists took around 35-40 minutes with each candidate, and I was second to last, which meant I was mentally exhausted after the entire day of activities and from waiting. You're supposed to dress neat and professional for Day 2 mainly due to this interview. But don't stress if you're not wearing the right shade of shoes or if your shirt is a little creased from sitting doing activities all day. Three psychologists await you behind a door, and observe both your manner, as well as your confidence in speaking. My take is that they try to unnerve you and make you squirm in your seat, to see how you react under pressure. Let me elaborate: in a typical job interview, if you give the wrong answer or fail to answer, you are given another question and people move on; in this psychological interview, if you give the wrong answer, the panelists stare you down as if you've been caught red-handed, engaged in a deplorable act. Their reaction is meant to test your nerves. The psychologists will ask you general knowledge questions e.g. how many districts are there in Punjab, the old name of a certain city, and to name certain ministers/politicians hailing from your city. It's okay to say you don't know if you don't know. Don't be unnerved by the glares of offense directed your way. You will also be asked questions relating to your personal life. I was asked strange yet not-so-strange questions such as what do I dream of lately (and I don't mean daydreams or aspirations, but actual dreams when I go to sleep), what I think about arranged marriage vs. love marriage and why I think the latter is taboo, and what my siblings' relationship with my parents is like.



Once you are done, your psychological assessment is complete and you are free to leave and wait for call for the interview.