Pakistan is considering major changes to the Central Superior Services (CSS) examination, including allowing candidates to attempt some compulsory papers in either English or Urdu.
The proposals are part of wider civil service reforms being reviewed by the federal government. A committee led by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has reached agreement on 43 of 46 recommendations.
Under the proposed language change, candidates could choose English or Urdu for compulsory subjects such as Essay, Precis and Composition, Islamiat, Pakistan Studies and Current Affairs. The proposal is intended to give candidates more choice in how they express their knowledge.
The reforms also propose increasing the general passing threshold in CSS examinations from 33% to 40%. GRE and SAT style questions may also be introduced to test analytical and logical reasoning skills.
However, these changes are still proposals and are not yet part of the current CSS rules. The Federal Public Service Commission continues to conduct CSS examinations under the existing framework, with its official website listing the current examination rules and updates.
The government is also considering digitising the examination process and reducing the recruitment cycle to six months as part of the wider reforms.
