Falling standards: CSS result shows dismal state of education
Only 235 out of 11,406 candidates pass exams.
The dismal state of education can be gauged from the fact that only two per cent of ‘potential’ candidates could pass the competitive examinations for the country’s civil services. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD:
The dismal state of education can be gauged from the fact that only two per cent of ‘potential’ candidates could pass the competitive examinations for the country’s civil services.
According to the results announced by the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) on Wednesday, only 235 out of 11,406 have passed the CSS examination, a 2.09 pass percentage. Of the successful candidates, 172 are male and 66 female.
To curb the flux of a large number of ineligible candidates who appear in the CSS exams, the FPSC has proposed a set of reforms to ease burden on the commission.
The proposal, prepared by a committee comprising senior bureaucrats and experts, advocates a “screen out” process on the pattern of army recruitment to ensure that only promising candidates sit in the final examination.
The proposal has been forwarded to the prime minister for approval, but no progress has been made on the issue, official sources told The Express Tribune.
An official said the FPSC believes that many candidates lose interest when they fail in one or more subjects, especially in English, when they first appear, taking the second and third chances casually.
“The screening process aims at allowing only eligible candidates to appear in the CSS exam in the future,” the official said.
Former finance joint secretary Farrukh Kazi, while commenting on the poor result of this year, said that it was important to see in which subjects students had failed, because usually, the majority of them failed in English which was compulsory.
Former Capital Administration and Development Division secretary Shaigan Sharif Malik took a swipe at private academies which offer CSS preparation classes saying, “there is no check on these so-called academies, which have become money-making machines, churning out lame ducks without properly polishing their skills to meet certain standards.
CSS results 2013
CSS results 2012
Published in The Express Tribune, November 21st, 2013.
The dismal state of education can be gauged from the fact that only two per cent of ‘potential’ candidates could pass the competitive examinations for the country’s civil services.
According to the results announced by the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) on Wednesday, only 235 out of 11,406 have passed the CSS examination, a 2.09 pass percentage. Of the successful candidates, 172 are male and 66 female.
To curb the flux of a large number of ineligible candidates who appear in the CSS exams, the FPSC has proposed a set of reforms to ease burden on the commission.
The proposal, prepared by a committee comprising senior bureaucrats and experts, advocates a “screen out” process on the pattern of army recruitment to ensure that only promising candidates sit in the final examination.
The proposal has been forwarded to the prime minister for approval, but no progress has been made on the issue, official sources told The Express Tribune.
An official said the FPSC believes that many candidates lose interest when they fail in one or more subjects, especially in English, when they first appear, taking the second and third chances casually.
“The screening process aims at allowing only eligible candidates to appear in the CSS exam in the future,” the official said.
Former finance joint secretary Farrukh Kazi, while commenting on the poor result of this year, said that it was important to see in which subjects students had failed, because usually, the majority of them failed in English which was compulsory.
Former Capital Administration and Development Division secretary Shaigan Sharif Malik took a swipe at private academies which offer CSS preparation classes saying, “there is no check on these so-called academies, which have become money-making machines, churning out lame ducks without properly polishing their skills to meet certain standards.
CSS results 2013
| Candidates applied | 15,998 |
| Candidates appeared | 11,406 |
| Candidates passed | 238 |
| Successful male candidates | 172 |
| Successful female candidates | 66 |
| Percentage | 2.09% |
CSS results 2012
| Candidates applied | 14,335 |
| Candidates appeared | 1006 |
| Candidates passed | 788 |
| Successful male candidates | 588 |
| Successful female candidates | 200 |
| Percentage | 7.8% |
Published in The Express Tribune, November 21st, 2013.