Senior Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Specialist in Civil Service

Yeah, that's it. Interviews are done now. When they get to your number on the panel, you'll be offered a position and they'll check out your references and do your vetting.

Digital Business Engagement Specialist

Hi, sorry for a silly question, but I'm not at all familiar how the civil service works.

I applied for a very similar role to this ('Senior', IT, HEO level) and got an order of merit 18. Does this mean I'm 18th in line to get the job? Is this good or bad for such a position? I indicated I'd only work in Dublin, is it likely they will have 18 more positions this year?

Thanks!

EDIT after reading some posts above re location, and checking my application, it seems I did not specify Dublin, but in any case I'll only work there.

Thanks for that.

Yes, the email isn't very clear about any of this. The order of merit is your place on the list/panel.

I think Daith explained this earlier in the thread but basically all of the Civil Service will take people from this list, starting at the top. So it's not one position, but many different positions in different departments. How fast they go through the list depends on lots of things, both availability of roles and confirmation of references/vetting of people above you in the list.

If you're top 10 in the OOM it's very likely that you will get offered a position, it could just be in a couple of months rather than a couple of weeks.

I believe previous panels of this type were open for about 2 years so if you're lower down on the list/OOM you should expect to wait longer but most should get an offer at some stage.

The confirmation of references/vetting of people above you on the panel will have no bearing on when you're offered a job. As soon as a position arises to be filled they move to the next person on the panel and offer it to them. If candidate X is offered a job with department A but has to work out 2 months notice or it takes a while for his/her vetting or references, once that candidate is going through that process, it's taken for granted that's where they're being assigned. When a job arises with Department B, it's offered to the next candidate on the panel, candidate Y, regardless of candidate X being confirmed with Department A or not. The whole system would grind to a complete halt if they stopped allocating positions to wait for vetting, references or notice periods. If candidate X ultimately doesn't pass vetting, that position will be offered to the next available person on the panel.

Hi @HugoMyBoss , I have been placed from the Digital Business Engagement panel and will be starting in a few weeks. I am also on the Software Development Panel but have not heard anything from that.

@Roger1998 my clearance took over 7 weeks, was waiting 4 weeks after submitting references. I'd say PAS have a big back log due to summer holidays like you said. Drop them an email if you want to know what stage your application is at, it certainly won't do any harm. Best of luck!

Working notice at the moment. When you complete clearance you will get a notification on your publicjobs.ie message board and the department you are being placed in will contact you directly. Hang tight!

Took 4 weeks to check references and yes I knew the location from the beginning of the clearance process.

Glad to hear you got your contract @Roger1998, it does take time. I'm interested to hear about tips to get through the one year of probation too. I presume keep the head down and avoid lateness and absences would be a good start. Best of luck in your new job.

Hi @vivi.nova like most people say about PAS interviews, stick to the competencies and have examples. Always answer a question with an example of what you have done previously. I had two interviews a couple of weeks apart and learned a lot from the first and ended up doing much better in the second interview. In the second interview I tried to answer all questions with relevant examples and to highlight my strengths in terms of the competencies. I also had a better rapport with the second interview panel which was a big help. Good luck.

Has anyone been picked from the Digital Business Engagement panel from the interviews in December 2023? I placed high on the panel but I'm located in Galway and want to know if other positions have been filled nationwide?

As previously mentioned, it may be a waiting game for months instead of weeks as originally though.

@SneakyBeaver I was placed on the panel in late May, notified of placement in late July, completed clearance in mid September. I was on a national panel and was placed outside of Dublin. Job going well and so far I'm happy that I moved from my previous job and employer.