At the 90th meeting of the Examination Yuan’s 13th term held today, MOEX presented a report on its plan to adjust professional exam subjects for junior and senior civil service examinations. . The Ministry said the plan will provide better flexibility and diversification and will be in a constant state of review as part of its effort to reduce the number of subjects for level three senior and junior civil service exams while maintaining procedural fairness. The Ministry will also discuss the feasibility of including oral or other exam formats in some exam categories. Examination Yuan President Huang Jong-tsun noted that national exams must evolve with changing times. He suggested that MOEX strengthen reform discussions and develop implementation steps and complementary measures with hiring government agencies, and gather opinions from relevant parties for future reference.

MOEX stated that civil servants are the cornerstone of national development and crucial to the quality and efficiency of governmental administration. As the government’s missions and functions evolve with time and societal changes, a new generation is entering the public sector. As the workplace changes and people have more options, selection and recruitment methods should be adjusted accordingly.

The Ministry pointed out that faced with globalization and changing forms of education, they have studied recruitment systems from other nations and considered the government’s post-reorganization manpower needs. Some technical departments in the public sector are facing competition with the private sector for manpower. As civil service exams remain the main method of recruitment, exam subjects should reflect the actual needs of hiring departments, and have the flexibility and diversification to distinguish themselves from similar professional and technical exams.

In a survey conducted in collaboration with National Chengchi University, almost 80 percent of respondents who took the 2021 level three senior exams reported that the current civil service examinations have too many professional exam subjects. More than 50 percent of survey participants agreed that reducing the number of exam subjects by one or two exam subjects will not affect the exam’s ability to determine candidate level. The majority of exam takers agree that professional exam subjects should be adjusted in flexible ways.

According to MOEX, the current exam system is designed to meet society’s expectations of exam fairness and objectivity. If future recruitment and selection procedures take diverse forms and allow hiring departments to engage in the process, it is reasonable to first reduce pressure on test-takers caused by written exams before other exam formats are gradually adopted. The current plan is to remove two exam subjects from level three senior exams and one from junior exams. The Ministry will continue to deliberate the feasibility of adopting oral or other exams forms in some exam categories to strengthen the efficiency of the selection and management of civil servants to meet modern government needs.