The Federal Public Service Commission has rejected reports suggesting that interest in Pakistan’s CSS examination has fallen sharply, saying the comparison ignores candidates registered for the compulsory MPT screening test.
According to the FPSC, 64,081 candidates registered for the CSS MPT in 2025, which the commission described as evidence that young people remain strongly interested in joining the civil services.
FPSC Questions Comparison of Written Exam Data
Recent reports compared 35,059 CSS applications in 2022 with 18,139 applications for the 2025 written examination, showing a decline of nearly 48%.
However, the FPSC said this comparison lacks context because candidates must now qualify for the MPT before applying for the written examination. It maintained that MPT registrations provide a broader picture of overall interest.
For the CSS 2025 written examination:
- 18,139 candidates applied
- 12,792 appeared
- 354 passed the written stage
- 342 were declared eligible after interviews
- 170 were finally appointed
The commission said media reports focused only on written examination applications while overlooking the much larger number of candidates participating in the screening stage.
FPSC maintained that CSS remains highly competitive and that the available MPT figures do not support claims of declining youth interest.
