How it works
How you actually get a city job.
There are two ways in. Some city jobs you apply for directly, like any job. Most go through a civil service exam: slower, but open to anyone who meets the posted requirements. Here are both, in plain English.
Two ways in.
Apply directly
Some titles have no exam. You apply on cityjobs.nyc.gov with a resume, and the agency interviews from there. Right now 527 open postings are for titles with no exam; each posting here says which kind it is.
Browse open jobs →Take an exam
DCAS says over 80% of city jobs require an exam to be hired. You file in a short window, take the test, and land on a ranked list that agencies hire from. The six steps are below.
See the exam calendar →Source: DCAS, Apply for a City Job
The exam route
Six steps, start to finish.
-
Read the Notice of Examination.
Every exam has one. It lists the duties, who qualifies, what the test covers, and the fee. DCAS calls it the best source of information about each exam. Read all of it before you apply.
-
File during the filing window.
Filing usually lasts about three weeks, and the city doesn't take applications before it opens or after it closes. You file and pay online on OASys or at a DCAS testing center. Some people can have the fee waived, including veterans.
-
Take the test.
For scheduled exams, your admission notice is emailed two to three weeks before, with the date and place. Multiple-choice exams usually run 40 to 150 questions. Some exams are education-and-experience tests you finish online while applying.
-
Get your score and your place on the list.
You get a tentative result at the end of the test. When scores are final, DCAS posts a list of everyone who passed, ranked by score, and emails your official result. Your score stays active for up to four years. If you think the answer key is wrong, there's a protest and appeal process.
-
Answer the call letter.
When an agency needs people, it interviews from the list in score order, and it may pick any of the top three (the one-in-three rule). Your invitation is a call letter. Answer it even if you have to say no: if you don't respond, you can be taken off the list.
-
Pass probation. Then it’s permanent.
Hired from a list, you serve a probationary period. Pass it and you have permanent civil service status, which also lets you take promotion exams.
New words? The civil service glossary →
Might apply to you
Things people don't know to ask.
Have a record?
Under the Fair Chance Act, city agencies can't ask about arrests or convictions until after they've made you a conditional offer.
Worried about a drug test for weed?
Local Law 91 of 2019 stops employers, the City included, from requiring a THC test as a condition of employment. It doesn't cover certain positions; DCAS keeps the list.
Have a disability?
The 55-a Program lets a qualified person with a certified disability be hired into exam titles without taking the exam. Certification comes from ACCES-VR or the NYS Commission for the Blind.
A veteran?
Eligible veterans can have exam fees waived, as many times as they want, and can apply for preference credits added to a passing score.
Went to school outside the US?
If a job needs an education requirement, your foreign education has to be evaluated for its US equivalent first.
Still in school
Internships and fellowships.
The city runs programs for high school and college students, and for graduates.
College
Talk to a person
Free info sessions, from the city.
DCAS runs Civil Service 101: how the system, the exams and applying work, for people just starting out.
-
Tuesday, October 13, 5:30–7:00 p.m.
Online (Microsoft Teams)
Register -
Thursday, October 15, 2:30–4:00 p.m.
1 Centre Street, Manhattan, or online
Register
More dates and recruitment events: DCAS Office of Citywide Recruitment
Questions about an exam you applied for: DCAS at 212-669-1357, or the Contact Us form in OASys. Official contact page