How Do I Cover Four Behaviours in a 500-Word Civil Service Personal Statement?
Behaviour Criteria, Essential Criteria and Short Personal Statement Word Limits
Hello,
I am applying for a Civil Service role where the advert lists four behaviours, but the application only asks for a 500-word personal statement.
The personal statement instructions say to explain how my skills and experience meet the role requirements. They do not specifically say to write a separate example for every behaviour.
Should I try to fit four short STAR examples into the statement, or should I focus on the essential criteria and leave the behaviours for the interview?
I am worried that concentrating on two strong examples will look as though I ignored the other behaviours, but four separate examples would be so brief that none of them would contain enough evidence.
Quick Answer
Follow the section-specific instructions rather than assuming every listed behaviour needs a separate mini-STAR. If the personal statement is assessed against the essential criteria, use the 500 words to provide strong evidence against those requirements and cover behaviours only where the advert says they are assessed at sift.
Read our guide to applying for a Civil Service job for the relevant process, checks and practical guidance.
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How I Would Allocate 500 Words When the Advert Lists Four Behaviours
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Continue reading to see how I would decode the advert, decide what the sift will score and build a short statement without reducing four behaviours to weak one-paragraph examples.
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