Civil service executive officer
Manage the directorates and agencies that apply government policies and provide a wide range of important public services.
About the job
What it's like
You would help to provide important services to the public. Make fair and informed decisions and explain government policies to the public.
You could work in any of the Scottish Government directorates and agencies that develop and implement government policies, for example:
Communities Directorate
Enterprise, Environment and Innovation Directorate
Finance Directorate
Creative Scotland
Education Scotland
Forestry Commission Scotland
Depending on the directorate or the agency you worked for you would:
Manage, motivate train a team of administrative officers
Review the team performance
Review individuals’ situations and assess what services a person is entitled to
Handle a lot of cases at once
Apply complex policies and procedures to deal with enquiries and complaints
Make decisions on individual cases
Update records on computer systems and databases
Prepare and present reports
You might train in a specific area of work such as tax or immigration control.
Hours
You would normally work around 37 hours a week, Monday to Friday. Most departments work standard office hours, although some may use a flexitime system. In some departments you may be required to work on a shift basis which would include evenings, weekends and public holidays. Part-time work and job sharing are common.
Environment
You would be office-based.
Travel
There may be some travel to attend meetings, training courses and visiting other organisations.
Explore more information about this job
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Top skills
Skills are things you're good at. Whether you know what yours are or not, everyone has them!
It's useful to learn which ones are important in a job so you know the areas you need to brush up on. It can also help you work out if you're suited to a career.
Top specialised skills
These are the top specialised skills that have been found in job vacancies across Scotland. From March 2024 to March 2025.
- settlement
- baseline personnel security standard (bpss)
- artificial intelligence
- effective communication
Meta skills
Here are some of the meta skills you'll need to do this job.
- motivating others
- making decisions
- reliable
- time management
- developing a plan
- sorting
- attention to detail
- observation
- verbal communication
- cooperating
Your skills are important
Our unique skillsets are what make us stand out from the crowd. Learn about each skill in depth and discover what employers look for in your applications and interviews.
Getting in
Explore each section to find more information about getting into this career.
Colleges and universities will list subjects you'll need for entry to a course. Some useful subjects include:
Business
Modern Studies
People and Society
Politics
Sociology
Foundation Apprenticeship: Business Skills
You can get a head start in this career by doing a Foundation Apprenticeship in S5 and S6.
You'll get an SCQF level 6 qualification which is the same level as a Higher. You'll also learn new skills and gain valuable experience in a work environment.
Discover what's on offer at your school on Apprenticeships.scot.
Each Civil Service department or agency sets its own entry requirements.Depending on the role, you may be asked for qualifications at:
SCQF levels 4 to 6
a Higher National Certificate (SCQF level 7)
a Higher National Diploma (SCQF level 8)
a degree (SCQF level 9/10).
If you have at least a second-class degree in any subject (SCQF level 10), you could apply to the Graduate Fast Stream programme. This is a training scheme that leads to senior management posts. Your degree can be in any subject, although some departments may prefer degrees in subjects that are relevant to their work, for example, science and engineering departments.
All jobs are open to British nationals and many are also open to Commonwealth citizens or nationals of the member states of the European Economic Area. See the Civil Service website for more information.
You would be expected to have relevant experience, such as experience managing people.
As part of the Civil Service reform you would also be assessed on skills, knowledge and behaviours or ‘competencies’ that fit in with the values of the Civil Service. The competencies that are required for each job role are shown on the job advert.
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