By Waqas Ahmed

The alarming outcome of this year’s Central Superior Services (CSS) exam sent shockwaves through the country’s community of young professionals and left many wondering what went wrong. Less than three per cent of those who appeared for the competitive exam was able to clear it, according to results put up by the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) more than a week ago.

But this year’s outcome is far from an anomaly when taking into account previous years’ results. Data obtained from the FPSC by The Express Tribune reveals past years’ CSS success rates have been more or less within the same range, raising questions regarding the efficacy of both the assessment process and the country’s education standards.

Of the 43,097 candidates who have appeared for the competitive exam over the past four years, only 1,444 or a meager 3.35 per cent managed to pass it, according to the FPSC data. In contrast, this year’s CSS success rate was only slightly less at 2.56 per cent.