Ohio Civil Service Clerical Aptitude Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Using standard 'letter-by-letter' filing rules, which of the following names should be filed FIRST?
- Stevens, Aaron
- Stephan, William (Correct answer)
- Stephenson, G.
- Stevens, A. R.
Correct answer: Stephan, William
According to standard filing rules, you compare names letter by letter from the beginning. 'Stephan' comes before 'Stephenson' and 'Stevens' because 'a' comes before 'e'. Therefore, 'Stephan, William' is filed first.
Question 2: A clerk is verifying a list of newly issued ID badges. In which of the following pairs is the copy NOT an exact match of the original?
- Original: 7G-491-B38K; Copy: 7G-491-B38K
- Original: 2R-9J5-L0M1; Copy: 2R-9J5-LOM1 (Correct answer)
- Original: 5T-882-P4N6; Copy: 5T-882-P4N6
- Original: 9A-K17-C3D9; Copy: 9A-K17-C3D9
Correct answer: Original: 2R-9J5-L0M1; Copy: 2R-9J5-LOM1
In the second pair, the original contains the number zero ('0'), while the copy contains the uppercase letter 'O'. This is a common transcription error. All other pairs are identical.
Question 3: An office has the following procedure for routing incoming mail: Blue envelopes go to the Finance Department. Green envelopes go to the Human Resources Department. Red envelopes go to the Legal Department. However, any envelope of any color marked 'URGENT' must go directly to the Director's office. An employee receives a green envelope marked 'URGENT'. Where should it be routed?
- Human Resources Department
- Finance Department
- Director's office (Correct answer)
- Legal Department
Correct answer: Director's office
The procedure includes an exception that overrides the standard color-coding rule. The rule states that 'any envelope of any color marked 'URGENT' must go directly to the Director's office.' Since the green envelope is marked 'URGENT', it must be routed to the Director.
Question 4: A state agency uses a two-part code for classifying documents: the first part indicates the department (FIN=Finance, LEG=Legal, PUB=Public Works) and the second part indicates the document type (01=Request, 02=Report, 03=Contract). What would be the correct code for a contract from the Finance department?
- FIN-02
- LEG-03
- FIN-03 (Correct answer)
- PUB-01
Correct answer: FIN-03
The code for the Finance department is 'FIN' and the code for a contract is '03'. Combining these according to the classification system results in the code 'FIN-03'.
Question 5: A data entry clerk must transcribe information from a paper form into a database. Which of the following database entries is an exact copy of the Source Record?
Source Record: Applicant: O'Connell, Brian | ID: #5830-G | Status: PENDING
- Applicant: O'Connell, Brian | ID: #5830-G | Status: PENDING (Correct answer)
- Applicant: OConnell, Brian | ID: #5830-G | Status: PENDING
- Applicant: O'Connell, Brian | ID: #5380-G | Status: PENDING
- Applicant: O'Connell, Brian | ID: #5830-G | Status: PNDING
Correct answer: Applicant: O'Connell, Brian | ID: #5830-G | Status: PENDING
This option is the only one that perfectly matches the source record in every detail, including the apostrophe in the name, the sequence of numbers in the ID, and the full spelling of the status.
Question 6: When filing business names alphabetically, articles such as 'A', 'An', and 'The' at the beginning of a name are disregarded. Based on this rule, which of the following business names would be filed LAST?
- The Summit Group
- Superior Solutions (Correct answer)
- Summit & Associates
- Superior, Inc.
Correct answer: Superior Solutions
For filing, 'The Summit Group' is treated as 'Summit Group'. When alphabetizing:
1. Summit & Associates
2. Summit Group
3. Superior, Inc.
4. Superior Solutions
'Superior Solutions' comes after 'Superior, Inc.' based on the 'nothing before something' rule, making it the last in the list.
