Application form checklist

Most public sector competitions in Ireland shortlist on the application form alone. Nobody meets you at this stage; the form is you. This checklist covers what to verify before you press submit, whether the application is on publicjobs.ie, to a local authority, or direct to a department. Work through it in order.

Before you start writing

1. Read the full information booklet, not just the advertisement. Eligibility, competencies, key dates and the shortlisting process are all in there.
2. Confirm you meet the eligibility requirements exactly as written. If a requirement is ambiguous, email the contact given in the booklet and keep the reply.
3. Note the closing date and time, and plan to submit at least a day early. Systems slow down near deadlines and a late application is not accepted.
4. Write out the competencies or capability dimensions the form asks about. These are the shortlisting criteria. The civil service capability framework guide explains how those dimensions are defined for the civil service.

Your examples

5. Choose one strong, specific example per competency question. A single well-evidenced situation beats a summary of everything you have ever done. Finding examples for local authority application forms covers this for council competitions.
6. Check each example answers the competency as defined in the booklet, not as you assume it is defined.
7. Give the result in each example: what changed because of what you did, with numbers where they exist.
8. Use "I" throughout. Duties describe the job; the form is asking what you did.

Writing and word counts

9. Stay inside the word or character count. Cut the situation description before you cut the actions.
10. Cut anything the question did not ask for. Space spent on context is space not spent on evidence.
11. Check the reading level: someone who has never worked with you should understand each example on one read.

Final checks

12. Proofread on a different day from writing, and once on paper or a different screen.
13. Check names, dates, employers and qualifications against your records. Errors here surface at clearance stage.
14. Confirm every mandatory field and attachment is complete, and that attachments are the versions you mean to send.
15. Save a copy of the final submitted form. If you are called to interview, the board will have it in front of them, and so should you.

If the form is shortlisted, everything in it is fair game at interview, so write nothing you cannot stand over. If you want a second pair of eyes on an application before you submit, email sarah@dedico.ie or see civil service coaching and local authority coaching.