PSC not to disclose job applicants’ identity till interview is over

Kathmandu, November 26

In a bid to eliminate chances of any favourable biases towards job applicants during interviews, the Public Service Commission has decided to bar its interviewers from asking questions that would give details of applicants’ identity.

This means, there will be no personal introduction between interviewers and applicants during interview. Civil service job applicants are selected through interviews after they pass the written tests.

According to PSC Spokesperson Laxmi Bilash Koirala, the new system will eliminate chances of interviewers favouring any applicant or showing any bias towards them. He said the PSC was thinking of breaking with the tradition of publishing the names of the candidates who have cleared the written tests, their surnames, names of their fathers, grandfathers and the addresses of the candidates.

“We are now thinking of keeping the identity of the candidates secret till the interview process which will bring key reforms in our recruitment process, said Koirala. When the new concept comes into effect, the interviewers will know only the interviewee’s exam code. “There will be no personal introductions during the interview,”  Koirala added.

The PSC will have to have some additional arrangements for implementing the policy. He also said that some of the renowned international corporations had been employing this method to recruit their employees.

Koirala said the PSC had been keeping its selection process highly confidential even among it sections. “One section never knows how and when another section is involved in the selection process,” he added.  The answer sheets are examined by two persons, which the PSC believes will help it to avoid human errors in the process.

Koirala also said the PSC had taken new initiative to maintain its credibility for fair recruitment.