CPNS

Overview

CPNS (Calon Pegawai Negeri Sipil) is Indonesia's selection process for civil servant candidates, run by the Badan Kepegawaian Negara (BKN, National Civil Service Agency) through the national SSCASN online portal. It is one of two main routes into Indonesian public service, alongside PPPK (contract-based government employees).

Who can apply

Eligibility (age range, educational qualification, and specific formation/post requirements) is set separately for each announced formasi (post opening) in the government agency's recruitment announcement, published through SSCASN. General requirements across formations typically include Indonesian citizenship, a clean criminal record, and meeting the educational qualification required for the specific post.

Exam pattern

The process has two main testing stages after administrative selection:

• Seleksi Kompetensi Dasar (SKD): a Computer Assisted Test (CAT) covering Tes Wawasan Kebangsaan (TWK, national insight), Tes Intelegensi Umum (TIU, general intelligence) and Tes Karakteristik Pribadi (TKP, personal characteristics), historically around 110 questions in total across the three sections.

• Seleksi Kompetensi Bidang (SKB): a test specific to the post/formation applied for, which may include a written test, practical test, or other role-specific assessment, run after candidates pass SKD.

Final selection combines SKD and SKB scores according to a weighting set by the government for that recruitment cycle.

Important dates

Each CPNS recruitment cycle is announced separately, with its own formasi announcement, registration window, SKD and SKB schedule, and results announcement, all published through SSCASN; timing varies year to year and the exact figures should be checked against the current cycle's official announcement.

How to apply

Registration is online only, through the SSCASN portal (sscasn.bkn.go.id), where candidates create an account, select a formasi, and upload required documents within the published registration window.

After the exam

Candidates who pass both SKD and SKB and are selected go through further administrative verification before being appointed as Calon Pegawai Negeri Sipil, followed by a probationary period before confirmation as full civil servants (PNS).

Preparation tips

Because SKD has a Computer Assisted Test format with three distinct sections (national insight, general intelligence, personal characteristics), practising full CAT-style mock tests under time pressure for each section, and checking the SKB format specific to the chosen formation in advance, is the standard preparation approach.