The standard selection process for roles at GDS consists of:
- a simple application screening process - We only ask for a CV and cover letter of up to 750 words and a URL to your portfolio. Important tip - please ensure that your cover letter includes how you meet the skills and experience listed in the "person specification" section above
- a short task, which we will give you the day before the interview. You will be given 20 mins at the beginning of the interview to work on the task
- a 90 minute video interview, as part of the interview process there will be a task to be prepared and presented at the interview. Details around the task will be provided a day in advance of interviews.
Depending on how many applications we get, there might also be an extra stage before the video interview, for example a phone interview or a technical exercise.
While we value the use of AI technology to enhance our daily work, we also value the personal touch and urge applicants to write cover letters without the use of AI to emphasise their own unique experiences.
In the event we receive a high volume of applications, we will conduct the initial sift against the lead criteria which is:
- experience in designing services for users in complex environments and for digital and apps
In order to assist candidates with this role, we will be holding a virtual recruitment event on Wednesday 18th June at 12pm - 1pm to go through the role in more detail. If you are interested in joining this event please e-mail: [email protected] and a member of the team will send you an invitation to the event.
In the Civil Service, we use Success Profiles to evaluate your skills and ability. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, increases performance and improves diversity and inclusivity. We'll be assessing your technical abilities, skills, experience and behaviours that are relevant to this role.
For this role we'll be assessing you against the following Civil Service Behaviours:
- working together
- changing and improving
- seeing the bigger picture
- communicating and influencing
- delivering at pace
We'll also be assessing your experience and specialist technical skills against the following skills defined in the Government Digital and Data Capability Framework for the Senior Service Designer role:
- Agile working
- Communicating between the technical and non-technical
- Community collaboration
- Evidence- and context-based design
- Prototyping
- User focus
Recruitment Timeline
Virtual recruitment event: Wednesday 18th June at 12pm - 1pm
Sift completion: Tuesday 1st July 2025
Panel interviews: commencing Wednesday 9th July 2025
Candidates that do not pass the interview but have demonstrated an acceptable standard may be considered for similar roles at a lower grade.
A reserve list will be held for a period of 12 months, from which further appointments can be made.
Please note that this role requires SC clearance, which would normally need 5 years' UK residency in the past 5 years. This is not an absolute requirement, but supplementary checks may be needed where individuals have not lived in the UK for that period. This may mean your security clearance (and therefore your appointment) will take longer or, in some cases, not be possible.
For meaningful checks to be carried out, you will need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time, to enable appropriate checks to be carried out and produce a result which provides the required level of assurance. Whilst a lack of UK residency in itself is not necessarily a bar to a security clearance, and expectation of UK residency may range from 3 to 5 years. Failure to meet the residency requirements needed for the role may result in the withdrawal of provisional jobs offers.
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.
Sponsorship
DSIT cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. DSIT holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
