Civil Service job adverts are labelled with grades like AO, EO, HEO and Grade 7, which can be confusing if you are new to government. The grades describe the level of responsibility a role carries, broadly comparable across departments even though job titles and pay vary. Knowing where a role sits helps you judge whether it suits your experience and what salary to expect.
The main grades from bottom to top
Most departments use a shared ladder of grades. The exact names can differ slightly, but the structure below is the one you will meet most often.
- Administrative Assistant and Administrative Officer (AA and AO), entry-level roles handling day-to-day operational and support work
- Executive Officer (EO), often a first supervisory or caseworker role with more independence
- Higher and Senior Executive Officer (HEO and SEO), middle management, policy and project delivery
- Grade 7 and Grade 6, senior professionals and managers leading teams and significant pieces of work
- Senior Civil Service (SCS), the most senior leaders, including deputy directors and directors
What each level involves
At AA and AO level you might process applications, respond to enquiries or support a team. EO roles add a layer of decision-making and sometimes line management. HEO and SEO posts typically involve managing people, running projects or developing policy. Grade 7 and Grade 6 staff are experienced specialists and managers, while the Senior Civil Service leads departments and shapes strategy. The behaviours you evidence in your application are expected to scale with the grade, as our guide to Civil Service behaviour examples explains.
Pay and location
Pay rises with grade and also varies by department and location, with London roles attracting higher salaries than national ones. The Civil Service has been moving roles out of the capital under the Places for Growth programme, so you will find posts across the UK as well as in government jobs in London. Each advert states the salary range and whether the role is national, regional or London-based.
Moving between grades
Progression usually happens by applying for a higher-graded role rather than automatic promotion, and you compete on merit through the Success Profiles framework. Temporary promotion and secondments are common ways to gain experience at the next level. If you are aiming for an accelerated path into the senior grades, the Fast Stream guide is worth reading.
- Apply for the grade that matches your current evidence, not just the salary
- Use temporary promotion or stretch projects to build higher-grade examples
- Read the level descriptors in each advert carefully
- Remember that the same grade can mean different job titles in different departments
When you are ready to look, browse current Civil Service jobs and filter by the grade that fits your experience and goals.
What is the AO grade in the Civil Service?
Administrative Officer (AO) is the main entry-level grade, one step above Administrative Assistant (AA). AO roles handle the day-to-day operational work of a department: processing applications and casework, answering enquiries, keeping records accurate and supporting more senior colleagues. Most AO adverts ask for good written communication and attention to detail rather than previous government experience, which makes it the most common way into the Civil Service.
What is the EO grade in the Civil Service?
Executive Officer (EO) sits directly above AO and is usually the first grade with real decision-making responsibility. EOs make judgements on cases, manage small pieces of work end to end and sometimes line-manage AO colleagues. If an advert says EO, expect to work with more independence than an AO and to evidence stronger examples against the Success Profiles behaviours.
What do HEO and SEO mean?
Higher Executive Officer (HEO) and Senior Executive Officer (SEO) are the middle-management grades between EO and Grade 7. HEOs typically run projects, draft policy advice or manage teams; SEOs carry the same kind of work with more scope and seniority. Note that in Civil Service adverts SEO means Senior Executive Officer, not search engine optimisation — a common point of confusion for people coming from the private sector.
What are the SCS grades, and what level is a director?
The Senior Civil Service (SCS) sits above Grade 6 and has its own internal levels: deputy directors at SCS1, directors at SCS2, directors general at SCS3, and permanent secretaries at the very top. So a director is a senior SCS leader, usually responsible for a whole directorate of teams, while a deputy director typically leads a single policy area or function.
How do Civil Service grades map to salaries?
There is no single national pay scale: each department sets its own pay ranges for each grade, and London-based roles usually pay more than national ones. What holds everywhere is the ordering — each step up the ladder from AO to SCS carries a higher range — and every advert must state the actual salary or range on offer. Treat the grade as a guide to responsibility level and the advert itself as the source of truth on pay.
This guide is general information about Civil Service grades and is not formal careers advice. Grade names, pay and structures can differ between departments, so always check the details in the specific job advert.