civil service examination
Refers to the competitive examination for public sector employment in Japan, covering national and local government positions.
He passed the civil service examination and started working at the city hall.
Specifically the national civil service examination, while 公務員試験 can refer to both national and local government exams.
Specifically the local civil service examination, a subset of 公務員試験.
Compound of 公務員 (こうむいん, 'public servant') and 試験 (しけん, 'examination').