Dubbed the "Disabled's Special Examination," a three-day civil service test for handicapped citizens was held in the island's three largest cities. The unprecedented DSE was originally scheduled for July 28-31 but had to be moved back two days due to Typhoon Gloria.

The DSE is the nation's first civil service examination exclusively for the disabled. According to the Examination Ministry, more than 7,000 handicapped citizens took the test, 300 of whom will be recruited into the civil service, an acceptance rate of slightly more than 6 percent.

The examination sites were in Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung cities, which are located in the north, center and south of the island, respectively. Taipei's test sites accommodated a total of around 5,000 examinees, the largest group of the three geographical centers. The civil servant hopefuls flocked to the capital city from 10 surrounding counties and satellite cities.

Kaohsiung City Mayor Wu Den-yih stressed during an inspection of DSE test sites in his city that it is important for disabled citizens to enjoy the right of serving the government. According to current regulations, government agencies must hire one handicapped employee for every 50 workers. Wu called for the quotas to be increased.

The League of Welfare Organizations for the Disabled, the Eden Social Welfare Foundation and other civic groups drew up a service plan to help the government make the test run smoothly. The groups offered accommodations, transportation and volunteer services to examinees.

The Examination Ministry made special arrangements for examinees who had individual needs. For example, test-taker Yao Lu-yen, who has rheumatoid arthritis, was allowed to lie on her chest while answering the questions. Huang Chung-yen, a brain paralysis sufferer, was permitted to use a computer during the test.

Despite the special measures, many examinees found fault in this year's first running of the DSE. They complained that the bathrooms and other facilities at the test sites were not designed to accommodate the handicapped. Moreover, they urged the ministry to release test regulations well in advance for future DSEs. This year the guidelines were publicized three months before the test, and examinees felt that was not enough time for them to prepare.

The civil service examination is offered in five variations, each having a different level of difficulty. The Grade 1 test, the most demanding version, is reserved for applicants holding doctorates. Though still a tough evaluation of knowledge, the Grade 5 test is the least difficult and puts no restrictions on the examinee's educational background.

According to the ministry, a majority of this year's examinees opted to try their chances at passing the Grade 5 test. Of the 7,401 people who signed up for the DSE, 4,574 of them took the lowest-level version.

Although many of the Grade 5 participants had college degrees, they still decided to take this version because it gave them the best chance of landing a government job, the ministry explained.

Though a large number of disabled people participated in the DSE, several categories of government jobs went without any test-takers at all. For example, no one signed up to be tested as a possible civil service physician.

Wang Yung-chang, secretary-general of the League of Welfare Organizations for the Disabled, attributed this largely to the fact that few handicapped people in Taiwan have acquired a Ph.D. Besides, he added, those who have earned a medical degree are more likely to seek better-paying positions in the private sector.