Alphabetical Filing Rules for the CSE Subprofessional Exam

Clerical Ability is tested only in the Subprofessional level of the Civil Service Exam, and its official scope has just two items: filing and spelling. Filing questions usually show a list of names and ask which should be filed first, last or in a certain position. They are easy marks once you know the rules, and surprisingly tricky if you rely on instinct.

The rules below follow the standard approach to alphabetic filing used in records management. Different offices may have local variations, but these principles are the ones review questions are built on.

Rule 1: Index personal names surname first

Every personal name is broken into units and rearranged in this order:

1. Surname (last name)
2. First name
3. Middle name or initial

So Maria Clara Santos is indexed as SANTOS, MARIA CLARA.

Compare names unit by unit. Only if the first units are identical do you look at the second unit, and so on.

Pedro Bautista, Maria Santos, Jose Reyes Indexed: BAUTISTA Pedro, REYES Jose, SANTOS Maria → Bautista is filed first.

Rule 2: Nothing comes before something

When one unit is the same as the beginning of another, the shorter one comes first.

Cruz, Cruzada, Cruzat → Cruz is first. Go, Gomez → Go is first.

This also applies to whole names: Rosa Lim (no middle name) is filed before Rosa Ann Lim and Rosa B. Lim, because a missing unit comes before any existing one.

Rule 3: Compare letter by letter

Alphabetise one letter at a time, ignoring how the name sounds.

Tan, Tanada, Tanay, Tang T-A-N, then T-A-N-A-D, T-A-N-A-Y, T-A-N-G. → order: Tan, Tanada, Tanay, Tang.

Rule 4: Prefixes are part of the surname

Surname prefixes such as de, del, dela, delos, San, Sta., Mac and Mc are treated as part of the surname, forming a single unit. Spaces and punctuation are ignored.

Juan dela Cruz → DELACRUZ Juan Mark San Juan → SANJUAN Mark Ella Sta. Maria → STAMARIA Ella

This matters a great deal. dela Cruz is filed under D, not under C.

De Guzman, Dela Cruz, Delos Santos, Del Rosario Units: DEGUZMAN, DELACRUZ, DELOSSANTOS, DELROSARIO → order: De Guzman, Dela Cruz, Delos Santos, Del Rosario.

Rule 5: Mac and Mc are filed as written

Names beginning with Mac and Mc are alphabetised exactly as they are spelled, not as if they were the same.

Macapagal, MacArthur, Madrid, McDonald → order: Macapagal, MacArthur, Madrid, McDonald.

Rule 6: Hyphenated surnames are one unit

Ignore the hyphen and treat the surname as one word.

Gomez-Tan → GOMEZTAN Cruz-Reyes → CRUZREYES, which comes after CRUZ (nothing before something).

Rule 7: Titles and suffixes come last

Titles such as Dr., Atty. and Engr., and suffixes such as Jr., Sr. and III, are not part of the surname. They are used only as a final unit, to separate names that are otherwise identical.

Carlo Reyes and Carlo Reyes Jr. → Carlo Reyes first, then Carlo Reyes Jr.

Rule 8: Identical surnames — look at the first name

Rafael Lopez, Ramon Lopez, Rita Lopez, Rosa Lopez The surnames match, so compare the first names: RAF-, RAM-, RIT-, ROS- → Rafael first.

A step-by-step method for exam questions

1. Rewrite each name surname first, joining any prefix to the surname and removing spaces, hyphens and periods.
2. Compare the surnames letter by letter, applying “nothing before something”.
3. If surnames match, compare first names, then middle names.
4. Check what is asked: first, last, second or third. Many errors come from answering “first” when the question asks for “last”.

Worked example

Which is filed second: Mario dela Paz, Mario Del Pilar, Mario De Leon, Mario Dela Torre?

• Rewrite: DELAPAZ, DELPILAR, DELEON, DELATORRE
• Order: DELAPAZ, DELATORRE, DELEON, DELPILAR
• Second: Mario Dela Torre

Practise until it is automatic

Filing questions reward a steady routine more than speed. Work through our spelling and filing set and the practice set. Every filing answer there was worked out by a script that applies the rules above, and each explanation shows the order step by step.