Residence Requirements:

RESIDENCE REQUIREMENTS:  CANDIDATES MUST HAVE BEEN LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY FOR AT LEAST ONE MONTH IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF THE WRITTEN TEST AND MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY AT THE TIME OF APPOINTMENT.  Preference may be given to successful candidates who have been residents of the municipality in which the appointment is to be made for one month preceding the date of the certification of the eligible list and who are residents of the municipality at the time of appointment.  Non-residents may be required to become a resident of the appointing municipality if local law so states.

There is one vacancy in the Town of West Seneca and the annual salary is $33,400 - $41,000.  The eligible list resulting from this examination will be used to fill this vacancy and other appropriate vacancies which may occur in municipalities or districts under the jurisdiction of Erie County Civil Service while this list is active.  

Examples of Duties:

A Court Clerk performs specialized clerical duties in a municipal justice court;

responds to inquiries from other courts, agencies and attorneys concerning court procedures; schedules mail waiver non-jury trials;

records receipt of fees, fines and bail money, enters same in computer, deposits receipts;

accepts court forms such as parking tickets, motor vehicle tickets, dog summons, delivered by mail or in person, reviews forms and instruments for accuracy and compliance with established procedures;

assists judges in courtroom when needed on court days;

maintains stock of office supplies and requisitions for same when needed;

enters into computer all information relative to tickets issued by various police agencies, assigning docket numbers, filing of same into proper return date;

prepares trial notices on not guilty pleas, scheduling of same;

enrollment and preparation and mailing of notices of school dates for violators assigned to traffic school by judges;

receipt of completion slip from school, notation of same on docket and payment of fine;

types records, envelops and forms as required in the routine course of court business;

assists citizens who wish to file small claims - advise as to procedure, distribution of information packet, entry of same into computer, preparation of notice of claim and proper mailings of same;

enters into computer of dockets for civil matters and receipt of moneys for filing fees for same;

receives fines from defendants who appear in the court, both during the regularly scheduled court session and also during cafeteria court which is held daily.

Qualifications:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: Candidates must meet the following requirements on or before the date of the written test:

A. Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State registered college or university with an Associate's degree in legal secretarial or closely related field; or:

B. Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma, including or supplemented by a course in typing and two years office clerical experience, one year of which was in a legal office, court, or other position which requires routine processing of legal documents; or:

C. An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A), and (B).

Notes:

NOTES: 1. Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting full-time experience requirements. 2. Your degree and/or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the New York State Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. A grade of “D” or better is necessary for a course to be credited as successfully completed. If your degree and/or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside of the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to this Department for a list of acceptable companies providing this service; you must pay the required evaluation fee.

Notice to Candidates:  Transcripts will now be accepted by the Department of Personnel ONLY at time of application.  

All subsequent transcripts must be submitted at time of interview.

The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However,candidates may find information in the publication "How to take a written test" helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at: www.cs.ny.gov/testing/localtestguides.cfm

Subjects of Examination:

Subjects of examination: A written test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas:

1. Name and number checking

These questions test for the ability to distinguish between sets of words, letters, and/or numbers that are almost exactly alike. Material is usually presented in two or three columns, and you will have to determine how the entry in the first column compares with the entry in the second column and possibly the third. You will be instructed to mark your answers according to a designated code provided in the directions.

2. Office record keeping

These questions test your ability to perform common office record keeping tasks. The test consists of two or more "sets" of questions, each set concerning a different problem. Typical record keeping problems might involve the organization or collation of data from several sources; scheduling; maintaining a record system using running balances; or completion of a table summarizing data using totals, subtotals, averages and percents. You should bring with you a hand-held battery- or solar-powered calculator for use on this test. You will not be permitted to use the calculator function of your cell phone.

3. Operations with Letters and Numbers

These questions test for skills and abilities in operations involving alphabetizing, comparing, checking and counting. The questions require you to follow the specific directions given for each question which may involve alphabetizing, comparing, checking and counting given groups of letters and/or numbers.

4. Public contact principles and practices

These questions test for knowledge of techniques used to interact with other people, to gather and present information, and to provide assistance, advice, and effective customer service in a courteous and professional manner. Questions will cover such topics as understanding and responding to people with diverse needs, perspectives, personalities, and levels of familiarity with agency operations, as well as acting in a way that both serves the public and reflects well on your agency.

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES:  Unless otherwise noted, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculators.  Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited.  You may not bring books or other reference materials.

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.