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. There are six present vacancies at the Erie County Clerk's Office. 

Examples of Duties:

A Document Clerk certifies copies of records and authenticates signature of Registrars of Vital Statistics, Notaries Public and other public officers on documents to be recorded outside the County of Erie;

Returns documents to customers after recording;

Issues hunting, fishing, trapping and pistol permit licenses;

Indexes, records and files documents, post changes to records;

Prepares transcripts of record for courts and District Attorney;

Processes Notaries Public, Commissioners of Deeds and other public officer oath cards;

Attends public at counter for information, direction, copy requests, and processing of no-fee documents;

May collect legal fees for services to be processed by a Senior Document Clerk;

May explain and assists clients/customers on the use of the offices’ computers to obtain public information and data;

Operates an alphanumeric keyboard to transcribe data directly to a computer;

Reproduce negative or positive copies of official records, reports, legal documents and other material for public record. May be optical image, microfilm or photocopy;

Performs all functions of scanning: operates equipment (scan, delete, store), cleans equipment, orders supplies;

Examines judgments and associated papers for accuracy and completeness;

Dockets and files judgments and tax liens and removes same when satisfied;

Searches files using indices and cross references;

Conducts inventories of records in Erie County Clerk’s Office;

Utilizes inventory forms provided by New York State Archives and Records Administration, and provides information contained therein to the Supervisor of Records;

Assists in organizing records, shelving & retrieving cubic foot record storage boxes;

Assists in cataloging records.

Qualifications:

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

Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma and in addition; either;

A) Completion of one (1) year of college or business school with a major in secretarial science or a related clerical field supplemented by two (2) years of satisfactory office clerical experience; or:
B) Three (3) years of satisfactory office clerical experience; or:
C) An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A), and (B).

Notes:

Note: Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting full time experience requirements.

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: https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.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.