The number of people who were approved to take the national civil service exam and the number who actually took it have dropped from previous years, and part of the reason may be the Party's continuing anti-corruption efforts, experts and insiders say.

The annual exam is required for one to be hired by the central government and work as a civil servant. Millions of people take part every year, because being a civil servant is considered a decent and stable job that offers a good salary.

This year, the exam was held on Sunday. However, although 22,000 positions were offered - 3,000 more than last year - only about 1.41 million people were qualified to take the exam, and 1.05 million took it, the State Administration of Civil Service said.