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Membership

Guidance on how to become a member of the Government Economic Service and the types of membership that are offered.

Becoming a member of the Government Economic Service (GES) allows you to access the GES’s membership benefits.

GES membership is available only to civil servants, or those working on Civil Service terms and conditions. If you are interested in joining the Civil Service as an economist, see our working for GES pages

Staff joining the Civil Service do not automatically receive membership. To become a full GES member, individuals must meet the eligibility requirements and successfully complete an approved GES assessment route. Successful candidates must register on the GES members website to activate their membership.

There are two types of GES membership: full membership and associate membership. Additionally, we offer alumni membership.

The GES’s member database is the list of users on the members website. We do not hold any other lists of members.

Apply for GES membership

Eligibility requirements for Membership

To apply for full and associate GES membership, you must :

  • have a first or upper second-class honours degree in economics (or international equivalent), or a postgraduate degree in economics. If it is a joint economics degree, at least 50% of the total course credits must be in economics. Credits are now used instead of module counts because module sizes vary, and credit weighting provides a fairer and more consistent measure of total course content.
  • have studied both macroeconomics and microeconomics.
  • be a civil servant or be on Civil Service terms and conditions.
  • be in an economics role at the time of joining or have previously been a member of the GES and have chief economist support for re-joining.

Meeting the eligibility requirements is necessary but not sufficient for full GES membership. Candidates must also successfully complete an approved GES assessment route.

Types of Membership

Full membership

Full GES membership signifies that you have passed an economics assessment that has been approved by the GES.

To become a full member, you must meet the eligibility requirements and have completed an approved GES assessment route.

Approved assessment routes include centrally run schemes and department-led recruitment processes which meet GES badging requirements. This includes recruitment processes where GES badging is integrated into wider recruitment.

  1. Your current grade is Higher Executive Officer (HEO) and you joined through a GES run Economics Assessment Centre (EAC) for graduates. This includes entry routes such as the GES Assistant Economist Scheme and the GES Fast Stream. This applies where:

    • You were offered and accepted a role having passed the EAC, or:
    • You are already in post and remain in that post having passed the EAC.

  2. At Senior Executive Officer (SEO), Grade 7 and Grade 6, entry to full GES membership is achieved through a GES badging assessment, which confirms that candidates meet the required GES technical standard and may be delivered either as a standalone badging board or integrated within recruitment processes. Badging at these grades:

    • Assesses whether candidates meet the GES technical standard required for entry to the profession.
    • Leads to full GES membership on successful completion.
    • May be delivered as a standalone badging board or integrated within recruitment processes.
    • Is conducted by a panel of assessors, including at least one external GES economist from another department to provide independent oversight.
    • Is only required once on entry to the profession (it is not repeated at promotion).

  3. Your current grade is Higher Executive Officer (HEO) and you passed the End Point Assessment (GES DAP EPA) of the GES Degree Level Apprenticeship.

  4. Your current grade is Senior Executive Officer (SEO) or higher, and you passed the End Point Assessment (EPA) of the Economics Master’s Apprenticeship Programme.

  5. Your current grade is SCS1 (Deputy Director) or above, and your membership application has been approved by the Head of the GES. This process is organised by the GESR Team, with your application being supported by:

    • A copy of your full CV, containing evidence of having worked at senior levels as a professional economist (in any sector)
    • Endorsement from the Head of Profession/Chief Economist at your department
    • Self-certification of meeting the standard set by the GES Technical Framework at SCS level
    • Evidence of having demonstrated an ongoing commitment to CPD in Economics

GES Degree Level Apprentices and GES Sandwich Student Placement Scheme students are eligible for full membership for the duration of their contract, subject to passing the relevant assessment. They are not required to meet the eligibility requirement of holding a degree.

GES Summer Placement Scheme students are not eligible for full membership.

Full membership fees are paid annually by your department.

GES members are assessed and badged once on entry to the profession. Badging is not repeated at promotion, where assessments focus on readiness for the higher grade.

Associate membership

Associate membership is for economists recruited directly to departments (not via a GES assessment route). To become an associate member you must:

  • Meet the eligibility requirements.
  • Have the support of the Head of Profession/ Chief Economist at your department (we no longer require evidence of this in writing).

Associate members have access to the same benefits and opportunities as full members, but they are not able to apply for jobs that require GES membership.

Associate members can become full members if they meet the full membership eligibility requirements.

Associate membership fees are paid annually by your department.

Alumni membership

Alumni membership is for former civil servants now working elsewhere who:

  • Were full members of the GES for at least 2 years, or:
  • Can evidence other substantive engagement with the GES.

Applications for alumni membership require a reference from a current GES member or alumni member.

Alumni members have a separate set of benefits and opportunities compared to full or associate members.

Integrated recruitment and badging

In some recruitment processes, GES badging is integrated into the overall recruitment process.

In these cases, candidates who are not already GES members will complete a badging assessment as part of the recruitment process, while candidates who are already members proceed directly to later stages.

Job adverts will clearly explain how the process works and which stages apply to different candidates.

Multi-analyst recruitment

GES badging can be integrated into multi-analyst recruitment campaigns. Multi-analyst recruitment is a type of integrated recruitment where GES badging is incorporated into campaigns recruiting across analytical professions.

These campaigns may use a two-stage assessment process:

  • a GES badging stage for candidates who are not yet members
  • a final interview stage for all candidates

This approach ensures consistent assessment of GES professional standards alongside role-specific requirements.

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