Final answer:
The Pendleton Act required federal job applicants to pass competitive examinations as part of the merit system to assess their suitability for civil service positions.
Step-by-step explanation:
As a result of the Pendleton Act, an applicant for a federal job was required to take and pass competitive examinations as part of a merit system designed to assess their competence for civil service positions. This legislation, also known as the Civil Service Reform Act of 1883, was passed in response to the assassination of President James Garfield by a disgruntled office seeker, leading to a significant reform in the distribution of government jobs, thereby reducing the impact of political patronage (the "spoils system"). It established the Civil Service Commission (CSC) which administered these examinations and enforced the law, ensuring that job appointments were apportioned among the states based on population and that federal officeholders could not be coerced into contributing to political causes or using their official authority to affect political change.