1 After graduation: information about jobs and internships at European and international organizations Jozef Vanraepenbusch & Tanja Biebaut EUROGUIDANCE Flanders

2 Options 1. Working at the EU institutions. 2. Working for EU related organisms. 3. Working for EU projects. 4. Working as independent expert for the EU institutions.

3 1. Working at the EU Institutions (1) Permanent position: European Personnel Selection Office (Epso), - mainly Scientific management; - programme Officers for EU General Directorates (Research, Environment, Fisheries, Internal Market, Education & Culture,…).

4 1. Working at the EU Institutions (2) Selection: From 2010, EPSO is introducing a new procedure for selecting permanent staff for EU institutions. What has changed? zMuch quicker competitions with fewer steps in the procedure; zAnnual cycle of competitions for the most common job profiles; zCompetency-based testing (and not purely based on knowledge!)

5 1. Working at the EU Institutions (3) In addition to specific professional skills and knowledge, the following 7 core competencies will be assessed: zAnalysis and Problem Solving – Identifies the critical facts in complex issues and develops creative and practical solutions; zCommunicating – Communicates clearly and precisely both orally and in writing; zDelivering Quality and Results – Takes personal responsibility and initiative for delivering work to a high standard of quality within set procedures; zLearning and Development – Develops and improves personal skills and knowledge of the organisation and its environment; zPrioritising and Organising – Prioritises the most important tasks, works flexibly and organises own workload efficiently; zResilience – Remains effective under a heavy workload, handles organisational frustrations positively and adapts to a changing work environment; zWorking with Others – Works co-operatively with others in teams and across organisational boundaries and respects differences between people. EU staff selection procedure is to be competency driven, and no longer purely based on knowledge. In addition to competency in the field of the competition, those 7 core competencies were identified as being the most relevant for all people working within the EU Institutions. All such competencies will be assessed in at least two different exercises.

6 1. Working at the EU Institutions (4) zCandidates wishing to take part in a selection procedure need to complete an on- line application form, and to submit this to EPSO prior to a specific deadline for registrations. Such applications are not to be taken lightly – even completion of the application form itself requires a substantial time commitment. zThere will be two stages in the new selection procedure – computer-based admission testing in individual EU countries (and some non-EU countries) and an assessment stage in Brussels. Detailed information about each competition will be published on the EPSO-website and in the Official Journal of the European Union. zCandidates successful at the assessment stage will be placed on a 'reserve list'. This is a database from which the EU Institutions can select staff who have successfully passed the EU Careers selection procedures. zAll participants will receive feedback on their performance. zFor the most common job profiles, the reserve lists will remain valid until the following year’s competition cycle for a corresponding profile is completed (i.e. for 1 year only). For other profiles, reserve lists will remain valid for a longer period.

7 1. Working at the EU Institutions (5)

8 1. Working at the EU Institutions (6) zIn the new system, the admission test stage will feature competency-based testing (rather than knowledge-based testing). The test on EU knowledge has been removed from this stage. zAdmission testing will involve computer-based tests (CBT) of cognitive ability (verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning) and situational judgement, plus professional competency, depending on the profile sought. zEU knowledge will be part of the job-related exercises during the assessment phase.

9 1. Working at the EU institutions (7) Requirements - Diplomatic skills; - multilingual; 2 languages - scientific Management, administrative tasks; - EU spirit; - being able to remain neutral and not to express your personnel opinion if necessary. ! No fundamental or applied research tasks !

10 1. Working at the EU Institutions (8) Recommendations - Read the calls very carefully and only apply if your profile corresponds to the description; - follow the guidelines very precisely; - study from the recommended lectures (brochures from the EU, Info- points, recommended books from the European library (use always the latest publications, even if there is just one year between two applications, buy the new books)); - train yourself by doing the available online tests and multiple choice test books; - participate eventually to nationally organized preparatory training courses.

11 1. Working at the EU Institutions (9) During the tests - Follow strictly the instructions; - remain calm even if you do not finish all questions in time (it is almost impossible to achieve on purpose); - the results are machine corrected (grid where you have to mark dots) so do not be messy; - if written test, write clearly;

12 1. Working at the EU Institutions (10) Temporary positions/contract agent -Fixed term contracts : very specific tasks; - apply on calls; - short term contracts; - no guaranty for a permanent position in anyway (have to pass the tests as others); - limited number of times your contracts can be renewed; - interesting to gain experience.

13 1. Working at the EU Institutions (11) Working as a researcher/scientist - Opportunities for research staff are mainly in the Commission, within its Directorates-General for Research, Joint Research Centre and Information Society & Media. There are also some research posts in the Directorates-General Enterprise and Industry, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Energy and Transport; - permanent research staff are recruited via open competitions in their specific research field; - mainly at “A” level, but also other levels; - for further information about procedures of recruitment for research staff :

14 1. Working at the EU Institutions (12) Administrative traineeship - To give young university graduates a taste of what working for the EU is like, the Institutions organise traineeships or "stages", each lasting 3-5 months; - candidates must have a university degree and, in principle, have the citizenship of an EU or an accession country; - only a limited number of candidates coming from other countries may apply for traineeships; - information on traineeships offered by the different EU Institutions:

15 1. Working at the EU Institutions (13) Translation traineeship with the Directorate General for Translation (DGT) - you must have completed the first cycle of university studies and hold the corresponding degree; - information on ‘translation’ traineeships offered by the different EU Institutions: ainee/index_en.htm

16 1. Working at the EU Institutions (14) How can I be kept informed about current and future competitions / selections? We would advise you to consult the following website on a regular basis (ideally twice a week): See also the FAQ at the site of EPSO:

17 2. Working for EU related organisms (1) Local national organisms or organisms located in Brussels to be close to the EU Institutions; mainly policy making, lobbying organisms, fundraising; opportunities for example at :

18 2. Working for EU related organisms (2) Selected examples: - Head of communication at the European Science Foundation; - Turkish Research Analyst (3 to 6 months) at Risk Management organisms; - director of Producer Services and Relations in Fair trade; - the EU permanent and temporary positions of EPSO are also published on this site.

19 3. Working for EU projects (1) - For mobility and grant opportunities see other presentation; - research in the framework of a project (scientists, PHD student, Post-Doc …); - face that there will be always a certain amount of Administrative and reporting work. The time passed on this depends on your position in the project.

20 3. Working for EU projects (2) Where to apply: - EU projects are a funding source for public and private bodies; - apply in Science Institutions, Universities, research Centers, private companies, …

21 3. Working for EU projects (3) - Gain a lot of experience, frontier research; - opportunities to meet other scientists in your field in Europe and world wide; - interesting long term career opportunities; - often more applied, infrastructure, services projects with not much focus on fundamental research; - not always easy to match the deadlines of the EU projects and needed flexibility and creativity in the PhD thesis or research tasks; - administrative and reporting tasks.

22 3. Working for EU projects (4) - After gaining some experience can seek for new projects in partnership with international collaborators; - initiate and submit projects; - administrative and reporting workload grows versus time for doing research; - fundraising and setting up of research teams opportunities.

23 3. Working for EU projects (5) - Opportunities at (selected examples not exhaustive): - Research : Community Research and Development Information Service - EU Culture programs : - EU Development :

24 4. Working as independent expert for the EU - Comes later in your career; - when gained some experience in specific fields and have participated or initiated successful EU projects; - assist in policy making; - selection of projects to be funded; - review ongoing funded projects; - gains a lot of experience by very demanding tasks in time and efforts; -register here : xperts;efp7_SESSION_ID=HWKcR4mBnqrqtGScWVpbGJ GYfJhLdFLnfJtQNGjG51S6kKTWNP0j! xperts;efp7_SESSION_ID=HWKcR4mBnqrqtGScWVpbGJ GYfJhLdFLnfJtQNGjG51S6kKTWNP0j!

Thank you! Jef Vanraepenbusch & Tanja Biebaut EUROGUIDANCE Flemish Ministry for Education and Training Service for Vocational Training (DBO) H. Consciencegebouw Koning Albert II-laan 15, kamer 2A19 B-1210 Brussel Belgium Tel.: +32 (0)2/ url: