Equal opportunities but not for all. When individuals embark on a career within the European Commission, they hold legitimate expectations of progression and growth, regardless of their staff category. Whether one is a permanent official, a temporary employee, or a contract agent, the belief in opportunities for professional development is inherent. Continue reading Internal competitions – Progress for some, barrier for others
Internal Competitions
Internal competitions – but for whom?
Very close to the end of the year, the Commission has kept up with its stated planning in its 2022-2024 cycle of internal competitions and published a number of internal competitions. Great, right? What is there to complain about? Why are we bringing this to your attention? We encourage you have a look at the very specific eligibility criteria and to consider that this is not the first time that this has happened. We’ve queried the service reasons for this and the equality of treatment on show. Continue reading Internal competitions – but for whom?
Training offer for certification & internal competitions
Generation 2004, in collaboration with Yasemos Europeos, is offering online trainings and webinars to assist you in preparing for the Certification exercise and internal competitions.
There is a special price for all participants to the certification training. The talent screener webinar is free for all staff. Continue reading Training offer for certification & internal competitions
Language choice in EPSO competitions – beware the consequences of automatic translation
*16.11.2023, thanks to the colleague who confirmed that the disinformation/misinformation issue outlined in footnote 1 has since been fixed.* Original article: For some time already, EPSO is moving towards monolingualism: we are seeing competitions that are by-and-large English-only. This appears to completely disregard the 16.02.2023 outcome of the EPSO case where the Court of Justice confirmed the unlawfulness of artificially restricting the choice of the second language of competitions to 3 languages: English, French and German. Continue reading Language choice in EPSO competitions – beware the consequences of automatic translation
Welcome to the Hotel Commission
*Update 23.11.2023, thanks to the colleagues who shared their ideas on this situation, we have added their observations below.*
Original article: Luxembourg is a great place to work, you just have to find somewhere to live first! In its increasingly desperate attempts to do nothing of substance (12 actions for Luxembourg, for example), while still claiming to be working on increasing the attractivity of Luxembourg as a workplace, the Commission now seems to have resorted to the roadmap set out in a classic song. Continue reading Welcome to the Hotel Commission
Webinar on EEAS internal competitions
Generation 2004, in cooperation with Ya Semos Europeos, has organised a webinar on the application and competition process for the internal competitions in the External Action Service (EEAS). These don’t happen very often and we understand that you want to make the best of this opportunity.
We focus on practical aspects of the application:
- work experience requirements
- tips for the talent screener for those competitions which have it
- the most common mistakes done by the candidates
You can find the PowerPoint presentation here.
MCQ and written tests: training
*Update 08.09.2023 EPSO intends to use automated proctoring.**Update 17.03.2023 Ombudsman opens inquiry into how EU staff recruitment test was carried out.* *Update 07.03.2023, here is the presentation.* Original article: Join us for some training in preparation for the forthcoming internal competitions multiple choice questions (MCQ) and written tests [1]. We will analyse all the key aspects. As regards the MCQ, we will see a study methodology, go through the lessons learnt from previous competitions, and recommend materials and topics to cover the knowledge you need. Continue reading MCQ and written tests: training
2022 internal competitions, where are we?
*Update 07.03.2023, the internal competition FAQs [*] are not explicit on whether it’s possible to modify the date/time of MCQ/written tests. We have asked for the page to be updated with this information but do note that the answer is unlikely to be a positive one. If you have more information, please send it to us! Future internal competitions will be listed here.* Here is our Article 90 template (version 2)[1] for anyone who was unable to change the order of their languages in sysper.
Against all the odds, the internal competitions are moving forward, which is a very pleasant surprise.
The organisers recently published an update of the indicative calendar for AD5, as well as some additional information (addendum/addenda) on the other competitions. Continue reading 2022 internal competitions, where are we?
Internal competitions – excluded again?
Last month DG HR published several long-awaited internal competitions. If you are eligible, Generation 2004 is happy for you. However, if you are one of those that cannot apply even though you have been working for our institution for many years, do not lose your faith. We are aware of this problem and will continue fighting against this discrimination even though there are fast careers for some.
Many colleagues were already in a similar situation last year when we encouraged them to apply even if they were not ‘eligible’, for reason as wide as: Continue reading Internal competitions – excluded again?
DG GROW: Reorganisation? Maladministration? Or how to pave the way for…what?
Our institution as well as our working and private lives have, in the recent past, undergone substantial change. So much so that the word reorganisation stopped soliciting any surprise. We are used to it and it happens everywhere and at reasonably regular intervals, such as before the arrival of a new Commission or Cabinets: the outgoing one might look to perhaps reshuffle things in order to accommodate their loyal staff within the services of the Commission. Continue reading DG GROW: Reorganisation? Maladministration? Or how to pave the way for…what?
