The European Commission proposes 2 types of traineeship: an Administrative Traineeship or a Translation Traineeship with the Directorate-General for Translation (DGT).
The traineeship programme is open to all eligible candidates whatever their citizenship, regardless of their sex, race, colour, ethnic or social origin, religion or belief, membership of a national minority, disability, age or sexual orientation.
Trainees work all over the European Commission, its services and agencies, mostly in Brussels, but also in Luxembourg and elsewhere across the European Union. Subsequent career opportunities may vary between these different entities. The nature of your work will depend on the service you are assigned to. You may, for example, work in the field of competition law, human resources, environmental policy, translation, etc.
They expect from you
- An open-minded approach to European issues
- An interest in learning about the Commission’s working methods
- Willingness to work in a multicultural environment
- To contribute to the Commission’s daily work from a fresh perspective
- A proactive attitude
A trainee’s work consist of
- Attending and organising meetings, working groups, and public hearings
- Researching, drafting and editing documentation – including reports and consultations
- Answering citizens’ inquiries
- Supporting the management of projects
- Translating, revising translations or researching terminology
Commission employees work 40 hours a week, 8 hours per day. Official working hours are 8:00 – 19:00. The minimum lunch break is 20 minutes. Your actual working hours will depend on your unit and your workload – please check with your adviser when you arrive. The core hours when all staff is required to be available for interaction with other colleagues are 9:30 – 12:00 and 15:00 – 16:30 (15:00 – 16:00 on Wednesday and Friday).
The duration of the traineeship
- Beginning of March to the end of July
- Beginning of October to the end of February the following year.
The working/procedural languages of the European Commission are English, French and German.
The Junior Professionals Programme (JPP) is a Commission programme where only Blue Book Trainees from Commission DGs are eligible to join the JPP.
Location:
BelgiumBenefits
- The living allowance for the traineeship sessions ca. €1 300 per month.
- visa costs and related medical fees will be reimbursed together with travel expenditures.
Eligibilities
The traineeship programme is open to university graduates who:
- have completed a standard 3-year higher education degree (minimum EQF 6 level), corresponding to a complete Bachelor’s cycle, or equivalent. Only if you have a certificate or official confirmation from your university that you have such a degree will you be eligible to apply. You will have to provide the following documents:
diplomas or certificates with final grades clearly indicated
and proof of minimum EQF 6 level. - have no prior work experience of any kind, in excess of 6 weeks in any EU institution, body or agency, delegation, with Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), or Advocates General at the Court of Justice of the European Union (EUCJ)
- have a very good knowledge of languages:
For the administrative traineeship – you must have a very good knowledge of two EU official languages, one of which must be a working language: English, French or German at C1 or C2 level as per the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages and a second one at B2 level at least as per the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. For non-EU nationals, only one procedural language is required at C1 or C2 level.
For the translation traineeship in the Directorate-General for Translation (DGT) – you must be able to translate into your main/target language (normally your mother tongue), from two other official EU languages (‘source languages’*).:
your main/target language must be one of the official EU languages
your first source language for translation must be a working language of the EU: English, French or German
your second source language can be any of the official EU languages with at least B2-level proficiency
Eligible Regions: Open for All
Application Process
The application procedure consists of three steps:
- Create a EU Login account or login with an existing one
- Complete and submit the application form along with your supporting documents
- If successful, you will be invited to check the openings published on VBB portal and apply for a chosen traineeship post.
You must attach the following supporting documents to your application form:
- Table of contents showing the list of documents in the PDF, point by point.
- A copy of your:
- valid ID card or passport
- university qualifications of studies completed before the deadline for applications
- Proof of
- university exchange programmes abroad, participation in EU or international programmes, seminars or workshops
- all declared language skills (other than mother tongue/s)
- all declared work experience
Please ensure that you upload all the justification documents to support every item declared on your application form, before submitting it.
Application Deadline: January 31, 2023
Application ClosedOfficial link
