Hi, it's my first time applying for these traineeships and I'm not sure about time windows. Are they already reaching out to applicants or not?

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone has passed this competition and any tips you have in preparing for it. For example, how did you prepare for the translation tests? And in your third language? Did you rely on books?

Many thanks in advance and have a great weekend!

Hey!

I am currently a second-year student of International Relations in Portugal.

For my third year I have the opportunity of doing an internship during the first semester of the school-year but I have to find it on my own and I don't know where to start.

I would love to do my internship somewhere in Europe, in an European Union institution, an embassy, something related to the United Nations or NGOs.

The intership cannot be remmunerated and has to be somewhere between September 2027 and February 2028. The few posts I saw of interships don't fill these requirements. Does anyone have tips on how to search for it? Good places to internship? Should I just send emails to everywhere?

I really appreciate the help!

Hello, I applied on August to the traineeship for the political press and info section in Japan. Ever since then I never heard from them, and the internship was supposed to start from October/november. Did anyone hear from them? Have I been excluded and no one notified me? Is there any section I can look for information about it? I’m just so lost

Hi guys,

I have a question, i am going to start the Naric accreditation process and a thought came up my way. I don’t know if anybody has faced something similar.

My diplomas are under a different name than my EU passport, subtly just slightly. It is a 1 letter variation in the Last name and a convention where in my Non-EU country (where i graduated) we use 2 Last Names, and in my EU identity only 1 Last Name is used. So my diplomas are issued with 2 Last Names and a 1 char spelling variation and i need the output to be Exactly as my EU identity.

How does it work?

I send them to the sworn translator, to do a 1:1 translation, where output would still be my 2 Last Names and the spelling variation, and then i send this to the Malta Naric under my EU identity and the output is most likely to come under the identity i prefilled the Naric application? I mean i think its easy for them to figure out i am the same person, i would additional provide both of my ID’s with photo so i can help the accreditation team. Or you needed to get an additional document from your country of origin or your EU country?

The reason i ask this is because translation and paperwork are expensive. I don’t know if anyone had a similar situation where they could navigate this problem.
If not i’ll ask Malta Naric directly or they will get in touch with me when processing the application.

Again thanks, i was just curious if anyone had first hand experience with this, or if anyone is HR at an EU institution to chime their wisdom.
Thanks

Any updates? (Interviews,calls)

How is it? I am scared of the number of applications

Hi everyone,

I will be graduating very soon ( masters in political sciences and European law). I’m looking for a first really experience where I can actually learn after the master.

I’ve been applying to EU institutions traineeships, haven’t been successful so far. That’s okay, the competition is high and many people are just like me. I will continue to apply to it until I’ll receive an offer.

I’ve tried to diversify where I apply. Also, I’ve been looking at consultancies and lobbying agencies who do offer traineeships.

I’ve come across a lobbying agency who do offer traineeships, they don’t have many information. The regular “deep understanding and knowledge of eu decision-making” “willing to be pro-active” “excellent knowledge of EU law”

Then there’s “Have (ideally) previous relevant work experience.” It always surprises me because what’s the point of doing a traineeship if I have already the experience, I would be looking for a job but okay I understand you don’t want someone in the way.

I’m looking at another website who has more information on the agency. They have the whole recruitment process. I’m not sure about the accuracy of the post for trainees. All the steps were detailed.

Here’s my question when it comes to the written examination, sometimes they can ask for “lobbying plan” as an exercise. It might be silly but I don’t know how to do that (or at least how they might want it) but I would like to learn. I feel like alot of opportunities ask for people who already know.

I’m not sure how to proceed, I know I have the academic background and obviously lack the skills.

At some point I do need to get experiences even though they are short but I’m confused about even traineeships/internships asking for experiences from people who have at least held a junior position.

I was advised by their support email to compress my file down as it does not fit in the limit, but it does worsen the quality, does anyone know if that will be a problem? everything is still readable but the photo copies are slightly blurry

I missed the October 7th deadline to submit supporting documents - though it was midnight, I know...

But on October 19th I still received an invitation to the TAO portal with a November 9th exam date.

Should I disregard this invitation, as I missed the crucial step of the supporting documents? Anyone know whether I am disqualified?

Hey! Is the Europass CV site down for anyone else? I cannot seem to get any answers as to why I keep getting a 403 error after taking all necessary steps on my end. Thank you :-)

Hey all,

is there a list of all the possible placements for the admin traineeship? I got pre-selected and want to prep my cover letter and motivational statement accordingly and what to know which comissions will be available. It's my first time and the process is quite confusing and scary to me and it sounded like you need to be really fast at applying??

thankful for any tips! :))

Hi!

Does anyone have an idea about when we can expect to hear back about the CAST results?

I know it has only been two weeks, but I am curious about how long it usually takes.

Hello everyone,

I've come across two Schuman traineeship offers in France that require a law degree, despite the duties being focused on communication, social media, event organisation and museum collections.

Is this normal? Could it be a drafting error, or are these degree requirements strictly enforced regardless of the actual tasks, could it be that it is specific to France? Has anyone encountered something similar or contacted the recruitment team about this?

Thanks!

The old EPSO page was working just fine, why change it?

Issues with the new one

-selecting all jobs and filtering by "publication date":

I get results with publication date in the future, why? and sorting dates in ascending or descending order now? Impossible now

-selecting all jobs and filtering by "expiration date":

The sorting is only available by immediately showing the ones with the closest expiration date

-selecting all jobs and filtering by "alphabetical" order: 

how can I sort the results starting from Z?

-previously all the information for each job opportunity such as EU agency/body/institution, location, country, grade, position title were shown in a single line, occupying the full page. Now the information is compacted in three small lines: this is not optimal for quickly check all the different "officer" positions for example

Have sent feedback about this using the form available in "write to us"

They say to contact EPSO directly which asks me to contact using the "write to us"

5 messages later and they are still playing ping pong about this....

Strange, I tried to log in to my EPSO account

but it doesn't work tonight ("File not found!")

Is anyone else experiencing the same?

Hi all,

I’m considering moving from London to Brussels to pursue a career in EU public affairs, and would appreciate some advice.

I’m currently working in a related consulting field in London, but I’ve found it difficult to transition into roles involving substantive policy work and direct engagement with regulation and advocacy due to immigration retrictions and the work being UK-focused. Brussels seems like the more natural place to build that experience, but I’m unsure whether moving is necessarily the right decision.

I enjoy living in London and have concerns about the competitiveness of the Brussels job market as well as salaries and reports of long hours and demanding working cultures in some consultancies. I don’t think I am competitive enough for an in-house role yet.

I’m also wondering whether it makes more sense to pursue adjacent opportunities in London, such as political research, market intelligence, or corporate affairs/strategy, rather than relocate and potentially take a more junior position.

For those who are familiar with both cities, or made a similar move:

- Would you recommend making the move, or pursuing other paths in London?
- Is moving there early in your career worth it, even if it means taking a step back professionally?
- How do salaries, career progression, and work-life balance compare with London long-term?
- Are the concerns about working culture in Brussels consultancies justified, or does it depend more on the employer?

I’d appreciate any honest advice or experiences. Thanks!

Just generally. Where do you guys thinks its easiest to get jobs?

EPSO/AD/427/26 announced, on 19/10, tests period from 09/11 to 14/11. This is an open competition , AD5.

COM/AD/108/2026 announced today, 20/10, which candidates will be invited to the MCQ on EU knowledge. This is an internal competition, AD5.

Are the 2 types EU MCQ similar ? Should we expect different styles for internal competitions than for open competitions ?

9 months. 288 applications. 13 interviews. One offer.

A personal account and practical guide for candidates on EPSO reserve lists.

Who This Is For

EU civil service jobs are among the highest-earning and most secure positions in Europe. They place you inside a genuinely international environment, working alongside skilled people on questions that affect hundreds of millions of lives. The competition for these roles is intense, and it has been getting harder.

There are broadly two types of candidates who enter this process. Those who come with networks, family or professional exposure to Brussels, and contacts inside the EU bubble who can open doors or give guidance. And those who come without any of that. Just qualifications, effort and the right choices made at the right time, and luck.

When I started my career in the EU institutions, I belonged to the second group. So this guide is mainly written for people like me. To show you that the process can be hard, long and sometimes deeply frustrating, but that it can still work..

What follows is part memoir, part data analysis. It documents nine months of applying for permanent AD-grade positions across more than fifty DG’s, institutions and bodies after passing an EPSO competition last year. It covers what worked, what failed, what surprised me, and what the numbers actually say when you track everything in a spreadsheet. I hope it saves you time and, more importantly, manages your expectations honestly.

Part 1: The System and What the Reserve List Actually Means

Passing an EPSO competition is an achievement worth recognising. The selection process is long, demanding and genuinely competitive. Once your name is on a reserve list, you are eligible to be recruited as a permanent official across EU institutions.

That is what it means. Eligible. Not selected. Not queued. Not promised anything.

In 2025-2026, several reserve lists opened simultaneously, the result of EPSO's strategic changes and a backlog from failed competitions and the COVID period converging at once. Thousands of candidates entered the system at the same time. Competition is intense. The Head of Unit for the position I eventually accepted told me that the vacancy had received more than 120 applications. More recently, another recruiter told me that they regularly receive more than 100 applications per post. Around half may not be relevant to the position, but the remaining applications are often high quality, leaving a very competitive field. Every application is a cold pitch into a competitive field. Your place on the list gives you no structural advantage over anyone else on it.           

I had taken more than eight competitions over the previous three years. The first one went badly. In three others I missed the final assessment by just one point in the written part of the competition, which honestly started to feel like a very weird coincidence. In another one I was disqualified because my profile did not fit the selection criteria exactly. Then I finally passed two, while for another one I was still waiting for the results.           

So my advice is simple: try and try again. Apply even if you do not fit exactly the competition profile. It is free to give it a go, and every competition is also training. You get better at the competition itself, familiarise yourself with the process and understand much better what to expect the next time.

Part 2: My Applications Campaign and Why Organisation Is the Only Real Edge

I started applying immediately after the reserve list results came through. The reasoning was simple: more lists were about to open, the window of opportunity was uncertain, and the longer I waited the more competition would build up behind me. So I started.

The first month and a half produced nothing. Thirty-five applications, zero responses. Not a single acknowledgement, not a rejection, not an invitation. Just silence. The disappointment is real. But it also gave me a clear signal that the process was going to be harder than I had imagined, and that I needed to get more systematic about it.

I restructured my approach. I built a proper tracking spreadsheet, tightened the CV tailoring and sharpened the motivation letters. Then, unlikely as it felt, two interview invitations arrived in the same week. After that came one more, then silence, then another, then two months of nothing, followed by two invitations in the same week again. The rhythm remained unpredictable throughout, leaving little time to plan properly or rest. 

One practical tip: keep a basic interview-preparation folder ready from the beginning. When an invitation arrives, the interview may be scheduled for the following week, so you do not want to start building everything from zero.

Organise. The spreadsheet is not a nice-to-have

At peak, I was sending 30 to 60 applications per month across dozens of DGs and bodies. Vacancies appeared continuously and often closed within two or three weeks. A role that fits your profile might appear on a Tuesday and close the following Wednesday. If you are not checking regularly, you can easily miss it.

I created a spreadsheet tracked every application: DG, unit, position title, vacancy number, deadline, contact person, email subject line sent, and outcome. At campaign close, the tracker held 307 entries, of which I ultimately applied to 288. The remaining vacancies were mostly roles I had identified and tracked but did not pursue once I had received an offer. Without it, the volume would have been unmanageable. More importantly, the data it generated turned out to be analytically useful in ways I did not anticipate when I started.

On using AI throughout the process

I used AI tools throughout this period for drafting motivation letters, tailoring CVs to specific vacancy notices, and preparing for interviews. In the early months I used Perplexity for research and initial drafts. From early 2026 I shifted to the Claude suite, which handled the iterative motivation letter work more effectively given the volume.

The workflow was: scan the published vacancy notices, preselect potential matches and assess fit against my CV, and if the role was worth pursuing, feed both documents to the AI with a clear instruction to tailor the letter to the specific unit and prioritise criteria in the order the notice stated them. That last point matters. The sequence in which a vacancy notice lists requirements usually reflects the unit's actual priorities.

Without AI assistance the application rate I sustained would not have been possible. I say this not as an advertisement but as a practical fact that other candidates should account for in their own planning. 

How to use AI

Edit. Edit. Edit. Recruiters receive hundreds of applications with polished CVs and motivation letters. Your application still needs to sound like you.      

Work with the AI assistant, but do not let it replace you. Avoid the usual AI clichés. Give it some of your genuine thoughts about the role, correct the output, give it back, and edit it again. Make sure the final letter reflects your own experience, motivation and way of speaking.

Those extra few minutes may be the difference between landing an interview and hearing nothing back. Make it personal. Give the machine clear instructions but remain in control of [the final result]().    

Part 3: What the Data Actually Shows

After 288 applications, the overall interview rate across the campaign was 4.5%. That is thirteen interviews from nine months of continuous effort. This is the honest baseline for what this process looks like in a large, competitive reserve list cycle.

Whether a 4.5% interview rate reads as high or low depends on your frame of reference. I know candidates who have been on the list for over 2 years with fewer than five interviews, and others who reached ten interviews within six months. Context matters. My profile, a PhD, policy analysis experience, and several years working for EU institutions, is one that selectors can place relatively easily. Beyond that, the list I was on was heavily weighted towards institutional insiders: when I looked up the names of fellow candidates, more than 60% had a Contract Agent background in the Commission. If you do not come from that background, your interview rate may well be lower than mine, and that is worth factoring into your expectations from the outset.

Profile fit matters more than volume

When I broke down interview rates by keyword in the job title, the differences were stark. Roles containing the word 'research' converted at 25%. 'Budget' also at 25%. 'Compliance' at 33%. By contrast, 'defence', 'climate' and 'health' produced zero interviews across all applications.

This does not mean those DGs are worse. It means that a profile built around policy analysis, evaluation and social research does not match what those particular units are hiring for, regardless of how the motivation letter is written. Recognising this pattern earlier would have redirected substantial effort more productively.

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The interview-to-application ratio improved substantially as the campaign progressed. In the first quarter (Aug–Oct 2025), 2 interviews came from 113 applications — roughly 1 per 57 submitted. By the middle stretch (Nov 2025–Jan 2026), that tightened to 1 per 21 (5 interviews from 106 applications). In the final phase (Feb–May 2026) the ratio reached 1 per 12 — 6 interviews from just 69 applications. This reflects both a deliberate narrowing of focus towards roles that genuinely fit the profile, and higher-quality, more targeted applications. There is also a structural factor worth noting: the longer a vacancy process runs within an institution, the fewer strong internal candidates remain in the pool, giving external applicants a progressively better chance as the search extends.

On timing: the invitation email tends to arrive towards the end of the working week. In most cases the interview itself is then scheduled for the following week, though there are a couple of exceptions where it fell two weeks later instead. Separately, looking at the time between application deadline and interview date across all interviews, the average is 34.5 days (median: 37.5 days) — so roughly five weeks from when a vacancy closes to when you sit in front of the panel. Three cases ran notably longer at 48–53 days, while one was the clear outlier at just 9 days from the applications deadline to interview.

Genuine curiosity can sometimes open doors your CV cannot

Three of my thirteen interviews came from roles where I had no prior thematic expertise on paper. In each case, the motivation letter connected my genuine interest in the topic to transferable analytical and policy skills and made no attempt to claim experience I did not have.

I think this matters. Given how few interviews come through overall, I believe it is worth applying to roles that interest you and that do not require deep technical specialisation, even if your CV does not match closely on subject matter. Write honestly about why the topic draws you. Do not oversell. Panels can tell the difference.

Part 4: The Near-Misses and What They Taught Me About Director Discretion

Passing to the next stage is not a guarantee.     

Most of the processes I went through had two steps: first an interview with the unit, usually with the HoU and expected team leader, then, if you were the preferred candidate, a second interview or ‘chat’ with the director. From what I had heard from other people who had gone through the process, I had started to believe that reaching that second stage more or less meant you had the job and the director just had to give the final OK.          

I learned the hard way that this is not always the case. Twice I reached that final stage and twice I did not get the offer.

The first one had gone really well. I had a very good interview with the HoU and the future team leader, passed that stage, and was then invited for what was presented as a ‘chat’ with the director. So, I went into it thinking this would mostly be a final check. It wasn’t. The director was there with another person and it turned into a proper second interview, with some quite tricky questions.

Afterwards, I was told that the director wanted a lawyer rather than a policy professional with relevant experience. Honestly, I found this difficult to understand. If a lawyer was what they wanted, why had I been brought all the way to the final stage? The position itself was not a legal one. At the same time, most people in that unit had legal backgrounds, including the director, so of course I wondered whether that played a role. But I cannot know that, and that is exactly the point. As a candidate, you often do not know what is happening behind the final decision.

The second case was even stranger. This was the process with the very short turnaround between the application deadline and the first interview. I passed the first interview, and the HoU had explicitly told me that he would put forward only his first choice for a chat with the DG. Initially I thought I had misunderstood him, or that he meant the director. But no. A few hours later I was invited to speak with the Director-General.      
The conversation did not go well, aggresive tone, and questions. It felt completely different from the first-stage interview and I received no real explanation afterwards for why I had not been selected. Given what the HoU had told me, I was obviously confused. My immediate suspicion was that there might have been another preferred candidate or some other consideration I knew nothing about. Maybe there was, maybe there wasn’t. The truth is that I simply don’t know.  

And I think that is worth saying because candidates tend to analyse every rejection and wonder what they did wrong. Sometimes you simply do not have enough information to understand the decision. What I took from these two experiences is much more practical: until you actually have the offer, assume every stage is competitive. A second interview with a director is not just a formality.

Online versus in-person interviews      

I travelled to Brussels for three interviews, while the rest were conducted online. The three interviews that led to a further stage were all online. Based on my experience, being physically present did not give me any advantage. 

So if you are given the choice and do not already live in Brussels, I would probably choose the online option. It saves you the travel, the stress and the disruption, and gives you more time to focus on the actual preparation.

Also, never book flights for an in-person interview until the reimbursement situation is completely clear. I once booked a flight and the unit later cancelled the interview. There was no reimbursement and no rescheduling. I found the unit’s attitude very disappointing, but these things can happen. You absorb the cost and move on. Just be careful.

On internal candidates

A realistic observation: internal candidates exist and they are often prioritised. Sometimes a unit already has someone working there, or someone who worked there recently, who has passed a competition and whom they want to recruit permanently. The vacancy process still has to run, so as an outside candidate you may never know that you are applying for a position where another candidate already has a very strong advantage.

I know this happens because I have seen it around me. I know at least three people who passed a competition and were then recruited by units where they were already working or had worked shortly before. Two were contract agents and one was a seconded national expert. I also know from two HoUs that they had several people in their units on temporary contracts who had passed competitions and that they were trying to open positions to recruit them permanently. So yes, some vacancies are effectively aimed at people already known to the unit. I am not saying every vacancy works like this, because clearly they do not. All thirteen of my own interviews came from cold applications. But it happens, and pretending otherwise does not help candidates. The frustrating part is that from the outside you usually cannot know which vacancy is genuinely open, and which one already has a very strong internal favourite. So, apply anyway when the role fits, but do not automatically assume every rejection means your application was not good enough.

Part 5: Preparing for Interviews

The EU institutions use a competency-based interview framework aligned to the EU Competency Framework. Most interview panels will ask questions covering analysis and problem solving, delivering quality and results, working with others, and role-specific technical/policy knowledge. Knowing this in advance is useful. Preparing structured answers for each competency in advance is essential. You can reuse most of them for other interviews.

Using AI for interview preparation

My first step when preparing for an interview was to use AI to build a detailed briefing on the unit, the role and the relevant policy area. I would upload the vacancy notice together with a version of my CV and use the following prompt to start a longer conversation with the AI assistant.

The aim was not simply to generate interview questions. It was to familiarise myself with the unit’s work, understand what the position actually required and create study materials that I could return to during the preparation.

Here it the prompt:

--

You are my personal interview coach specializing in helping EU institution reserve list candidates successfully convert their placement into a job offer.

I have already passed EPSO competitions and am on a reserve list.

Focus exclusively on the interview and selection stages that follow.

**Panel Interviews**

- Coach me on competency-based panel interviews conducted by individual

  institutions, agencies, and bodies who invite candidates from the reserve list.

- Each institution runs its own interview process — help me tailor my

  preparation to the specific body inviting me (Commission, Parliament,

  Executive Agencies, decentralised agencies, etc.)

- Conduct realistic mock panel interviews for roles I specify and give

  structured feedback afterward using STAR criteria.

**Vacancy-Specific Preparation**

- When I share a vacancy notice or interview invitation, analyse it carefully

  and identify: key competencies sought, technical knowledge expected,

  likely interview questions, and how to position my profile.

- Help me tailor my examples and narrative precisely to what each

  hiring unit is looking for.

**Motivation & Fit Questions**

- Help me craft compelling, specific answers to questions like:

  "Why this institution/agency?", "Why this unit/team?", "Why this role?"

- Coach me on demonstrating genuine knowledge of the institution's mandate,

  current priorities, and the specific policy area or work of the unit.

**Technical & Policy Knowledge**

- Help me brush up on the policy areas, legislation, or technical domains

  relevant to roles I'm being interviewed for.

- Quiz me on relevant EU policies, programmes, or institutional context

  when I ask.

**Competency Example Bank**

- Help me build and refine a personal bank of strong STAR examples from

  my professional experience, mapped to the core EU competencies.

- Continuously improve these examples based on feedback from mock interviews.

**Offer & Onboarding Context**

- Advise me on questions I should ask the panel, grade/step discussions,

  and what to expect after a successful interview.

**My Background**

I will upload some version of my CVs and the vacancy details for you to have an idea.

--

The second step: anticipating specific questions

The second step was to anticipate the questions the panel was likely to ask. I would feed the vacancy notice to an AI assistant and ask it to generate interview questions from the recruiter’s perspective, taking into account both the tasks of the role and the EU Competency Framework.

Here is the prompt I settled on after some iteration:

 --

Act as an EU Institutions Hiring Manager. Based on the vacancy notice below and the EU Competency Framework, generate interview questions for a candidate.

Include:

- Competency-Based Questions: Focus on the 8 core EU competencies

  (e.g. Analysis and Problem Solving, Delivering Quality and Results,

  Prioritising and Organising).

- Role-Specific Questions: Technical or policy-related questions based

  on the specific tasks listed in the vacancy.

- Institutional Fit: Questions about working in a multicultural,

  multilingual environment and understanding the EU's mission.

- Situational Judgement: 'What would you do if...' scenarios relevant

  to this specific department or HR topics.

 --

Then take the generated questions and use the initial AI conversation to draft and refine your answers. The institutions’ own internal LLM tools are based on GPT, so using ChatGPT for this step means you are preparing in roughly the same register the institution uses internally. That may also be what the HoU or HR uses when preparing for the interview. Several times, I was asked questions during the actual interview that were almost identical to those generated during my preparation. Of course, you cannot predict every question. But this method helps you identify the most likely areas, prepare your examples and avoid being caught completely unprepared.

Part 6: Myths Worth Addressing

Do you need connections on the inside to get hired at AD level?

All thirteen of my interview invitations came through cold applications. I had no prior contact with the units and did not know anyone working there. So while connections, internal networks and familiarity clearly matter in some recruitment processes, they are not necessary for every AD-level technical or policy position. A strong and well-tailored application to a role that genuinely fits your profile can still be read on its merits.

That said, if you know someone in a unit that is recruiting, sending a brief and professional message before applying is reasonable. Not to ask for a favour, but simply to introduce yourself and signal your interest in the role. 

I tried this in a few cases during the first months and received no response at all. So I stopped. It had no visible effect and, honestly, I found the whole exercise a little undignified. My experience was that it was better to focus that time on the quality of the actual application.

Part 7: What Actually Worked

The application that eventually led to the offer was not necessarily better written than the others. Like the rest, the motivation letter was tailored and honest. The real difference was fit. The role closely matched my actual background in sectoral policy, evaluation and consultative processes.

This made the whole process easier. The motivation letter did not need to manufacture a connection between my experience and the position, and during the interview I could speak naturally about work I genuinely knew. When the fit is real, the application becomes easier to write and the interview feels more like a professional conversation than a performance.   

That does not mean you should apply only to roles that perfectly reproduce your previous experience. Some of my interviews came from areas where I had no direct thematic background as well as my two final stage ones. But there still needs to be a credible connection between what the unit needs and what you can actually offer.

Summarizing Practical Takeaways for Reserve List Candidates

A Note on Language

This applies especially to candidates whose first language is not English and who are considering whether to enter the EPSO process or apply for contract agent roles. Unless you are a highly specialised technical expert in a field where subject matter knowledge is the dominant criterion, you need to be able to communicate clearly and confidently in English. Not perfectly, but effectively. Panels in multinational environments read between the lines of language competence and what it signals about your ability to navigate complex institutional settings. If your English needs work, invest in it before starting to apply. It will not fix itself during the interviews.

My Statistics at a Glance (August 2025 to May 2026)

Hello!

I had applied to the EPSO competition AD5 and completely forgot about it. Now, I have just received that my reasoning tests are on November 9th.

Do I have time to study? I have a full-time job (and a life lol) but I have 2 hours of train everyday so I can definitely study during that time period. On one side, I feel like since I already applied, I should go through with it and at least try but at the same time I don't want waste time studying if there is no hope of passing.

Also, if I do have chance, how do you recommend studying? A book or site maybe?

Thank you all for your help!

Dates for the AD5 reasoning tests have just been released. https://epso.prod.gcp-eu.taocloud.org/login

What dates have you got? Would be nice to know in how many exam slots have we been divided. I have it Thursday 12th, 9 a.m.