I Want to Work for … an International Organisation

You need to plan this career on a long-term basis: there are few opportunities for new graduates to work in this field other than as an intern or volunteer. Experience, built up in this way or through other public or private sector employers is essential. It is also useful to have lived, worked or studied internationally and to have a knowledge of other languages.

An “international organisation” may be “inter-governmental”, such as the UN or EU, or “non-governmental”, such as a charity or campaigning organisation.

Inter-Governmental Organisations

European Union Institutions

The European institutions employ around 50,000 staff (about 10% of the size of the British Civil Service). About 80% of these are based in Brussels or Luxembourg – many of the others are based in EU offices in member states and delegations in non-EU countries.

There are opportunities for recent graduates as Administrators, Linguists, Assistants and specialists (such as scientists and engineers).

British citizens make up 12% of the EU's population, but only 5% of the employees in EU institutions, giving good opportunities for UK candidates who meet the skills and second language requirements for these posts.

Recruitment generally takes place on an annual basis and is similar to that of the Civil Service. For an outline of EU career opportunities and the selection process see:

 

Candidates for all vacancies must be competent at least two EU languages (A-level equivalent or above) although English and French are the two main working languages of the institutions. See http://europa.eu/epso/apply/contact/details/hotfaq4_en.htm for full details of language requirements.

PROFILE: Administrator - European Union

INVOLVES: Developing & implementing EU policies, involving research, drafting, negotiation, project management, budgeting, and people management.
EMPLOYERS: Principally the European Commission, but there are also opportunities for administrators in other EU institutions such as the Council of Ministers & the European Parliament.
RELATED JOBS: Civil Service Fast-Stream; local government posts related to policy & European affairs; political consultancy.
SATISFACTIONS: European outlook; Using language skills; Personal involvement in development of specific policy areas & decision making; high salary.
NEGATIVES: Bureaucracy; Long-term career prospects may be limited.
SKILLS: written communication, organising, cooperating, analysing & planning
ADVANCEMENT: Good promotion prospects in the early years. Opportunities to attain the highest grades may be slower due to factors such as nationality quotas.
DEGREE: Any, but European Studies, Politics/ IR, Law (especially four-year law courses) & language degrees useful
POSTGRADUATE STUDY: The one-year Master's courses in European Law, Economics or Politics at the College of Europe in Bruges or Warsaw are helpful - there are close connections between the College & the EU institutions.
VACANCY SOURCES: Competitions held annually. Traineeships are offered at six-monthly intervals, beginning in April & September. Apply six months in advance.
TIPS: A six-month traineeshipin a European institution gives valuable experience & helps you to make contacts. Practise for the assessment tests. Work experience outside the European institutions is seen as highly relevant.

Traineeships

The best way for recent graduates to get experience in an EU institution is through a traineeship (still often referred to by the French term, stage). Trainees (or stagiaires)  are recruited twice-annually for paid or unpaid work experience placements of 5 months.

Traineeshipsare available at a number of EU institutions, principally at those listed below:

Career opportunities with other EU institutions

An outline of the recruitment process for recent graduates

There are three “Big Recruitments” held each year:

Final-year students – in any subject – who are EU citizens are eligible to apply for these competitions. The recruitment process takes 7-9 months.

Recruitment is competency-based, using the following:

 

There are no minimum academic requirements.

All candidates who apply for the graduate programmes take a computer-based battery of numerical, verbal and abstract (=diagrammatic) reasoning tests. These are taken at any one of the EUs 40-odd test centres – candidates can choose the most convenient and don’t have to take them in their home country.
This stage of selection also involves a “situational judgement” test, which is taken in your second language.
The tests are followed by an assessment centre which includes:

 

Most of the assessment centres are held in Brussels but the oral presentation and structured interview elements may be held in other countries for large-scale recruitments.

At the end of this process, successful candidates are put on a ‘reserve list database’. This is valid for at least one year and may be extended. The selection process aims to balance numbers recruited with anticipated vacancies, so most candidates should be placed within the year.

The database consists of the details of successful candidates (including their application form, which is not used at all by EPSO, and their ‘competency passport’, based on feedback from the assessment process) and is used as the basis for recruitment by individual departments.

‘Lobbying’ departments is officially no longer required, although many individuals still advise said that it is useful to phone the DGs where you hope to work (having done your research first!) to let them know that you have got through the recruitment process and are interested in working for them. Don’t oversell yourself as this can alienate people. The UK Permanent Representation in Brussels gives a lot of help and support to people on the reserve list to enable them to get picked for available positions.

The above information is taken from EU Careers: All the Options and How To Apply: a presentation given at the EU Careers Day on 9 May 2011 and available online at http://ec.europa.eu/unitedkingdom/images/eu_careers_presentation.ppt

Information and advice for British applicants

Other useful information on recruitment into the EU institutions

The College of Europe

The College of Europe, www.coleurop.eu , founded in 1949 and based in Bruges ( Belgium ) and Natolin ( Warsaw ), is a centre of academic excellence preparing individuals to work and live in an international environment. The College of Europe focuses on postgraduate European studies in the legal, economic, political, international relations and interdisciplinary domains. Teaching is through English and French and a good working knowledge of both is an essential condition for admission.

24% of alumni work in the European institutions, while an equally high percentage work in the services sector (i.e. banks, consultancies, law firms), with 10% working in each of the following: diplomatic service, national administrations and academia.

Around 70% of students at the College receive scholarships: many are funded by their national government: See www.coleurop.be/template.asp?pagename=admisscholar for scholarship information.  The application deadline is usually in mid-January each year.

You can download a prospectus at www.coleurop.be/template.asp?pagename=pubbrochure

EU Alternatives

There are many opportunities on the "Euro-fringe" - working in organisations, both public and private sector, who have a presence in Brussels to monitor EU activities and to have an input into the decision-making process. These include NGOs, local government, law firms, lobbying organisations, consultancies, charities, industrial and commercial organisations and many more. The following sites carry details of internships and job vacancies in these organisations.

 

The United Nations

Positions in the UN and its agencies normally require substantial experience and relevant professional qualifications. Although internships of up to 6 months are available throughout the year for graduates without experience, the UN has no provision in its budget to pay interns and all costs involved must be paid by the interns themselves.

Internships

NATO

NATO HQ runs an Internship Programme which aims to provide a small number of current or recent students with the opportunity to intern with the International Staff at NATO Headquarters in Brussels in the following areas:

Internships start in September and March and last for six months. They are paid: €800 per month in 2012. A working knowledge of both English and French is required. See www.nato.int/structur/interns/index.html for full details

For recruitment into NATO at other levels, see www.nato.int/structur/recruit/index.htm Most permanent staff come from a background in the armed forces or civil and diplomatic services of member states.

OSCE (Organisation for Security & Co-operation in Europe )

The OSCE offers unpaid internships, lasting from 2- 6 months, in Vienna and Prague.
See www.osce.org/employment/91 for full details.

NGOs offering internships

The following organisations have advertised internships for recent graduates in the past: please check their websites for current information before contacting them.

Many other NGOs will recruit interns, regularly or occasionally, so use the “Useful Links“ below to find out more

Useful Links

Other useful pages on this site include:

 

International Organisations

 

Last fully updated 2012