APPLICATIONS OPEN! 2023 ECONOMISTS EPSO Exams

On 22 June 2023, the European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) released the first official Notice of Competition since the selection process overhaul. The aim of this competition is to select Economists in three fields, detailed below, for grade AD6. Those candidates who succeed and reach the highest scores on the EPSO selection exams will end up on the Reserve List from which EU institutions, offices and agencies can then recruit. And... there are nearly 1000 places on the reserve lists, all combined.

To help you, the EPSO candidate, decipher the multitude of information given by EPSO in this Notice of Competition, EU Training will hold a free, live event: EPSO Economists AD6 - Info Webcast​ on Monday, 26 June 2023 at 12:30PM (Brussels time / CEST).

Within the EPSO/AD/402/23 competition, THREE profiles have been announced:

1. Microeconomics / macroeconomics
2. Financial Economics
3. Industrial Economics

Below we explore the specifics of this really exciting competition and the selection process involved.

Want to be a part of an active community where you will get the latest EPSO news, exam preparation tips, and more? 
Get helpful hints and advice from other candidates by joining the EPSO ECONOMIST Exams Facebook group.

Getting ready for this EPSO competition?

• Access EPSO Case Study simulations here (with or without evaluation)
• Practice test questions for the EPSO Computer-Based Tests
• Practice test questions for the EPSO field-related MCQ
  • Microeconomics / macroeconomics
  • Financial Economics
  • Industrial Economics
• Browse available online training sessions here (for EPSO Computer-Based Tests)

See all the highlights and important excerpts from the Notice of Competition below:

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COMPETITION SNAPSHOT

• Open for Applications: 22 June 2023
• Application Deadline: 26 JULY 2023 (12-noon Brussels Time)
• Grade: AD6
• This competition covers three profiles - you may apply for only one - and you cannot change profiles after you have validated your application
• Posts will be based in Brussels, Luxembourg, Strasbourg

Under this competition, the following THREE reserve lists have been advertised, from which the various European Institutions may recruit new members:

Please read the Notice of Competition's Point 2 "what duties can I expect to perform" section for details on the main roles covered by each field. These will also be summarised in the INFO WEBCAST.

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ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Candidates will need to meet the following criteria:

• Have EU citizenship
• Fulfilled any military service requirements
• Meet the character requirements for the duties concerned
• Have knowledge of at least TWO official EU languages:
  1. Have a thorough knowledge (minimum C1 level) of one of the 24 official EU languages.
  2. Have a good command (minimum B2 level) of ENGLISH.
  3. The two languages must be different, and one of them must be ENGLISH.

Qualifications & Work Experience:

• See the section starting from "3.3. Specific conditions — qualifications and work experience" for these specific requirements according to which profile you choose. The specific qualifications (and much more) will be covered during the 26 June EPSO Economist Exams Info Webcast.

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SELECTION PROCESS

IMPORTANT TO NOTE:

• You can complete your application any of the 24 official EU languages
• For the CBT you have to choose any of the 24 official EU languages EXCEPT English because the MCQ and the Case Study will be in English.
• As far as we know from earlier EPSO communications ALL the tests (CBT, MCQ and Case Study) will be held on the same day. This will be clarified, however, in your invitation letter.
• ALL tests will be online and remotely proctored

Competition Phases

1. APPLICATION

Candidates applying to this competition must submit their application online through the EPSO website by 25 July 2023 at 12:00 noon / Brussels time (CEST).

Then, the next step is for candidates to upload, through their EPSO accounts, scanned copies of documents that support the declarations made in their applications. This has to be done latest by 28 September 2023 at 12:00 noon / Brussels time (CEST).

2. TESTS

All the candidates who have validated their applications on time will be invited to sit a series of tests:

a) REASONING TESTS

These tests are done in one of the 24 official languages of the EU - but NOT English. These are multiple choice tests that assess your logical reasoning skills.

b) FIELD-RELATED MCQ Test - in English

IMPORTANT: Only those candidates who reach the passmarks above will have the results of their MCQ test processed. 

The EPSO field-related MCQ will be specific to the field chosen by candidates and will be organised as follows:

Candidates need to reach the pass mark, as well as be among those who score the highest overall. Candidates who reach the passmark will be ranked in descending order of the scores obtained. The ranking will be used to determine whether or not candidates will have their case study scored and for the purpose of establishing the reserve lists.

c) CASE STUDY - in English

The EPSO Case Study is used to assess how well a candidate communicates in writing. The scoring is 0/10 and the passmark is 5/10. Surprisingly, no competencies are listed (yet?). EU training will update this section if there is more communication on the EPSO competencies being tested.

The Selection Board will then assess and score the case studies of candidates based on the ranking order determined by candidates' MCQ scores (highest first), until the number of candidates is reached that is not more than 1.5 times the number of places on the Reserve List for each field.

If there is a tie for the last available place on the Reserve List, all candidates in that tie will also have their case study scored. The case studies of the remaining candidates will then not be scored.

3. ELIGIBILITY CHECK

The Selection Board will determine a candidate's eligibility by comparing the declarations made by the candidate in the application with the supporting documents uploaded by the candidate to their EPSO account. A candidate will only have their eligibility checked IF they have:

• reached the passmark on the field-related MCQ
• one of the highest scores on the field-related MCQ
• reached the passmark on the Case Study exam

Once the number of places on the reserve list for each profile has been reached, eligibility of the remaining candidates will not be checked.

4. RESERVE LIST

After checking candidates’ supporting documents, the EPSO Selection Board will draw up the Reserve Lists of eligible candidates for each profile. The candidates who made it on to the Reserve List will be notified directly by EPSO. The Reserve Lists will then be made available to recruiting services of the EU Institutions.

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HOW CAN YOU APPLY?

ALWAYS doublecheck the official EPSO Notice of Competition to comprehend in its entirety the rules related to your specific competition. For more information on the EPSO selection procedure read the official Notice of Competition and the General Rules Governing Open Competitions to be sure you have the required qualifications and satisfy the eligibility criteria before submitting your application.

To start the application process make sure your EPSO account is created and ready to go then click on your chosen profile:

1. Microeconomics / macroeconomics
2. Financial Economics
3. Industrial Economics

GOOD LUCK ON YOUR EPSO EXAMS!

Contact us any time for more information about EPSO competitions or about resources and preparation materials.