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Secretary/ Administrative assistant  (AST, CAST)

The administrative tasks of secretaries in the EU institutions vary according to the post. In general, a secretary provides autonomous support to one or several people or units within the institution – shaping, transforming and distributing information. The work may include:

• preparing files
• organising and coordinating the departments activities (meetings, official trips)
• document management (receipt, processing, follow-up, filing)
• preparing, processing, finalising and checking documents
• finding, compiling and disseminating information.

In translation departments, the work may also involve:

• receiving, managing and processing translation requests, in particular preparing, processing and finalising documents
• feeding and updating translation memories
• typing, page layout and formatting work.

Contract staff may also be employed to carry out secretarial duties.

 

Qualifications (indicative)

You must have:

• a good command of at least 2 European languages (one of which must be English, French or German)
• either
  - post-secondary secretarial qualification, or
  - secondary education and at least 3 years' professional experience as a secretary

Requirements for contract staff may be different.

 

Selection procedure for permanent contracts

After you have applied online, we will invite you to take a multiple-choice test of your verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning skills (in your main language) and your professional skills and knowledge (in your second language, English, French or German).
If you pass, you will be invited to an assessment in Brussels [not in the case of contract staff – see Contract staff selection] where we can meet you and find out more about your professional skills and general competencies in:

• analysis and problem-solving
• communication
• delivery quality and results
• learning and development skills
• prioritising and organising
• resilience
• working with others

These will be assessed on the basis of a situational judgement test, an e-tray exercise, practical word-processing and drafting tests and a structured interview.

More on the selection procedure:
Permanent contracts
Contract staff

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Human resources assistant  (AST, CAST)

Working in human resources, assistants carry out duties relating to personnel policy management in areas such as recruitment, careers, training, and equal opportunities.

Duties may also include:

• managing and following up matters relating to personnel policy management, in particular recruitment, careers, professional training, equal opportunities, individual and financial rights,
• drafting notes and/or correspondence, drawing up administrative reports relating to the fields indicated above,
• preparing, holding and following up on meetings,
• managing projects,
• analysing and developing working methods,
• assisting with the implementation of accounting, financial, statistical and IT systems, etc.
• managing a team.
• Contract staff may also be employed to carry out some human resources duties.

 

Qualifications (indicative)

You must have:

• a good command of at least 2 European languages (one of which must be English, French or German)
• either
  - post-secondary education and at least 3 years' professional experience in human resources, or
  - secondary education and at least 6 years' professional experience

Requirements for contract staff may be different.

 

Selection procedure – permanent contracts

After you have applied online, we will invite you to take a multiple-choice test of your verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning and situational judgment as well as professional skills tests focusing on accuracy and precision and prioritising and organising.
If you pass, you will be invited to an assessment centre in Brussels [not in the case of contract staff – see Contract staff selection] where we can meet you and find out more about your skills in:

• analysis and problem-solving
• communication
• delivery quality and results
• learning and development skills
• prioritising and organising
• resilience
• working with others.

These will be assessed on the basis of an in-tray exercise, a structured interview, a case study and group exercise.

More on the selection procedure:
Permanent contracts
Contract staff

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