Hello Danijela:

I have no idea how the CAST process works. I found vacancies at the EPSO intranet just some days after I was notified my results. You could ask to EPSO directly.

Hello Alazne,

At all, the e-tray is mandatory, nowadays, for AD. Look: https://epso.europa.eu/apply/job-offers/competition/2956/description_en. The AST candidates sit the e-tray exam but just as a part of the AC. This way, the AST candidates should overcome two steps instead of three for AD.

Regarding the books I bought they are "The Ultimate EU Test Book" for CBT and "The Ultimate EU Test Book - Assessment Centre Edition" for AC.

Regards.

Dear Alazne,

Why asking about a mother? I mean, what would be the difference compared to a three-kids father? This father would face the same issues than your Spanish mother, riight? #equality But yes, I remember some mothers taking care of large families that were very well prepared to see their names on the list. 

Anyway, time cost of preparing the EU competitions has nothing to do, but really nothing to do, with Spanish competitions. Of course you have to "study", meaning preparing the tests. However, you are not entitled to learn by heart stupid long texts since 2009. I calculated my average dedication to this competition and I am sure it is not more than 1 hour daily. I only had to skip some films in the evenings.

No, EU competitions are not easy at all. Success reate is below 0,5%. But they are nor hard to prepare and time consuming is reasonable.

I forgot to mention that my wife backed me giving the maximum support to the trial and we celebrate the final results as a team success. Not me, but us. This means not only taking care of children or going to the supermarket when I had to study, but expressing support and wishing to live abroad. When you have a familiy, being on a reserve list becomes a common goal. Take all the family onboard from the beginning or you will have unexpected problems trying to steal a valuable part of your brain.

The key to prepare e-tray, IMHO, is to be really fast and keep calm. Time is really scarce and gets even more limitted if you face the exam in a nervous state of mind. 

The best way I found to take advantage of limitted time is skipping ALL the recommendations I found about taking notes, making diagrams and other time-consuming methods and relying, only, in your memory and rapid reactions. In fact, I remember I could read every email (and two or three of them are essential) and answer all the questions. I had no reasonable way to know whether my answers were correct (or simply very good) or not. In addition, I hardly can remember some of them. But I am sure that my elections were honest and came directly from from the intimate connection with my "competences brain", fully trained since I was notified the CBT results on competences development. Let's say that I gain competence on competences (and also my natural high reading speed, and loads of luck helped a lot ) and just after I faced the exam. I did not think about the answers, I just replied as soon as possible because I trusted my answering was honest after mental training on competences.

When I knew I passed the etray I could not believe it, it is a kind of lottery. But I think I bought most of the lottery tickets, right?

I cannot understand your question, sorry.

Reading and reading on the competences meaning. Figuring out how I approached to a situation that I lived some day, what I would change, what not. Finding examples of successful application of competences in past experiences or situations, etc.

Hi Stefania,

Thank you.

I spent approixmately 44 minutes when I passed my only e-tray try. I remember I had 6 minutes left to verify my answers and I even modified some of them... but only some of them! Regarding the emails reading time, I cannot say for sure, but I remember I had a careful comprehensive reading of the preliminar screen, where I hardly remember you are given 5 minutes (maybe only 3?) to have a digest of the new situation that you have to face and that is normally stressful, difficult or imposible to manage: a bad day at the office. The most important thing, in my opinion, is to remain as calm as possible during that screen and take time to enter a "relaxed flow state of mind"; this is, make your heartbeat rythm lower, breathe deeply, trust wholly yourself and face the test in a positive way. Then, in my opinion, the rest comes alone if you did your homeworks.

I started by reading ALL the emails in time order. So, I checked the first two emails and noticed that the upper email was the lasts one, so I found the first one at the bottom of the pile. I went directly to the first one, of course. It is always a welcome email from your HoU or similar saying that you have to do many things for an unexpected reason and gives some advice to overcome the nightmare. The most valuable email is, however, the second one, where you find the tasks in detail, your colleagues, the roles and some explanations. Critical things happen only in, let's say, 2 emails more. And half of them are useless... But I recommend to read all even if you need to read them again when answering the questions. I think I took 15-20 minutes for 21 emails. Yes, fast reading is essential!

When answering the questions you are given 5 options, from the "I completely disagree (1) to I agree at all (5)". Some trainers recommend to never answer extreme replies (1 or 5) and always being moderate, 2, 3 or 4. I personally think that this is a terrible mistake. One never knows how the system scores the different answers but these guys think that they found the Coca-Cola formula... If you are sure about completely agreeing or not to a statement, go for it! I did it and of course I cannot regret at all on the result.

At some point I was not very sure what I was answering or for that, so I began to think that I was lost and had no idea I was doing. But this was proven to be a false perception from myself. The point is that I entered "the flow state of mind" and I was answering and working totally concentrated in such a way that I did not notice even what time was. I experienced this state of mind many times when sat for exams at the University, by the way... I think this is the optimal state of mind to face the test and you should actively look for it. However, the answers will not be good if your competences training was not good enough, right?

The local academia name is OposicionesUE, easy to google, I will not provide any link to avoid spam regulation. I am sorry, but as far as I know the competences issues are worked only in Spanish. However, you can write to check. 

Good luck with the e-tray and try to enjoy it. Third time's charm!

Charly Brown.

Hi,

I cannot agree more on what you said.

Just a particular reflection on being the best version of yourself: Some people will never meet the bar. And they should face it... and accept it.

It is not a metter of just being among the top 1% or whatever it takes, what I mean is that this work is not adequate for everybody. On the other hand, some people that do not pass the exam would never be happy with this kind of work. For instance, lot of people complain about the CBT verbal reasoning "poor" translation when the point is that they do cannot reach the needed verbal reasoning ability to pass the exam. Others complain about how fast they have to read the emails at the etray test... but I lived ordinary days at my office that I had to perform even faster! Is everybody talented or gifted or prepared to perform this kind of work? At all! And I recommend to be totally honest with oneself prior to make any movement towards this long and tiring process of competing for a EU position.

My regular work duties are very similar to what I will find at the European Institutions and, to some extent, I can accomplish them with satisfactory results. That was the very first reason I put on the table before preparing myself for the competition. After, I found the European motivation, the pride to serve 500 million people, the international experience and so on. But first of all we DO need to ask ourselves very honestly: Am I mind shaped enough for this work? Will I be happy performing these BUREAUCRATIC tasks for a looooong time in Brussels or Luxembourg?

Be honest before answering and good luck!

Hi limusina,

Of course it is hard, a kind of different competition after the reserve list competition itself. This is nothing i did not know before opening this helpìng forum thread. For this very reason I said on the opening comment:

 I will not comment about the recruitment phase yet. Being on the reserve list is nothing, just a selection of potential candidates until you get effectively recruited (hopefully) as an EU official. I am just living this process, so you surely will understand that I still do not have a good rear view mirror to talk about it.

Being on the reserve list is nothing... but this "nothing" opens the door to wonderful opportunities.

After some months on the road I can say that I am so fortunate that I was invited to hold 6 interviews out of 17 applications. In addition, I received two unsolicited interview proposals for, I guess, difficult to fill but interesting vacancies. I am afraid but I had sadly to reject both interview opportunities, for which I think I had a "winner" profile, but it was imposible to reconcile the workplace location with my personal life. Feedback comments from the Heads of Unit for those unsuccessful interviews (still waiting for the outcome of one of them) were extremely useful to understand how this works, to detect my weak points and work hardly on them.

8 interview proposals is a very good rate for only some months of active seeking. You might think that I received 8 golden tickets that were to waste. But given that my "eurocrat" experience is limited, I took these encounters as valuable lessons to face the next interview in a better, if possible perfect, way

Hi strangequark.

Congratulations!!!

It is clear, the recruiter goes for the perfect matching. I think that we should walk on the HoU shoes before facing the interview, even before writing the application letter.

Regards.

Bonjour Pierrot,

Merci pour ton message. J'espère que c'est utile. Je vais continuer en anglais par respect pour les autres.

For my first and failed CBT I prepared the abstract test using any kind of information and test templates I could find in internet. I must say it was completely useless. The best thing to do, IMHO, is taking very seriously the EPSO style and get used to it, i.e. their shapes, rotations and figures, and do some training. The mock test is the best guide, I think.

Some advice? Well, as I said formerly, just be the best version of yourself, keep calm and go for it! I did not find any magic formula besides keeping the faith in the most trustworhy person on earth: YOURSELF!

Best regards,

Charly.

Hi limusina,

Sorry, but I prefer not disclosing, on behalf of privacy. You surely understand.

Regards.

Hi eb,

It's all explained here. No magic formulas. Just find an appropiate source to unroll the competences ideas. E.g.: what is the meaning of "working with others?" It is not being able to keep silent in the office but cope with different problematic personalities, including yourself, among many other issues of dealing with your partners.

There is a lot of free information in this eutraining web. This, the book and some advice from the local academy I found was enough. But I am sure there must be dozens of "competences at work" books and videos from good psychologists to work in.

Charly Brown.

Felicidades Albert!

As Jagygy already told you, it depends a lot on the DG or institution. For instance, I never saw auditors wearing no tie. In general law, finance and economic-related positions are quite formal and suits are standard code. For my side this does not make sense if you seldom leave the office. On the other hand DG ENV seems to have some suit allergy, even in important events, does not make sense for me neither.

I opted for chinos and jacket without tie for my first day (I look like a real state agent) and after I adapted to the environment. Sometimes I wear jeans and now in summer my HoU usually wears short leave shirt.
Needless to say, if I expect contact with stakeholders or some event I try to look smart. Casual, but smart.

When do you start on?

Regards,
Charly Brown.