2018 EPSO Administrators In The Field Of Data Protection Information Webcast

Here you will find the complete recording and presentation of the 2018 EPSO Administrators In The Field Of Data Protection Information Webcast (EPSO/AD/360/18).

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Webcast Transcript

2018 EPSO ADMINISTRATORS IN THE FIELD OF DATA PROTECTION

Transcript Quick Links

Disclaimer

Where Will You Work?

Selection Process and Recruitment

The Reserve List

The Application

Eligibility

Languages

Qualifications and Work Experience

Why is this a Good Opportunity?

Pre-Selection Phase

Talent Screener

Pre-Selection Tests

Talent Screener Review

Assessment Centre

Reserve List

Preparation Methods

Q&A

Disclaimer

I try to be as accurate as possible, but I’m not EPSO (the European Personnel Selection Office), therefore please double check all the information, and always thoroughly read through all the information provided by EPSO on their official website, through all their channels of communication, most notably the Notice of Competition and the official Journal of the EU. - András Baneth

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EU Data Protection Officer

Where Will You Work? [5:15]

You may be wondering about this, because EU institutions, agencies, representations, delegations are present throughout Europe and the world. For this particular competition it’s almost certainly Brussels where you would work. It’s very unlikely that you would be posted in Luxembourg, even less likely in Strasbourg, because you will be linked to the European Data Protection Supervisor, at least in administrative terms, so it’s almost certain you would end up working in Brussels.

Selection Process and Recruitment [5:55]

You might be wondering which institution, agency or body you’ll be placed with, or who you’ll be working for. The Selection Process is, as the name suggests, a selection system, this is not recruitment. At the beginning, when you get started with this whole procedure, you’ve signed up and the exams are coming up, you are being selected to be placed on the reserve list. Actual recruitment, the decision to hire you, happens only when you are placed on the reserve list. So you do not necessarily know in advance where you’ll be working. The European Data Protection Supervisor will be the umbrella administrative organisation to which you are linked. But for the actual job you are performing you might be placed in another EU Institution, working with EU officials on procedures and processes of other institutions that you can see on the screen [minute 7:10], which is, as I mentioned before, decided at the time of recruitment.

The Reserve List [7:15]

How many places are available is public information which you can find in The Journal, and as you see [minute 7:26] there are 30 places available on the reserve list. There is no guarantee that there will be 30 people hired, that is something to bear in mind. The aim is to hire everyone who gets placed on the reserve list. That gives a strong indication that chances are very high because it’s not just one or two spots, there are 30. Obviously, it helps to know how many candidates there are because that is what truly determines your chances of success. But this is a strong indication that they have a great need to hire a lot of data protection officers.

The Application [8:05]

Application deadline is next Tuesday, 11th of September 2018. Make sure you are fully aware of that deadline and that you do not submit your application at the last moment because the servers tend to crash. Make sure you sign up and fill in everything you need to before that deadline. Especially because there is a Talent Screener, which will spend a few minutes on, it takes a lot of time to fill in and to properly provide all of the information that you need.

Eligibility [8:48]

The general conditions for the application, which is the same for almost every competition, are:

You have to be an EU citizen, from one of the 28 states (at this point) - so even Brits are still welcome to apply at this point.
You have to have completed military service, only if it’s compulsory in your country
You have to meet the character requirements for the duties concerned

Languages [9:19]

When it comes to languages it’s very important you keep these rules in mind. It will determine in which language you should practice the tests and exams to make sure you can increase your chances of success. It will also determine your preparation strategy, because if you are, for example, Swedish and you are sitting the first three tests (abstract, verbal and numerical reasoning tests) in English and then you choose Language 2 as French that may have an impact on your performance and the way you approach the various exercises.

Language 1 can be any of the EU’s 24 official languages and it’s not linked to your citizenship. This is a very important point because regardless which citizenship, which passport you hold, you can choose any of those 24 languages. For example, if you happen to be Latvian but you grew up in Spain and you may consider Spanish your mother tongue or you’re more fluent in it, you are absolutely free to choose Spanish, even if you are a Latvian citizen.

Language 2 must be either English or French and different from Language 1.

For most candidates it’s likely that Language 1 will be linked to your country of origin, or where you grew up. Language 2 would most probably be English, and, for a smaller number of you, it may be French.

But, if you are very confident and very fluent in English and you can take Verbal Reasoning tests even faster than in your native language, being one of the EU’s official languages, then you can choose Language 1 as English and Language 2 French. Which is also okay.

Here is a quick summary of all those 24 languages [minute 11:22 on the screen]. You may recognise some special ones, for example Irish which is an official language. But you may be missing Luxembourgish which is not an official EU language. Again, as I mentioned before, Language 2 has to be English or French, and different from the first one.

Qualifications and Work Experience [11:47]

This is an important part because this is a formal requirement which if you do not meet then you will be disqualified from the competition. So this is a very important requirement you must meet. Let’s take a look at your two possibilities:

The first one is to have a degree in Law from either an EU university, officially recognised and accredited, or if it’s outside of the EU then you may have to get a formal recognition by an EU member state’s public authority that your degree is equivalent to an EU degree. As long as you have a BA in Law, which is 3 years of Legal Studies, that’s one part of it [the requirement] and then you need to have 3 years appropriate professional experience in the legal field, so 3 years work experience in the legal field, of which a year and a half has to be linked to the development or application of data protection law in public administration. This may be a challenge for some of you, because you may have dealt with data protection in a law firm or in a corporate setting as in-house counsel, but it didn’t have much to do with public administration.

So this is an important condition where you have to prove some interaction, at least a year and a half, in interaction with data protection in public administration.

The second possibility is to have a 3-year degree, so again a Bachelor, a BA degree, in any field, whether it’s Biology, Nuclear Science or Engineering, doesn’t matter, any 3-year university degree and then 3 years appropriate professional experience in the legal field of which a year and a half has to be linked to the development or application of data protection law in public administration.

So you either need a legal degree and three years legal experience or any BA degree and three years experience in the legal field and linked to public administration. As long as you meet either of these criteria, either being in the top box or the one in the second box [as shown on slides, 14:29), it always has to be 3 years + 3 years. As long as you meet that, you are formally eligible for this competition.

As a result, if and when you succeed and you are recruited, you will be placed on a so-called AD6 level, which is not entry level, entry level is AD5, this one is AD6, it’s a higher rank with more salary and a little bit higher level of responsibility. We have a salary calculator on our website, so if you are interested in the expected salary, if that is a source of motivation for you, which I believe it is, you might want to find out the exact salary. But roughly speaking an AD6 EU official earns a very good salary of roughly 5,000 Euros NET. Depending on where you are coming from, on Purchase Power Parity it’s worth more in Central and Eastern Europe. If you live in Brussels it’s worth a little less, but still it’s considered a very competitive, very attractive salary.

Why is this a Good Opportunity? [15:48]

If you have not been convinced that this is a good opportunity yet, then we’ll talk more about that now. As just discussed the salary is attractive. When it comes to benefits you get a very good, and very solid health insurance plan. If you’re married then your spouse is also covered, your children are also covered. There are European schools that offer education in the EU’s languages, depending on where you’re coming from, or where your spouse or partner is from, you can get education that is similar as the national education in your home country.

When it comes to the actual exam let’s look at a couple of specific things you might want to consider:

Pre-Selection Phase [16:42]

The pre-selection phase is where the exam starts. The Pre-Selection phase has a special scoring system, that’s something I’ll come back to. The Pre-Selection has Verbal, Abstract and Numerical Reasoning tests. This has a special marking scoring. The Verbal Reasoning has a pass mark of 50%, you need to get at least half of the answers right. The Numerical and Abstract Reasoning have a combined pass mark of 50%. But again this is something we’ll come back to when we go through the steps one-by-one, so you understand better how to get one of these jobs and how you can succeed in the competition.

Let me quickly answer this question coming in:

Q: In the case of not working 1.5 years within a public authority we are not eligible?

A: My interpretation, and once, again, with the disclaimer that this is my understanding, and you will want to check with the Selection Board or EPSO itself, you do not need to have worked with a public authority as a civil servant or as an in-house, being a government official. Maybe you were working in a data protection office which was linked to the Ombudsman of your country. Maybe you were working in an academic institution that had a government contract, although this may be subject to interpretation or a borderline case, or something funded by the government, publicly funded body that dealt with privacy issues and you were a researcher there or a legal counsel in that institute, that might qualify as being linked to public administration related to data protection matters. Again, with the disclaimer that this is my interpretation, you are not limited to simply being a former government official dealing with data protection but working around that area might qualify you as well. This is something that may require you to send an email to EPSO to get some guidance. Worst case scenario you fill in the application, fill in the Talent Screener and you hope that the answers and information you provided will convince them that you qualify. In that case there is more time and effort to be invested, because you don’t know in advance. But if you have that background then that’s close enough. I would encourage you to apply because hopefully that will convince them that you are eligible.

So let’s go further and look at the application process:

1. Talent Screener [19:52]

This competition is a so-called specialist competition. What makes a specialist competition a bit unique? Essentially one thing, and that thing is the Talent Screener. The Talent Screener is a Q&A form, a questionnaire of sorts, that you need to fill out and provide answers. You are given the opportunity to talk about your professional background, your experience and your expertise in the field to convince the Selection Board members that you qualify for the job. A Talent Screener is sort of a guided interview to get more information about your professional background. They’re not going check your CV, they’re not going to check your LinkedIn profile. The Talent Screener is your opportunity to show off what you know and why that’s relevant to the job and why you should be admitted to the competition.

The Talent Screener is scored in a way that there are many questions, and each section is worth 0 to 3 points. They then add up all the points you were given in each of those sections, and in the end they do a ranking. You need to have a minimum number of points in order to qualify for the competition.

How do you maximise your Talent Screener score? Many candidates think that this is not really possible because you either have certain experience or you don’t. On the other hand you can do your best and you can showcase your knowledge. You can show off your knowledge in the best possible light. Luckily we have an article on EU training that you can read about here: How to Make the Most of Your EPSO Talent Screener - This article will give you tips and tricks on how to get the highest score on your Talent Screener while being accurate, fair and truthful.

Here are a couple of things to consider:

Try to answer Yes as much as possible.

If the question is ‘Do you have experience in this field?’ or ‘Do you have experience dealing with the following matters?’ then try to answer ‘Yes’ and then back it up with truthful and relevant information. Think about your past experience, your thesis, your professional work, the briefings you’ve done, the reports you’ve drafted, the legal advice you’ve given to your superiors - all of this can be relevant information.

Provide lots of valuable information, by this I mean give meaningful answers. Do not go on and on writing about things which are not relevant to the given question. Use bullet points, use nice formatting, try to be as accurate as possible. And be concrete! A lot of candidates I’ve met and spoken with tend to be very abstract. They say ‘I have immense experience in this field.’ Fantastic, but be careful with such adjectives as ‘immense’, ‘great’, ‘vast’, ‘sound’ - none of these are very concrete. Give numbers: ‘I worked on this project for five years’ or ‘I drafted 12 briefings on privacy issues with school children interacting with their peers on social networks’ - this is a very specific example because it includes a number, a target group, it shows you’ve dealt with something very specific and relevant. Make sure to review your Talent Screener from that perspective: readability, clear communication, clear references, to-the-point, brief descriptions and nice formatting, layout. Because when they read it and you have a two-page answer - that’s not going to help you, it’s just too verbose. You need to get to the point, be brief and very specific.

The institutions and EPSO are very terminology-driven. They might look for very specific keywords linked to the Data Protection field. Many of these keywords appear in the Notice of Competition, you should review what their requirements are and reinforce your application and experience with these keywords.

Finally, think about what’s in it for them, as if you were applying for a specific job. Make sure you want to link your personal background with the EU, what the political and policy priorities are for the institutions. Take a look at the annual report of the European Data Protection Supervisor, take a look at some of the briefings and background materials that members of the European Parliament have been given, or they themselves have drafted. Make sure that you use that language, that terminology and that it’s reflected in your application.

One more thing, do not copy/paste answers, even if the questions seem to be repetitive, or very similar to a previous one, I suggest you draft unique answers. Or you can present the same case study, the same experience, from a very different angle. Because if you worked for a government minister and did certain briefings maybe you also drafted some notes for other civil servants, or other members of the public administration, not just your direct supervisor. At the same time you spent on a certain project maybe you also had other assignments, so you can present those from a different angle.

2. Pre-Selection Tests [26:00]

I mentioned the Pre-Selection tests, which is a little, strange concept in the context of Specialist Competitions like this one. I say this because, the Pre-Selection tests (the abstract, numerical and verbal reasoning tests) are used all the time. The difference is, however, when or in which phase of the exam will they use these tests. These tests may be used as a true pre-selection if there are lots of candidates for this competition. For example - and this is only an example, not a fact - if there are 400-500 applicants, EPSO and the Selection Board may decide to have Pre-Selection tests to reduce the number of candidates even before they look at the Talent Screener. But if there are not so many candidates, again just for the sake of example, let’s say there are 200, they might say this is a manageable amount and so they might first look at the Talent Screener and create a ranking on that basis and then invite everyone who was shortlisted to the Assessment Centre. Then it would be only at the Assessment Centre that you would have to sit the Abstract, Verbal, Numerical reasoning exams. Therefore these types of tests will be a part of the process no matter what, the question is will they be used as a true Pre-Selection or will they be integrated with the Assessment Centre.

This will have an impact on your preparation strategy because you may have to sit those tests and get a very high mark, a lot of points, a high score, in order just to have your Talent Screener reviewed and get to the Assessment Centre, if there are lots of candidates. But if these three tests are part of the Assessment Centre you can afford to perhaps not get the highest marks. So your timeline and preparation strategy will be heavily impacted by the number of candidates.

What are These Three Tests?

These are the tests you will be taking in your chosen Language 1, so 1 of the official 24 EU languages. Luckily here at EU Training we can offer you practice tests in 16 of those languages. Verbal Reasoning in 16 languages, Numerical Reasoning in 3 languages and Abstract Reasoning, well - language doesn’t really play a role there, so it doesn’t matter as much. We have thousands and thousands of practice tests.

Verbal Reasoning

It is 20 questions that you have 35 minutes to answer. You can see there is a very strong time pressure. There is always a text passage, 1 question, 4 statements and only 1 correct answer. They try to confuse you in several ways: by inserting outside information which doesn’t have anything to do with the text, by using generalisations instead of specific statements, by confusing possibility and fact to get you mixed up with what is truthful and what is hypothetical, by using similar wording, synonyms or almost-synonyms that may not reflect the same meaning of the text. You choose from the various answer options - 4, sometimes 5 - but most commonly 4 statements of which one is true.

Numerical Reasoning

A very similar concept where you have 10 questions that you need to answer in 20 minutes, the time pressure is strong here too, 2 minutes per question. And there’s a table, like the one you see on the screen [minute 30:28], and you need to pick the relevant pieces of information, then apply those using calculations to pick the correct answer. You need to interpret the data, do some reasoning, thinking, perhaps estimating to save time, or if estimation is not possible then calculate and pick the right answer.

Abstract Reasoning

This is cryptic pictures, images that follow a certain logic, certain rules. This is probably the hardest one because you have 10 questions and 10 minutes, that’s just 1 minute per question to find the logical next in line.

Pre-Selection Scoring

This is where I point back to my earlier message about how the scoring goes, where you have these three types of tests and the scoring goes as follows:

Verbal Reasoning - you need to have at least every second answer correct, so at least 50% have to be correct
Numerical and Abstract Reasoning - the score is combined. For example if you completely mess up on the Numerical Reasoning section, yet completely nail the Abstract Reasoning section - so you answer every question correctly you can still pass.

Bear in mind, that you not only have to pass the objective pass mark, the one you see on the screen [minute 31:55], the 50%, and the combined 50% pass mark, but you need to be among the top scorers. If you pass, but you are not among the top scores, you will be out of the competition, depending on how others have performed.

These tests are eliminatory and do not count towards the final overall score. I’m not sure whether that’s good news or bad news, but it’s not going to impact your score in the Assessment Centre when it comes to measuring your competencies.

Talent Screener Review [32:49]

The third step in the process is the Talent Screener Review and when your scores will be given on this. Again, it depends on how many candidates there are whether or not the Abstract, Verbal, Numerical Reasoning Tests before as a true Pre-Selection or if they are integrated with the Assessment Centre.

Assessment Centre [33:03]

Types of Exams at the AC

Case Study - in your chosen Language 2. (And that’s why it’s so important to choose a second language, English or French, in which you’re able to communicate in writing and spoken language very well. So your Language 1 has to be more passive, because you sit those Abstract, Verbal, Numerical tests in Language. But Language 2 is more outward, it is more the oral and written expression and it has to be at a high level.) So you have a Case Study based on a background briefing
Group Exercise - done with your fellow candidates, again, based on a background briefing
General Competency-based Interview - here you are asked to talk about situations or anecdotes from your professional life, for example: when you’ve undergone a lot of stress, learned something new, were challenged by a colleague, or coordinated a project with a team. These are the general questions you are asked.
Specific Competency-based Interview - this is based on the Talent Screener. Here they can ask you about anything you wrote on your Talent Screener. But it’s not a knowledge-based test, you will not be asked about your knowledge in Data Protection, as such, but it’s linked to the Talent Screener very specifically.

How Many Are Invited to the Assessment Centre?

Approximately 3 times the places available on the Reserve List, so it will be roughly 90 candidates who will be invited to the Assessment Centre.

Scoring

There are 8 competencies such as Leadership, Working with Others, Resilience, Communication, among others. Each competency is being evaluated through one of these exams mentioned earlier and you are given a score. You can score up to 10 points for each competency, 80 in total. You need to get at least 40 points total and at least 3 per competency. So if you get 0 points on Leadership you will no longer be eligible for the Reserve List.

Then there are the specific competencies, the one I mentioned linked to the Talent Screener. That is a separate set of points and you need to have at least 50 points out of 100. So all together, if you are Mr. or Mrs. Perfect, then you can score a total of 180 points - which doesn’t happen to anyone. But you need to be just good enough to be among the top candidates - you don’t need to be the best candidate - it’s enough to be among the top to be placed on the Reserve List.

Reserve List [36:00]

The number of places available is 30, it is valid for usually more than a year for specialist competitions. So it is valid until a similar, or the same, competition is announced again. For Data Protection, who knows? But most likely it will be valid for 2 years, perhaps longer. No need to worry about how fast you are getting recruited from that list, it will be fairly soon. Then there is the actual recruitment that we talked about earlier.

Preparation Methods [36:32]

A couple of general and specific ideas and tips for you. It’s just like with any sport or language. It’s a skill you need to master, a skill you need to learn. You need to invest time and effort, dedicate your energy to practice.

Make a Plan

Form a study group, get together with friends, motivate each other - just get started! Practice for 2 months or however long it’s necessary depending on your current skills and abilities. Prepare for 30 minutes every day - make it consistent. Or you can do it every 2nd or 3rd day, it doesn’t matter, as long as your following a specific rhythm.

Learn Methodology

This is not easy, it’s not hard but it is certainly not an enigma, it’s not a mystery how to pass these competitions. There’s plenty of information online, and we at EU Training have hundreds of articles, e-books, workbooks, webinars, webcasts - name the format and you’ll find it on our site and much of it is completely free with transcripts and tons of information available to you that can improve your methodology. Once you master that your performance will go through the roof. It will improve so much, because you don’t need to reinvent the wheel, you don’t need to come up with your own ideas, there are set methods, very good ones, that you can apply.

Be Persistent

Don’t give up after a few days. Just keep going and make sure that you keep your eyes on the target.

Do Lots of Simulations

Do a lot of practice tests, for the Abstract, Verbal and Numerical Reasoning. Even for the Assessment Centre, for the Group Exercise EU Training organises trainings, but you can also get together with your friends and just do your own simulation. You’ll become confident and familiar with the dynamics of a group discussion. You’ll become familiar with how to draft an essay for the Case Study under a strict time limit. Do simulations make sure you are well acquainted with the speed, the timing and the situations.

We provide you with all the tools which you can find online and that you need. The practice exam interface is 99% identical to the one EPSO uses. We’ve gone to great lengths to make sure that these really reflect the same system that they are using so that when you get to the exam centre you will not need to waste any time getting familiar with the buttons, the layout and all the rest. This is the same for all our Verbal, Numerical and Abstract Reasoning exercises and practice exams. The Abstract Reasoning has some crazy, difficult stuff but I’m a firm believer in having a much tougher preparation and then hopefully an easier exam - which is better than the other way around. So we’d rather present you with some pretty difficult exercises so when you get to the exam you’ll say ‘Oh, this is so easy, because I practised!’. Do use the resources available on EU Training’s website, feel free to send us your questions - my team will be happy to assist you whether it is an administrative question or a technical question.

Q&A [43:30]

Q: Is a diploma needed for proving that I have worked in the Data Protection field?

A: No, you do not need a diploma to prove it. What you need is some form of proof, perhaps a certificate or a recommendation letter that they might ask from you. Unless they formally request that you prove your experience you don’t need to provide it. Just be prepared for the possibility of contacting a former or current employer, or the partner at the law firm where you worked, to be able to provide proof in some form to back up your claims. But you won’t need a diploma for Data Protection, they are only requiring either a Law degree or any other 3-year Bachelor's degree.

Q: Is it true that the first part of the Talent Screener selection is automated and only afterwards real people?

A: I don’t think so, but this is something that I would need to check. I don’t think so. Some employers do use keyword finding tools and automated systems. I really don’t think that EPSO does this. As far as I know, and again I need to double check, they are only using humans, and not machines yet, to read through each Talent Screener response and score you based on what you’ve written and not based on the kind of keywords a computer algorithm might find. If I do hear otherwise, we’ll let you know, we’ll perhaps publish an article and make it public, but, again, based on my current understanding it is all human validation that they use.

Q: Do I understand correctly that the European Data Protection Supervisor will not be one of the agencies recruiting?

A: I need to double check the Notice of Competition. My assumption would be that they themselves also recruit some EU officials for their own services. But I need to check this in the Notice of Competition because there might be some nuanced wording which provides the answer for this question. One thing is for sure it’s not the EDPS that will hire all 30 successful laureates on the reserve list. Again, they may hire some, others will hire more, but they will be supervising the work you will be doing. It’s worth double checking the Notice of Competition to try and properly interpret the data there. If something is unclear send us a message.

Q: Do you have insights on the timing?

A: Well, the timing is always guesswork. But once we know how many candidates there are, and that’s information that EPSO usually makes public, then you can be fairly sure there will be a Pre-Selection test. They are likely, again - this is my guess, they are likely going to organise those tests approximately 4 to 6 weeks from the end of the deadline. [UPDATE: Pre-Selection tests are happening now, until 19 November 2018]. There is usually a fairly predictable timeline for these competitions, usually 4-6 weeks in between the various phases, plus if there are any Holidays in the meantime, like Christmas, then that will add a little more time.

Q: The 1st and 2nd questions of the Talent Screener are connected to EU Law and Data Protection Law. Does this mean that if we answer yes to these two questions a person might need to have three diplomas?

A: Diploma might not be the most accurate word. Because you may have had in-house training, maybe you received a certificate from the European Association of Data Privacy, Privacy officials or an international body. So diploma to me means a university, or higher education institution, form of education. But if you had some sort of formal education in the field then it’s likely that is sufficient. It is education, it has to be something that had a curriculum, perhaps from an accredited training or higher education facility but it doesn’t need to be a formal degree.

Q: How should we deal with bad translations? Do we report them?

A: Yes, by all means, report them. If it’s dubious, confusing, not accurate in the verbal reasoning tests make sure that you report it. Hopefully you meant this question in the context of EPSO and not our tests. But if it is our tests make sure to indicate it and we’ll definitely look into it and do our best to improve the quality.

Thank you for your attention and good luck in the competition!

Andras Baneth in Brussels

2018 EPSO Administrators In The Field Of Data Protection Information Webcast

Webcast Transcript