Many people think that EPSO exam preparation is indeed a lottery: you study day and night, practice tests, seek advice and build hope that you will soon get an EU job, but the level of uncertainty is so high that you get more doubtful whether the efforts are worth it. We assure you they certainly are. Not convinced? Here is why we think so.
1. You gain an excellent EU knowledge. In the course of preparation, you must cover all aspects of the European Union: institutions, history, policies, decision-making, legal system, abbreviations and so on. Even if you don't pass the exam, you can find a job at a Brussels-based consultancy, a think-tank or a diplomatic body of your country with such in-depth EU knowledge.
2. You become website-savvy. While you prepare, you will browse through dozens if not hundreds of websites starting from the role of the conciliation committee to animal welfare indicators. Silly? Some are, of course, but in the end you will be absolutely familiar with all online and offline sources of information. When your aunt asks about passenger rights after missing her airplane, you will know exactly where to look and what to look for. Useful? Certainly is.
3. You get to see the big picture. When reading news or listening to the BBC, you certainly wonder how to interpret that "the Environment Council approved the Commission's proposal by qualified majority". After cramming through all these books and information, you not only see behind the scenes and understand what's going on, but you can anticipate, interpret and know facts that you would otherwise never do.
4. You improve your skills. However fearful verbal and numerical reasoning is, practicing for such exams already improves your reading comprehension and mathematical skills. Calculating your monthly expenditure by heart not only makes your self-esteem rise but it has beneficial effects at work too: your boss or your university professor will be impressed by your improved analytical skills and the speed you understand complex graphs and reports.
5. You master time-management. Most of us study, work and do many time-consuming activities that take up most of the day. Yet preparing for EPSO exams is a challenging task that requires one or two hours of dedication a day, maybe even more in the weekend. Therefore developing efficient time management with your daily duties and errands becomes vital in the process and this will become such an asset that will help you wherever you end up or whatever you do after "Concours Day".
6. You will learn how to draft efficiently. While the first or second part of the exam focuses on multiple choice questions, the written exercise relates to drafting an essay, a memo or other similar task. To prepare for this we suggest drafting some sample essays that can be memorised beforehand and reproduced at the exam. This will greatly improve your writing skills and help you understand the essentials of creative writing, style and structure: extremely useful in any office job inside or outside the EU.
7. You can present yourself as a pro. After passing the written part of the exam you will be invited to an interview. Building up your profile, rehearsing answers to plausible questions, improving your presentation skills and body language will not go unnoticed even if you have an interview with a potential employer outside the EU bubble".