Eligibility criteria - Administrative Traineeship for Vocational Education and Training graduates

Applications that do not fulfil all mandatory criteria will be rejected during the eligibility verification stage. 📌 

1. Educational Requirements

The candidate must have completed a Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification corresponding to an EQF Level 3, 4 ,5 or equivalent on the National Qualification Framework (NQF). 

Important clarifications

• The degree must be fully completed and the diploma obtained at the time of application.
  Applicants who finish their studies after the deadline of application but before the start of the session, are not yet eligible.
• Applicants must hold a diploma or official transcripts confirming completion of the education cycle. Applications submitted without such evidence will be deemed ineligible.

• Degrees obtained outside the European Union are accepted if they correspond to a completed VET educational cycle. 

   

2. Language Knowledge

EU nationals

Applicants must demonstrate good knowledge of two official EU languages:

• The first one must be either English, French or German at a minimum B2 level (or mother tongue)
• The second one must be another official EU language at A2 level at least (or mother tongue).

Non-EU nationals

Applicants must demonstrate a good knowledge of either English, French or German at B2 level at least (or mother tongue).

Notes

• Language proficiency levels are defined in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).
• Mother tongues are considered for eligibility purposes.

3. No prior Experience in EU Institutions

Candidates who have any prior or ongoing professional experience in any European Institution, body or agency, longer than 6 weeks (42 calendar days), will be excluded.

Any such experience will count as professional experience regardless of:

• Formal or informal, paid or unpaid status
• Full-time or part-time work
• Accumulated continuous or non-continuous periods, and includes all types of professional and internship experience gained as:
  • Staff member
  • Interim staff
  • Intra-muros consultant
  • Trainee.

The rule covers activities carried out within:

• EU institutions, bodies or agencies
• EU representations (in member-states) or delegations (in third countries)
• Cabinets of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs)
• Offices of Advocates General at the Court of Justice of the EU.
• ⚠️ The European Commission may verify compliance and exclude applicants at any stage of the selection process, including after application submission, during evaluation, or after acceptance of a placement offer.
   

4. Age

Applicants must be 18 or older on the starting date of the traineeship.
 

5. Nationality

Applicants must be nationals of: 

• A member state of the European Union, or
• A candidate country participating in a pre-accession strategy.
• Applicants must hold a valid passport or national identity card corresponding to the nationality declared in the application. 
   

6. Professional Experience

All professional experiences undertaken in your home country or abroad can be declared, including student employment, voluntary work, civic service and holiday jobs. 

The following conditions apply: 

• The minimum duration for any declared work experience is 15 calendar days, or the full-time equivalent.
• Only professional experience acquired from the age of 16 onwards is eligible for declaration.