When the preselection procedure is over you will receive an e-mail from the Traineeship Office with the list of all the 'registering numbers' that passed the preselection. Bear in mind that when you apply, you receive automatically a registering number, which represents you in the communication flow with the Traineeship Office.
In case you passed the preselection (which is actually a filtering of the CVs), you enter automatically on a list with three persons for one place, meaning that you have 33% chances to be selected.
The key stands in the hands of the heads of units from the chosen Directorates or Services or from the cabinet responsible, in case you applied for cabinets.
You just have to be contacted by them in case your application raised their interest.
They can get in touch with you either by mail or calling.
If you were contacted by them it doesn't mean that you have been selected!
The final answer you'll get it again by mail!
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Thank you in advance,
Manon
p.s. very useful website!
manon had asked a very good question, I was selected too for this year but I am wondering how can I be selected in the second level? what should I do?
Normally you shouldn't do anything, except waiting for the final answer.
But contrary with the last years' rules, I saw that this year something has changed , and maybe you received as well the following:
"For questions regarding the final selection, you may contact directly the DG or services that you applied for. If their e-mail details are provided below, please use these addresses.."
In the last years, even if it was stated that nobody should contact the Commission regarding traineeship applications, I met persons who did it and they have been accepted finally.
Good luck!
Thank you very much for your information. As for a applicant from non EU member states, it is very helpful.
Actually, I was selected in the Blue Book now for the first step, and could you give us some suggestion for the second step, because I apply three DG, and should I contact both of them to let them know my interests in the traineeship in their DG?
Secondly, I would like to know the chance for applicants like me to succeed in the final selection? Shall we have a interview for the trainee?
Thank you for your time spending on my questions.
For your first question, find the answer above.
For the second one, it is very common to be called and have a short interview on the phone with your recruiter.
Good luck!
Very good and useful blog. Many thanks! I am also in Blue Book and yesterday was called by a DG representative. The lady asked if am still available and interested because they work on short list notice now, but it is not official information and if am chosen I will get the contract with a job description in January. But it was the only one DG which contacted me, so is it a good sign? Or truly does not mean anything yet..
I also wrote to the other DG to that general mail mentioned by a Traineeship Office in its mail and got auto reply to send both CV and LM, with my application number in a Blue Book.. For me- no sense, as they already have it in my application, but maybe this is lobbying?
So, seems that every DG has its own recruiting policy ;)
Good luck for all of you and maybe let's see in Brussels!!!
Hi Felicia & Anonymus,
it is a very useful website, really, and thank u, Felicia for your help. I was also preselected, and now I'm working on my CV& cover letter. Anonymus, was your phone interview short or long? Was it only about checking your availability?
Jude
The purpose of the interview is to check your language skills and to see if the informations from your cv and motivation letter are according to the real facts. At least this is what I figure out form my interview.
Good luck
Hi there!
I was also pre-selected but so far wasn't contacted by any DG (hope that's not a bad sign).
The last anonymous said that he was working on his CV and cover letter, why?Do we have to send anything now?
Thanks for your time.
Ana Luisa
Is that mean, that I should speak in different languages during the interview, or only in one official EU language. Upps I have to do some preparations for it.:) In which DG have you been a trainee, Felicia?
Jude
One EU language is sufficient. Knowing other(s)is a plus.
Dont think that is a real language test. Is just a check to see if the applicant has the basic knowledges so that she/he can have a fluency and keep a conversation.
Another CV and cover letter should be sent only if requested.
This procedure didnt exist before, but it seems that things changed.
I think that it depends on the Unit. Not all of them require this.
Hey!
I am sorry to bother you Felicia, but could you answer me this: Do all selected people going to be contacted by phone for an interview?
What I mean is, is there any chance that a candidate can be selected without having been interviewed?
Just two more: Will the interviews last only during december or it is possible that preselected candidates will be contacted during january?
And to finalize: When you applied (traineeship starting in october) did the selection results came out before mid-May, like they state?
Thanks in advance
Ana Luisa
Dear Ana,
Here are my answers:
1. This step of the selection to which you refer to consists of a short list where there are three times more people then the places available.
Only the ones that are selected will be interviewed.
I don't know about any case where someone has been selected without being interviewed, but there might be. The final selection is done by the functionaries from the units, and each of them has their own way of selecting the trainees.
2. Normally the selection procedure will closed when they stated.
The results of the selection is known actually one or two weeks before they send the final answer, but only internal.
3. I have received the e-mail as being accepted in the blue book on the 16th of May and I got the final answer on the 27th of June. The telephone interview was on the 6th of June.
I hope that now you have a better idea about this step of the selection procedure,
Good luck!
This is very strange... based on the information form this blog, I decided to call to the department where Im interested to be to ask whether I can send them my cover letter. And the lady told, that I can, however she is not sure if they have a place avaiable. But noone has contacted me so far. Does it mean that not every single trainee is contacted at least for an interview? Did I get right? It means that you might not be contacted at all by noone and then they just dont accept you without even further communicating with you?
In a previous comment I said:'Another CV and cover letter should be sent only if requested'
Your comment is:'...based on the information form this blog, I decided to call to the department where Im interested to be to ask whether I can send them my cover letter'
The main point out of this situation is to send it ONLY if they ask it from you.
To answer further to your questions: if you are in the blue book, it doesn't mean that you will be contacted for an interview. It only means that you are eligible for doing a stage in the Commission, but as there is s high competition, only the best ones will be accepted. And those ones who are preferred will be interviewed on the phone.
On the other hand, weather you have been interviewed or not, you will receive anyhow an e-mail from Traineeship Office informing you if you have been accepted or not!!
I hope that these informations somehow helps you.
Good luck!
"On the other hand, weather you have been interviewed or not, you will receive anyhow an e-mail from Traineeship Office informing you if you have been accepted or not!!"
But may I ask when the Traineeship office will inform the outcome? After the deadline? I think maybe we should be more patient, because I notice we may wait 15-20 days for the interview after selected in the blue book. Thanks again for your blog!
Dear Felicia and others,
Some time ago I found out that I am also in the blue book, but I haven't received an e-mail or phonecall yet.. I am starting to get a bit worried now! I was wondering whether anyone had already heard from DG DEV or AIDCO??
Thanks! Vivian
anyone knows what's the average age of those undertaking an internship with the Commission?. I am 27 and wondering whether I am too old for sending an application.
Thanks in advance.
Pierre
As far as I know there is no age limit.
During my traineeship I met trainees being 34. So no worry about that.
Good luck with your application!
i got 4 phone calls from different people from different units/DGs and damn, no one of them finally chose me!
am i still on time for getting an offer?
when is the internal deadline for offers to trainees? they told me by the end of december they have to make their selection.
This blog is THE blog! congrats!
Nobody will tell you the final answer before the deadline( which is in Jannuary as far as I know)
If you got 4 phonecalls it means that you have very high chances to be selected!
Good luck!
thanks for your moral support felicia!
but so far despite of the number of calls i received, at the end the only thing i got was an email from each of the people who phoned me, stating that they preferred another candidate!
anonimous of december 15, 2008
Has anyone heard from EUROSTAT?If so please let me know.
After the last anonymous said that he received 4 phone call ... and I didn't get one .... I think I have to start believing that I am not being selected =(
Good luck to all of you!
Greetings
Ana Luísa
Hi everyone, I really hope that you all will get a 'yes'! I read an article by a man who says he didn't get a call until the last minute. Apparently some people who were accepted had moved on to other jobs, etc., and he was called upon quite late, so do not lose hope.
I just wanted to share how I was accepted, though I imagine it varies for everyone. 1) Received a couple of phone calls from the head of unit & the stage coordinator, 2) received e-mail confirming their decision. 3) the DG sent their decision to the traineeships office, which then will send out the contract in a week or two. I think the DG stage coordinators are trying their best to secure candidates before the holidays, but perhaps you will find out afterwards because they are overwhelmed & can't fill every place before their holidays. This one seemed very pro-active, perhaps there are others who are not quite as quick.
Best wishes to everyone & hope to meet you in March! Thanks also for this site Felicia--good job!
Hi everyone, I am applying to a specific traineeship offer at the European Commission. I have been preselected. They asked me to send many documents as the Financial Identity forms, the Legal entity form, or a list of medical test and my earliest possible starting date.
How should I interpret this ? Do they launch the recruitment procedure for all preselected candidates ?
Hi Everyone,
I have been preselected for the March Traineeship 2009 and a few days ago I received a phone call from one of the DGs I have applied for.My concern is that almost a week passed since the phone call and I still have no reply.I guess if they have chosen me, I was going to be informed by now.
Because from what I understand, some of you have received more than one phone call and even a positive reply back. Most probably the ones who were selected have already been informed. I am so disappointed.
Moreover, given my background, I happened to apply in the DGs having the greatest number of applicants, even worse!
Good luck to everyone!
Felicia, thank you for all the info and help you have provided here!
As far as I can understand some of you have already been selected.
This means that DGs has just started sending their offers. Therefore I suppose that if do not get any news from the Head of Units that phoned me last week I am done. Well, let's say I'll be checkin the email every minute of the weekend...
hi everybody, i already wrote before... and very strange thing happened to me... I recieved this email few hours ago...
Madame,
Suite à votre candidature, la Commission européenne a le plaisir de vous proposer le stage détaillé ci-après.
etc...
and you know what I was contacted by the Delegation in my hometown but not from Brussels at all. However I was not selected for my hometown (second as usual :-))and apparently without being interviewed I was selected for the traineeship at Brussels. So anything can happen. Good luck to everyone I cant believe it. If someone wants to share some info before our arrival. Find me in facebook Iva Voldanova. I would be happy to :-ú
I got the last phone interview on friday, december 12. How long do I have to wait? or should I consider myself out of the game?
Hey everyone!
I was selected =) I am so happy.
I was placed in Luxembourg at the EUROSTAT !!!
If anyone wants to get in touch my email is a_saomarcos@hotmail.com.
Probably I'll create an account in Facebook too =P.
I was really desperate but I guess it was worth waiting.
This was a hell of a good christmas present =) yeahhh !!
Good luck to all of you, I hope you get what you want.
All the best
Ana Luísa
Hey，Ana, good to hear a good news from you. And I would like to know did you receive a phone interview before you were finally chosen? Thanks. I am still waiting....
Merry X-mas to everyone!
Hi everyone!! I´ve been selected as well. March 09- July 09
I would like to share apartment with new stagiaires in Brussels. If someone from Spain or other countries is interested, please contact me
.
Email: traias@hotmail.com
Facebook: Alex Martinez
Regards
Hey!
I didn't receive any phone call!
I was ill all (last) week and wasn't even checking my emails, when on saturday was feeling better I decided to check the mail box and saw THE email .... =)
Again, I anyone in placed in luxembourg please let me know, so we can perhaps arrange accomodation together.
Merry christmas to you all, I'm going to work now =P
All the best
Ana Luísa
Hello everyone and congrats to all those who were selected. I have not been contacted by anyone yet and it is Christmas Day now so it is quite sure I did not get a placement, right? I shouldn't be surprised I suppose, I have only an undergraduate degree (no Masters degree yet) and I am not from a member state, and I applied for the most popular DG (Relex). Still, I am quite a bit sad, not a very merry christmas :(
Hello Everybody!!!!!!
I recieved a phone call on 18.12 from my DG. The asked me if I am still interested...and if someone else called me. When I said no, they went "thats good for us".
But they did not send me any email afterwards. They said that they do not decide, so I shall wait until mid January, because the Commission decides, not DG!
And here I am reading that some of You have been selected. But how? So each DG has its own policy? Why they said to me that I need to wait for final answer which is not their? Confusing!
Anyway my congrats to all of You!
Hi!
Yes, I think it really depends on each DG. Because some people received phone calls (probably from the most popular DG's) and I didn't, and other anonymous candidate didn't either.
Iva has created the European Commission Traineeship Summer 2009 group in Facebook. Please feel free to join.
Have a great year =)
ana luisa
Dear Madam,
Following your application, the European Commission is pleased to offer you the trainee placement detailed below.
I have recieved this on 19th, they contacted me on 17th or 16th.
Two days I was looking for an email of the person who contacted me, and I have sent motivation letter and cv and in late afternoon I recieved the answer from Bureau de stages.
Hi!!
Please people, if you want to join the European Commission Traineeship Summer 2009 group in facebook just ask permission.
We know that two people didn't get a confirmation because there was an error but please request more times ok?
Thanks
ana luisa
Hello Everybody,
congratulations to all who were already chosen!
I did not hear anything from my favorite DG yet, but I am still optimistic. Mid December they wrote me that I have to wait until 15th of January.
So I'll wait...
Bianca Magdalena
Hi all,
Does anyone know how long one stays in the Blue Book after being preselected. Is it just for one period or for October 09 also?
hi, everyone, congrats to all got the places!
well, 10 Jan and still no reply, I guess very much likely to get turned down, since no phone calls neither and possibly missed it if any since I live on the other side of the globe, different time zone...
Anyway, I don't want to be convinced until the email arrived, (a bit restless ...)so what about the reject email? When will it be sent if I am not selected or should I email them directly to enquire for the results?
Hi Anonymous, I also applied from the other side of the world and haven't heard anything yet. What country are you from? I'm Australian (ahead of Europe 7 or 8 hours I think). I think if you haven't got an email by the 15th that means you haven't been accepted. You do get an email saying you weren't successful but exactly when I'm not sure.
I didn't get in, just got my rejection email. I want to cry :(
hey, aussie! I think u r more than 14 hrs ahead than Brussels as I am about 7 hrs ahead of u.
I am from Hong Kong, is it becuz as an Asian so the chance is reduced??
I got rejected too :<
it happened again.
also this year, for the second time, i havent been accepted.
it huts me more than 6 months ago because this time i have been contacted by three different people from the same DG.
well, i'll try the last time and then i'll give up for good.
Dear everybody hoping to get in,
I just got one of the greatest surprises: I had already given up all hope (since I didn't get a phonecall or e-mail or anything), but I just received an email with a traineeship offer!
Probably somebody else turned it down, or I don't know why I only heard from them now.. But I am extremely happy of course!
Just want to tell all of you: don't give up (as I didn't: I kept sending enthusiastic e-mails (not stalking though)) and you never know..
Bye, Vivian
I found out yesterday that I had not been selected to do a stage at the commission. But it is not so bad because I have a stage with committe of the regions. Does anybody knows if the stagiaries at the institutions integrate and mix? Because it would be good to know that they did so we can meet more people.
Hi, I am Teodora. I would like to apply for the traineeship that starts in October 09. Could you please tell me which are the most popular DGs and Services? I would like to apply for one of these: D-G External Relation, Cabinets, D-G Development,Europe Aid Cooperation Office, Humanitarian AId, D-G Justice, Freedom and Security. Thank you very much!!!!!
Is it actually better to apply to more than one DG or this would be seen as a lack of focus/passion ?
What is a very cool DG?
And what is the most "prestigious"?
How's the secretariat general??
Thank you very much for the help...
Dear Teodora,
It is posted in this blog the number os applicants for each DG for the year 2001, probably it has changeded but it could give you some insight
Check also http://www.ukrep.be/stage.pdf.
The DGRelex is very popular yes.
Dear Anonymous (it would be helpful is the anonymous could sign the messages, that way we could address directly to that person ... cause we have a lot of anonymous down here!!)
As you know you have the choice to apply to 3 different DG, I don't think it would be considrered lack of passion if you choose wisely I mean choose something that has to do with your profile, say eg. your education, previsous jobs.
Put the first choice really what you want and write a "passionate" text about that DG.
If they give us the option of applying to 3 I don't think you will be penalized for that.
These are my personal opinions there may be people who don't agree!!
Good luck =)
**
Ana Luísa
Hi!
I'm currently applying for the winter traineeship (October 2009). I'm receiving mixed information from different backgrounds. Do I need to enclose a separate cover letter with the application documents or is the motivation statement in the application form enough?
Thank you in advance for your help!
Christina
Hi Christina!
No it is not necessary for you to do that, only if you're preselected you might need that (I wasn't requested anything after preselection).
Moreover, I wouln't advise anyone to enclose things that are not strictly asked, just stick with what they ask at this time.
Later if you get throught preselection they will start contacting you and asking for other documents(again, in some cases mine was not one of them)
Good luck =)
And don't forget you can always go to facebook and join the groups of traineeship even just to ask this things.
**
Ana Luísa
Hello!!
Congratulations for the so informative blog!
I would like to ask everybody concerning the diplomas on foreign languages (preselection stage).
Being from Greece, can I include in my application file copies of diplomas in English(IELTS), German and French??
Or do I need to include just the English diploma?
Can you confirm that documents should not be certfied?
Thanks a lot
Michael
when i sent all my required documents by post for particular DG thraineeship how lolg do i have to wait untill i receive a confirmation e-mail that they secessfully received it.
Hi All,
I echo the comments on this blog it is great and I only wish I read it earlier! I am from Australia and only hold undergraduate qualifications, are my chances incredibly lowered because I don't have higher qualifications or years of experience?
AUSSIE
Applications Files received by post for the October 2009 session: 3351
Source: http://ec.europa.eu/stages/lists/o09_received_en.htm#411
Last update: 6/03/2009
I think that this is good news for applicants for the winter session. Was checking the number of applications for the past 3 years and it ranged between 4500 and 6500.
I applied as well for the winter traineeship 2009 and I think 3000 applicants is quite a good numer, now lets hope to be preselected :))
The page now says 6588 application files have been received by post for the October 2009 session.
This is much higher than for the March session. Are there more places available for the October traineeship? Or are our chances of getting chosen just dramatically lower?
Last update: 25/03/2009
7023 application files have been received by post for the October 2009 session.
This must be an all time record! Lets just hope that this is the final number of applications. If I am not mistaken, the number of trainees is 620, irrespective of the session. However, lets not forget that this is only the number of applications received by post, not all of them will be eligible. If it stays as it is, this means that there are 11 applicants for one position.
now it's 6871 application files... they don't know how many they received it seems :)
when will be the new bluebook published?
..if it says "Mid-May" on the website, we have to wait a few more days at the most..Or at least I hope so..
"Mid-May" may well mean at the end of next week.
Good Luck to all
Thomas
I just hope it's soon because I'm so impatient right now...it's been such a long time of waiting without knowing anything at all..
I got an email today, that I'm preselected. What does it mean now:
We will start sending out traineeship offers after the 15th July. Due to last minute cancellations of candidates, offers still can be sent until October. Please make sure you check your e-mail and post box regularly.
Should I start lobbying in the COmmission now or in 2 months???
I got a pre-selection email this morning. I am over the moon with joy. And yes I know it means nothing yet, but I am one step closer to the finish line :) Good luck everyone!
On May 15, at 5:40 p.m. I received an email informing me that I have been preselected. This is its content:
"Dear Madam/Sir,
Your application has successfully passed the first phase of the selection procedure (Preselection).
Your electronic application will soon be available to all Commission departments that are entitled to recruit a trainee. They will, according to their specific needs, research the data base and make their choices.
Please note that the number of preselected candidates is four times higher than the number of available trainee posts. Therefore being preselected is no guarantee that you will be offered a trainee placement.
There is no need at this stage to contact the Commission services.
We will start sending out traineeship offers after the 15th July. Due to last minute cancellations of candidates, offers still can be sent until October. Please make sure you check your e-mail and post box regularly.
If you have any questions please contact EAC-STAGES-DESK3@ec.europa.eu
For contact addresses of the Commission departments please consult the list at the bottom of this message. Those services that are not listed have no specific contact address for trainees."
By reading previous posts of this thread, one is led to conclude that prompt contact should be made with the DGs in order to increase his/her chances of being accepted.
However, the letter reads quite clearly that "There is no need at this stage to contact the Commission services... We will start sending out traineeship offers after the 15th July." On the other hand, the letter states "For contact addresses of the Commission departments please consult the list at the bottom of this message."
Why are we given emails of the departments and at the same time asked not to contact them at this stage? In a situation like this, what would be the best course of action? Would it be to contact the preferred DGs, or to wait for them to contact you? Thank you and good luck to all!
Ok got preselected, what now?
They've just sent out the preselection results. This is the 3rd time I'm applying, first time I didn't send any emails and was not contacted, 2nd time I wasn't interested anymore as I had found smth else, and now I really want to go for it.
My question is to Vivian and all others who sent emails and got phonecalls as a result: how soon after the preselection results are announced would you say it's appropriate to start emailing them? Please state the DG that called you. Thanks for your help and thank you Felicia for providing the platform for it :)
Hello everyone! Here's my question for you. When completing the traineeship application, we could specify up to 3 DGs where we would prefer to intern. Will these be the only DGs that will consider our file or can we receive an offer from a DG that was not on our choice list? By the way, the preselection emails went out about an hour ago, congratulations to all of you who made it ... and get to stress over the final result for at least 2 months :)
I am in the blue book. Last time I didn't use the lobbying...but I'm going to do that this time. Who can I write to?
Everyone says they've got their e-mails received, i still don't have any notiification..I hope it's not lost..
I found a very nice Unit in DG Trage, which would perfectly suit me - however on the internet site there are of course no contact details, just the telephone number. I think it would be nicer to send them an e-mail with my CV - how can I find their e-mail??
Or should I better call and ask for the e-mail?
Is there anyone else who still does not have his/her e-mail with the pre-selection results?
Does the fact that i still have not received an e-mail mean that I'm not among the pre-selected? I don't know what to think right now :((
dont worry commission will be releasing results throughout the week, that s how it was last year
Thank you!! It's the first time I apply and I did not have any info about the procedure from previous years..I hope I'm part of the next round of results then :))
Ale they going one number after another? I was in 408 series and I got my e-mail at 17.50 yesterday.
Do people with from 415 series still have a chance then?
I'm in the 406 series and I still have not received ANY e-mail..I have no idea how they send them.....
I just hope they publish the list of pre-selected applicants soon so that we can see all the info on the website :)
i am series 412 and i received the email at 6:38 pm yesterday. i guess someone was working late on a friday at the commission:)
I cannot imagine what it is to have to send 6871 e-mails but to tell you the truth - I think we've waited long enough and we all deserved to get them yesterday..but some got more lucky than others :)))
Statement from the ECs site:
Preselected candidates will receive the contact details of the services they have applied for by e-mail. If necessary, any specific questions may be addressed directly to these services. For Services that do not provide any contact details, candidates may contact the Services' Human Resources unit.
The Traineeships Office does not recommend that candidates blindly contact all the DGs and Services of the Commission.
as many of you i dont know what to do? shell i write an email (motiviation letter, cv) and send it to the 3 dgs I have applied for (to the adresses they sent with the confirmation mail that i've been preselected)? should i wait and do nothing? should I contact somebody else?
ayuda-me por favor!
did it ever happen to someone to get an offer from a DG they did not choose on the application form?
FYI I am in the 412 series and have received no notification to this date.
Olivia, it seems we have to wait more..
Yeah will keep my eyes peeled and this blog posted once I find out! :)
Hello everyone :)
I was also pre-selected and also had the same question wether I should contact them or not... so I just sent an e-mail with my motivation to one of the three preferred places of my form. If they don't like it, at least I only sent to one of them.
Good luck everyone!
This report on the traineeship seems to suggest that lobbying activities do not make too much difference overall
To Olivia : I do the same and I'm pretty impatient already..Has this happened to you before or it's the first time you apply?
I keep my fingers crossed for some kind of news tomorrow..I'm already sick of all that waiting :))))
Dora
Sorry, the link had a typo in it: it's here:
http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/evalreports/civilsociety/2008/stagereport_en.pdf
Hey all,
I got my email on friday afternoon, and I have the same hesitance about contacting or not!
Do you have any ideas if we will be eligible for all of the DGs or only the ones we choose in our application forms?
p.s thank you for the blog!it is really helpful..
Hey!
I'm in the 413 series and got my email Friday afternoon. I think it says on the website that you can be selected by any DG regardless of your choices. I'm not sure about the whole contacting the DGs though... Wouldn't it be a bit time consuming (and possibly annoying) for them to read through hundreds of emails? But again, I'm not sure... Does anyone know roughly how many trainees they'll be taking on?
How can those people do this to us? How much longer do they think we can wait? I can't believe that they have done something like this before...
any 414 or 415 receiving an e-mail?
Hi All,
i'm pre-selected as well, but could anyone explain a bit more about the lobbying? what is it all about? just emailing your CV and Cover letter?
thanks a lot and see you all in brussels:)
-AP.
what is going on?? :(
Dora - this is my first time applying indeed.
Here's a 412 still waiting for an e-mail...
It seems that quite a lot of people have received a positive answer. But has anyone received a rejection yet? I am afraid they send confirmations first, and then denials .....
Olivia : ..still waiting as well..a 406 with no answer :((
Dora
to puzzled, try not to worry, we still do not know that for sure..
to all of you who still don't have any e-mail at all - what do you plan to do? how long will you wait before trying to get any information from the Traineeships Office??
hi all :)
i also received news that i was preselected, so i was wondering whether i should send updates on education and language background to my primary choice DG...i would appreciate any advice :)
hope you receive your mails soon!
very useful blog, thanks!
Dear all,
I was in 410 series and received my confirmation mail on friday afternoon... I don't know what to do next: to send a cover letter, my CV again??
Anyone can helps us? ;)
Maria.
This blog is really nice. I have been pre-selected and I'm in the 412 series. I have teh same dilemna-whether to write to my departments or not. I'm just not sure if this will be appreciated. It's hard to sit back and wait for weeks! Dina
I got my rejection e-mail a few hours ago, I did not pass the pre-selection..Good luck, Olivia and the rest of you, I hope you receive good news :)
Dora
Has anybody started lobbying, i.e. sending CV/cover letter to the relevants DGs?
Annie
Hello all, I was in the last row of 415 and received the preselection email on Friday, my friend in the 406 group did not receive it so far. I'll leave it up to you to ponder what that means.
Got an email today. Not positive :(
Good luck to the others!
i was rejected :(( today i got the mail.
GUYS i just received my rejection email. yeah they started to send those, good luck to the rest of you!!
I'm 413 and as many here didn't get any info so far which is really weird. It's the 3rd time I'm applying and each time before I was pre-selected and I remember that my friends who were applying with me were getting confirmations on the same day as I was. Thus, it's all really strange and actually I'm getting worried about it. I don't see a reason not to be pre-selected as I was already twice before but who knows them. I told myself that it is the last time I'm applying although this traineeship was my dream for a long time. One advice for all of you. The 1st time I didn't lobby, I wasn't even contacted. The 2nd time I lobbied a lot and had 3 interviews. So, better to lobby than sit & wait.
Guys, I just thought that maybe the whole thing with getting or not getting e-mails has sth do with the number of the EAC desk. Mine is EAC-STAGES-DESK5. Does anybody from nr 5 got already an email? I didn't get so far neither confirmation nor refusal...
the commission building was on fire today.... good luck to everyone who is still 'in the competition', i honestly think it's a luck question from here. and lobbying probably works if you already know someone working there. half of those preselected send emails, of course it will 'work' for some of them, but that is only because of purely statistical reasons. i don't think i will bother
Nice blog! I just want to know what are the real chances of non-EU applicants in securing this traineeship are, even after pre-selection. I have been studying in Europe for 2 years and the traineeship guidelines say "a limited number of non-EU trainees will be accepted depending on available resources". For those of you who have been through the traineeship, did u meet some non-EU trainees?
I think that for those who haven't received anything yet, there's no hope left am really sorry guys
Dear all
I don't know anybody there, but I will surely send an update Cv and a Cover Letter to the Units I am intersted in.
The question is: what about the social networks? could this be an option, sending a presentation?
Thanks a lot for the useful website!!!
Dear all,
Does anyone know the email adresses for different DG Units? Are these made public on internet? I could find only the phone numbers.
Thank you,
Alenic
Hi!
To Alenic: the only e-mail addresses I have for the different DG are those given on the e-mail that they sent us when they told us that we were preselected.
Don't know if there are "personal" e-mail addresses to we can send our e-mails... does anybody know how to get them??
Thanks!
Maria
you can find a lot of contact details here: http://ec.europa.eu/staffdir/plsql/gsys_page.display_index?pLang=EN
Has anybody received a phone call form any DG for a phone interview?
I think that will be the next step.
hi everybody i got preselected as well. im now wondering whether to send to some departments an updated cv and a statement letter.what are u guys planning to do?
i actually dont think they might call me/reach me as I am abroad right now and dont have a phone contact.
and yes, there are only phone numbers published, that's what they say about email: "Members of the public wishing to send an e-mail to a member of the staff of the European Commission should either contact the person in question by telephone to request his/her address or send a mail to the address information service." Which is address-information@ec.europa.eu
Hey, did any of you got pre-selected email today or yesterday? I still don't have anything...
i got the email on thursday!
Hello all; I'm a third country applicant (though I was born/grew up/attended university in the EU, though a third national nonetheless); was preselected on Friday (15th). I'm in the 410 series, Desk 8. From my understanding of the email (my legal training unfortunately makes me read between lines), I'm guessing that "there is no need at this stage to contact the Commission services" is not the same as "please do not contact the Comm services unless requested to". I've boggled over EU law long enough to know that "you don't need to" and "do not" mean two very different things in EU-ese. So my guess is that they're just trying to avoid saying "please feel free to send us further information upon pre-selection" for fear of getting swamped by 3000+ CVs and motivation letters. In reality, I would think they're keeping an eye out for the (few?) eager ones who independently decide to follow-up, and, perhaps, be more interested in contacting them for an interview. But that's just my opinion!
In the meantime, greatest of luck to all pre-selectees!
from what i hear from within the Commission, many Units get annoyed at all this "lobbying" (aka hundreds of emails received at their personal inboxes), which might even count negatively... Just some food for thought before spreading e-mails around. Good luck to all regardless of your strategy!
Hello everyone,
I sent an e-mail expressing my interest in one of the services I applied to and yesterday the reply I got was sth like, thank you for your interest and then:
It is not necessary to send your CV again to Agency since all the relevant information you mentioned in your application form is included in the "Virtual Blue Book" and is available to the people responsible for the trainees' selection.
If you are selected by the Agency, the Traineeships Office will inform you by e-mail and will then send you a contract during the month of July.
If, however, you have not received any notification by 31 July, you may consider that your application has not been successful. You can still apply for a subsequent exercise, provided you are still eligible. You must, however, make a fresh application http://europa.eu.int/comm/stages.
So, I am not sure if it was a good thing to send them the e-mail... :( I hope they don't reference me as the girl who annoyed them with her CV again and because of that don't consider my application.
After this I don't feel encouraged to send an e-mail to the other 2 DGs I applied for, I don't know...
As far as I know, some DGs haven't been allocated trainees yet, i.e. they do not know whether they are entitled to recruit trainee(s).
So according to the EC website, the Pre-selcetion process is closed. They have 2567 numbers on there and since they said this is 4 times more than the posts available, about 640-odd will probably get through. Tight! Goodluck!
How come you see that the pre-selection is closed? I see on their website that it's still ongoing...
I am reading this and wondering, why the hell some people think that in DGs they have nothing else to do but to read and updated CV, coversheats and presetations. Do you really think that will help you? They have information they need.
i heard that the officers in the Commission now days get rather pissed off because of the huge amount of cv's they receive from the blue book candidates.
i dont advise you to send anything. at least im not. see you in brussels!
Hello,
I just the list with the pre-selected candidates and my numer is not in there; however, i ave't received any email from them ... did this happen o anyone else? what does it mean?
thanks!
Hi everyone,
I've also been preselected and wondering when and if I should start lobbying the DGs. The girl's post about the answer she got from the DG after sending them her updated CV is quite frustrating...
A few thoughts...:
-rather than emailing the heads of units, wouldn't it be more efficient to give them a call?
-given that each DG gets 100s of applications, how long do people reckon the need to go through them all (do they go through them all?)?
-what I heard from previous interns is that apparently the Commission has nationality quotas for interns, ie some DGs would not even consider your application because of that. That is particularily worrying for French, German, Italian, etc applicants among us I guess...
Ade:
Only a thing about quotas, I think it would only apply to preselection.
If you go to http://ec.europa.eu/stages/information/preselection_en.htm#Infotab3
you can see the formula...
hope it applies only for that, I'm spanish so I would have the same problem as you if they continue applying quotas ... :(
hey all,
i don't think it would be problem to send updated CV. the thing is if they dont want to read or interested in it? they wouldnt open their emails.. I sent my stuff too, i am not sure if it helps but i dont think it will affect the procedure negatively! there is nothing wrong to get in touch with the place you are applying, if they dont want that they wouldnt read it! that's my idea!
did you send you updated cv to the emails we got or directly to the heads of units?
i sent them head of the unit and also the email we got but I got automotic response like that someone says in the blog. I just think nothing to loose by sending them out! (well hopefully:)
Thanks for the link Maria ;)
Do people only lobby their first choice or all 3 DGs?...I read somewhere that 90% of the trainees get their first choice, so is it really worth contacting the 2nd and 3rd you reckon?
Hello!
Only one question, how did you get the head of unit e-mail address??
Thanks!!
yes, that's my question as well, in the EC directory one has only access to phone numbers...
you should really consider whether you are able to work in the commission if you cant even figure out what the e-mail addresses might be, if you already have the persons name.
Very kind and constructive comment...
Thanks for your help and good luck.
First of all, congratulations for the blog!!
This is a very nice place for us to share our feelings and ideas regaring the traineeship in the European Commission. I think there is absolutely no need to be rude and insult other people. Let's keep a nice atmoshpere here, ok?
to be honest, the comment wasn't suppose to be insulting. it came out bad, i apologize for it.
now, lets continue.
with regards to this comment, and not wanting to start any kind of feud, I have already been working FOR the Comission, that is why I was asking.It is not that easy as you think, I can tell you bc I have some (2 years) xperience in Brussels. So yes, I consider myself quite suitable to work IN the Commission. That's it. Thanks a lot for the other comments anyway!
Honestly, I don't think we can reach a consensus on whether it is better to email/lobby. Having said that I personally don't think spamming the Head of the unit's mailbox is a good idea. Desperation is never pretty. Since the pre-selecetd candidates have been given email ids of the various DG internship offices why not just mail there and leave it at that. Also, the EC website does not show that the selection process has started. I wonder if anyone has received calls yet
no life signs yet..ye guys, let us know if u get somehow contacted
yes, please let us know if you get a phone interview/email!
Hey all,
Just wondering, does anyone know if people have gotten actual jobs after completing a traineeship? (Also, I'll be sure to let you all know if I hear anything from a DG, good or bad...)
There's a rule that says you can't be hired by the EC in the 6 months following your internship. And for most jobs I guess you need to take EU exams and respond to specific nationality + experience criteria. But I guess through networking and with a great amount of luck you might be able to get external opportunities...
Hey guys,
I got this from DG Internal Market after i sent them an updated cv on the address they mailed us: "For your information, your application has been placed in a common mailbox accessible to the whole Directorate General.
You will be contacted only if one of our Units is interested in your profile." Seems it's no use sending out anything. :(
I contacted some chefs of units...two of them reacted...and told me the procedure is already finished and they have already choose their trainees...
bah...
I sent my cv and some words to a Head of Unit in AIDCO, (yesterday and arrives today) that was the replay:
Dear Sir, Madam,
Thank you for your email referred to above informing that you have passed the preselection stage, for which I congratulate you.
I note that you wish to have a traineeship within this Directorate-General. However, as the selection of candidates is under way, we are not in a position at this stage to be able to guarantee a traineeship in this department.
If you pass the final selection stage, the Traineeships Office will send you a contract for a traineeship either with us or in another department of the Directorate-General. If, however, you have not received word by 31 January for the period beginning in March, or by 31 August for the period beginning in October, you may consider that your application has not been successful.
Should your first application be unsuccessful, you can still apply for a subsequent exercise, provided you are still eligible. You must, however, make a fresh application.
Wishing you good luck with your projects, I remain
Yours faithfully,
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Catherine Svetec
AIDCO G.3. -HR - Stage co-ordinator
This is what I got after contacting the SG. Now I really don't know whether to contact heads of units!!
Dear candidate trainee,
Thank you for your e-mail.
The different directorates of the Secretariat General are now examining the CVs of the pre-selected candidates for a traineeship at the European Commission. In case they are interested in your application, they will contact you in order to check your availability and your interest in their service.
If you will be selected for a traineeship in one of our services, you will receive an official offer from the Traineeships Office during the month of January.
Given the huge number of applicants, we would be grateful not to contact us, neither the units, personally.
hey guys yesterday afternoon I got three call from three differnent dg's.was very surprised,dont know if it was a coincidence
had you sent them any cover letters or cvs? which dgs?
that are very good news!!
did you sent any CV or Cover letter to the DG's that contacted you?
Thanks!
thats good news..the person who was called, can you tell us which DGs and what they spoke to you? Also, what time did u receive these calls?
Hello everyone! I was preselected for the October traineeship, however and because I was a bit distracted I just chose Development and ACP, but I am really interested in EuropeAid. Do I still have chances of being selected by a DG different from the one I applied?
Thank you for the answer
http://ec.europa.eu/stages/index_en.htm - they change the rules which also apply to the autumn traineeship - 2500 preselected, 600 chosen, no DG preference possible any more. And some other changes, not so important at out stage.
Hi! I applied for the internship at the DG translation and I still haven't received any answer yet. On the website, it's written that we are not preselected so does it mean we'll receive the answer only mid-july? did anyone who applied for the DGT received an answer yet?? thanks in advance
NEWS???...
hello, I was preselected too, I just want to know do you have any news yet?
no news after preselected!
hi guys, has anyone else been phoned?
pls let us know:)
thanks
Nope. No sign yet!
No phone call, no e-mail, ...
me neither, nothing...
Hi, I have been pre-selected and I just spoke to a former trainee on the matter(quite by accident)as I was calling her recruitment firm about a legal job and when I mentioned the traineeship, she advised me LOBBY LOBBY LOBBY!! she said herself and every other trainee she met all lobbied. She said that so many brillant first class students don't get the positions because they don't lobby. She said it is the only way to get selected by emailing or if you know someone who works there. She agreed with me that it is unethical but apparently this is what has to be done to secure it! Anyway, just thought I would pass this along, and now I am going to be lobbying hard! P.s Does anyone know how to get email addresses for heads of departments, I can easily find their names, but I cat find their personal work addresses aside from the general contact email addresses for each department???
Okkkk! Lobbying! But I wrote to Dg AIDCO and DG ENV, they replay with the similar mail (the same anonymous put here)...how can I do more or different???...For the emails is quite simple: name.surname...
some other interesting stuff from the official report on the selection of trainees:
"About the half of pre-selected candidates carry out self-promotional activities
These lobbying activities are considered as ineffective by Advisers. Lobbying is the only issue which has not reached a positive assessment of satisfaction in absolute terms.
The practice of conducting phone interviews as a complement of information in order to select
the most suitable candidate from a short list is practised by about the half of Advisers; the
importance of having these interviews however is in general not felt, although the practice
suggests that this is the only means available to EC services to test the linguistic skills of
candidates."
I recommend you to browse through this report before choosing what to do (http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/evalreports/civilsociety/2008/stagereport_en.pdf), many interesting findings that might help you out!
Did you have any news yet? I only sent an e-mail to a DG that I liked a lot and they answered me, that this year they are not allowed to take an intern, so they can't accept me. And that's all by now, I don't really believe in lobbying, most of my friends who got an internship never lobbied.
I was hoping so badly that they would at least call me, but I have still no news and I'm starting to lose my hope :'(
Has anyone had a phone call from DG Trade yet? If so, did they lobby before receiving a phone call?
I've written to my 3 DG...Trade never sent me back! It's better then the letteres here...maybe someone really read it and is thinking about...'cause I think that the DGs sent those emails without reading cv and cover letters...
the other question:did someone (european) who lives outside europe receive any calls?
what i don't understand is why they give us the choice of all DGs when some of them might not be able to take interns at all. since most of the DGs only consider those people who chose them as a first option (not an official info, just read it somewhere, but seems plausible enough for me given the big competition), it doesn't seem fair to me.
Aneena, may i ask which one was it that is not allowed to take interns this year? and there's no need to lose hope:)
Hi, it wasn't a DG but a couple of units from Internal Market, I was writing too quickly and wasn't paying attention. So they probably will take some trainees in this DG, but not in my chosen units :(( They answered in a very polite way, that my CV is good etc. but they unfortunately weren't granted a trainee this session so they can't accept me. I am really mad, cos those were the units that 100% suit my education and experience :((
Certainly - DONT EVER LOOSE HOPE! I guess they havent started calling yet :D
Hi, I also wrote to Trade and never heard anything back... very weird... I haven't written any other DG's nor have heard from anyone...
Has it been like this in the last years? When do they usually start calling up people?
Hi all!
Same answer as you Aneena:
in a very polite way: "I have not been assigned a stagiaire for the upcoming period".
It was a very specific unit, (Chemicals) so I think no oportunities for me... my profile is also very specific :((
Good luck to all!
aneena: your friends that got the internship and never lobbied, when did they get called? did they get called at all? or do they just sent out offers via mail?
thanks and good luck! and yes, we should not give up hoping..
Well my friend who was accepted told me that most of the interns she met there got their phone calls 2-3 weeks after the bluebook was published. That's why I am getting a bit impatient here, I think if they don't call next week I lost the game :( Of course I will still hope that they choose me, but it's not the same.
Maybe this year the selection is a bit later, since nobody from the people on this blog and other forum I know was called yet. I guess I have no other option than wait.
Aneena: Could you say which are these fora? so we can read it too...THANKS A LOT! ps many DG without a place for trainee, why didn't clear from the start this situation?
Aneena: What other forum do you know?
It's unfortunately not in English, but it would be nice to move to a forum, where we could share our experiences, here it's difficult to discuss, since it's a blog.
It's a Polish forum for people from the Commission, past, present and future interns, very useful.
A woman from DG Ecfin on this page told me for example that they will start selecting people in the middle of June. But I haven't applied to this DG so it's not very interesting for me.
If I find out anything else useful I will be happy to share my knowledge with you :))
Anyways I created a forum including a chat, I am not very good at that, but maybe it can be useful :)
http://ec-traineeship.findtalk.net/
I am a bit confused that many units don't accept trainees at all, although they requested it - how can I know, if any unit at all which would suit me needs a trainee? :(
Hi guys..i got a call today from one of the DG's offices and they asked me if anyone else has contacted me so far. I said no. Then the guy spoke about what kind of intern they required and asked if i was interested. I was of course. Then he said he would call back on Monday and tell me if I was selected or not. He said they were specifically looking for only 2 interns. After a few hours he called me back and said I was selected! It wasnt my chosen DG but the job profile fits me perfectly. I just want to say that there are many possibilities within every DG so don't lose hope! And btw, I didnt lobby or anything
Hey anonymous
Congratulations! Could you tell us which DG that was? Please everyone, say which DG you are talking about.
Cheers!
Hi!
to both anonymous that never heard back from DG Trade - i got a long thank you mail 4-5 days after i wrote with the following: This selection is made by the individual Directors and Heads of Units and will be finished at the end of June 2009. All the selected candidates will be personally informed by the Traineeships Office in mid July 2009.
The selection of candidates will be based on the CV's in the Blue Book and interviews by telephone so that all the applicants will have the same chances to be selected.
I still haven't got any phone calls, but trying not to lose hope :)
Good luck to all!
"It's a Polish forum for people from the Commission, past, present and future interns, very useful."
Aneena : could you please send a link for this forum :) It looks very interesting!
Anonymous who is already accepted : Congratulations!! and could you tell us at what time they called you?
thank you!!
guys lets register in that new forum the guy created and talk?how does that chat work?
laura
Iva and Aneena. Thank you very much for the comments re selection and DG trade update! I will stay in touch if I hear anything...
hello,does anyone know where the external relations head of the units names are?
Hi,
I figured it out somehow with the forum and chat so it should work now, I don't want to spam the blog with my messages so I am posting all the information I have on the forum:
http://ec-traineeship.findtalk.net/
Hi all.
I got a phonecall last week from a DG but not had any email through as yet to confirm or not - eek! Fingers crossed! Has anyone heard anything from HR as yet?
Thanks
Kristen
Hello people!
Two weeks ago I had the phone interview and last Monday I received an email confirming my place at the sport section of the DG Education and culture! This is exactly what I was hoping for and I am really excited!
Hope to see you all in Brussels in October!
Vagelis
Great website! Thanks for all the information!
I opened a new facebookgroup for all the stagaires starting in October 2009. Feel free to join at: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=40853528510#/group.php?gid=98053718731
See you in Brussels!
Rachel
Hi!
I've been pre-selected and I was wondering if it could be useful to lobby a little bit, sending an email to the DGS I chose.
So, my question is: should I send my CV and cover letter to them or just write them about the reasons why I decided to apply? And if a CV is needed, is it better to send them one made with Europass?
Thank you in advance for the answer...and for the good job you've made with this very useful blog.
Hi Anonymous, I was wondering if you were preselected for the Winter internship? I am applying for the March 2010 internship...and as far as I know the application is due today. Well, it says noon, but the application is still available so I am going to try to submit it.
Thanks!
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