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Document C2010/312A/01

Notice of open competition EPSO/AST/111/10 — Secretaries (AST 1) — DA/DE/EN/ES/FR/MT/NL/PT/SV

SL C 312A, 17.11.2010, p. 1–5 (ES, DA, DE, EN, FR, MT, NL, PT, SV)

17.11.2010   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

CA 312/1

NOTICE OF OPEN COMPETITION EPSO/AST/111/10

SECRETARIES (AST 1)

DA/DE/EN/ES/FR/MT/NL/PT/SV

(2010/C 312 A/01)

Are you interested in working for the European institutions?

Does your profile meet our criteria?

Why not apply?

Give yourself a chance to succeed.

The European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) is organising an open competition, based on tests, to constitute a reserve pool from which to recruit assistants (1).

EPSO/AST/111/10 (AST 1)

SECRETARIAL FIELD

in the following languages:

(DA) DANISH, (DE) GERMAN, (EN) ENGLISH, (ES) SPANISH, (FR) FRENCH, (MT) MALTESE, (NL) DUTCH, (PT) PORTUGUESE, (SV) SWEDISH

The purpose of this competition is to draw up reserve lists from which to fill vacant posts in the institutions of the European Union.

Before applying, you should carefully read the guide published in Official Journal of the European Union C 184 A of 8 July 2010 and on the EPSO website.

This guide is an integral part of the competition notice and will help you to understand the rules governing the procedure and how to apply.

CONTENTS

I.

GENERAL BACKGROUND

II.

DUTIES

III.

ELIGIBILITY

IV.

ADMISSION TESTS

V.

OPEN COMPETITION AND ASSESSMENT EXERCISES

VI.

RESERVE LISTS

VII.

HOW TO APPLY

I.   GENERAL BACKGROUND

1.

 Number of successful candidates per language:

DA = 35

DE = 62

EN = 98

ES = 22

FR = 86

MT = 42

NL = 27

PT = 19

SV = 23

2.

 Remarks

You may apply for only one of these languages.

You must make your choice when you apply online and you will not be able to change it after you have confirmed and validated your online application form.

II.   DUTIES

The position will entail the following tasks:

—

organising and coordinating meetings, including compiling files and working documents,

—

answering, filtering and transferring telephone calls, handling correspondence and giving general information to callers,

—

managing email boxes and functional mailboxes,

—

managing timetables, supervising the schedule and ensuring that deadlines are complied with,

—

providing general administrative support, in particular for document management (receiving, processing, following up and classifying documents and correspondence),

—

preparing and managing missions; managing absences,

—

presenting and checking documents (page layout, formatting and tables),

—

drafting (secretarial level) draft notes, letters and reports,

—

other administrative secretarial tasks associated with file management and information gathering using office software,

—

in translation departments: receiving, managing and processing translation requests, in particular preparing, processing and finalising documents, mainly using translation software, feeding material into and updating translation memories, and performing typing, page layout and formatting work.

The general profile of candidates sought by the institutions is described in point 1.2 of the guide to open competitions.

III.   ELIGIBILITY

, you must fulfil all the following general and specific conditions:

1.

 General conditions

—

You must be a citizen of one of the Member States of the European Union.

—

You must enjoy your full rights as a citizen.

—

You must have fulfilled any obligations imposed on you by the laws on military service.

—

You must meet the character requirements for the duties involved.

2.

 Specific conditions

2.1

Qualifications

Either (a)

Post-secondary education attested by a diploma relevant to the nature of the duties (see section II);

or (b)

Secondary education attested by a diploma giving access to post-secondary education, followed by at least 3 years' professional experience relevant to the nature of the duties (see section II).

NB: The minimum of 3 years' professional experience required under (b) above forms an integral part of the above qualification.

2.2

Professional experience

No professional experience is required.

2.3

Knowledge of languages

(a)

Language 1

Main language:

A thorough knowledge of the language chosen for the competition from among DA/DE/EN/ES/FR/MT/NL/PT/SV.

and

 

(b)

Language 2:

Second language (must be different from language 1):

A satisfactory knowledge of English, French or German.

IV.   ADMISSION TESTS

1.

 You will be invited to sit the tests

, you have declared that you fulfil the general and specific conditions listed in section III.

2.

 Nature and marking of tests

A series of tests comprising multiple-choice questions to assess your general ability as regards:

Test (a)

Verbal reasoning

Marking: 0-20

Pass mark: 10

Test (b)

Numerical reasoning

Marking: 0-10

Test (c)

Abstract reasoning

Marking: 0-10

 

The aggregate pass mark for tests (b) and (c) is 10.

Test (d)

Professional capability:

accuracy and precision

Marking: 0-20

Pass mark: 10

Test (e)

Professional capability:

prioritising and organising

Marking: 0-20

Pass mark: 10

Test (f)

Knowledge in the secretarial field

Marking: 0-20

Pass mark: 10

3.

 Language of the tests

Language 1 for parts (a), (b) and (c)

Language 2 for parts (d), (e) and (f)

V.   OPEN COMPETITION AND ASSESSMENT EXERCISES

1.

 You will be admitted (*) to the assessment exercises

if you have obtained one of the highest marks in the admission tests and a pass mark in each (2) and if, in the light of the information given in your online application, you fulfil the general and specific conditions listed in section III (3).

(*)

Admission will be confirmed subject to subsequent verification of the supporting documents enclosed with your full application form. Supporting documents will be verified for candidates who satisfy the eligibility conditions and who have obtained the highest aggregate marks in the assessment exercises, in descending order, until the number of successful candidates sought in the notice of competition and who meet the eligibility conditions is reached.

The files of candidates below this threshold will not be examined.

2.

 Assessment exercises:

You will be invited to sit the assessment exercises, normally in Brussels, for a one-day session where your specific competencies in the field and the following general competencies will be assessed:

—

analysis and problem solving,

—

communication,

—

delivering quality and results,

—

learning and development,

—

prioritising and organising,

—

resilience,

—

working with others.

More information on these competencies can be found in point 1.2 of the guide to open competitions.

These competencies will be tested by means of:

(a)

a structured interview;

(b)

an in-tray exercise;

(c)

a practical test (4) involving the preparation and/or processing of an MS Word document;

(d)

a practical test to assess your drafting skills (particularly spelling, syntax and grammar).

3.

 Languages for the assessment exercises

Language 2: tests (a) and (b)

Language 1: tests (c) and (d)

4.

 Marking

Specific competencies

Marking: 0-30

Pass mark: 15

General competencies

Each general competency will be marked out of 10.

Pass mark:

 

3 for each competency and

 

an aggregate of 40 out of 70 for all 7 general competencies.

VI.   RESERVE LISTS

1.

 Candidates placed on the reserve lists

The selection board will place you on the reserve list if you have obtained the pass marks and one of the highest aggregate marks in the assessment exercises (5) (see number of successful candidates, section I.1) and your supporting documents show that you meet all the eligibility requirements.

2.

 Classification

The lists will be drawn up by language and by merit group (maximum of four groups) and names will be listed in alphabetical order within each group.

VII.   HOW TO APPLY

1.

 Online application

You must apply online following the instructions on the EPSO website.

Deadline: 16 December 2010 at 12.00 (midday), Brussels time.

2.

 Submission of application files

If you are one of the candidates admitted to the assessment exercises, you will be asked at a later stage to submit a full application file (signed online application form and supporting documents).

Closing date: You will be informed of the closing date via your EPSO account.

Procedure: See point 2.2 of the guide to open competitions.

(1)  Any reference in this notice to a person of the male sex must be deemed also to constitute a reference to a person of the female sex.

(2)  Where a number of candidates tie for the last available place, they will all be invited to the assessment exercises.

(3)  The number of candidates invited to take the assessment exercises will be approximately 2,5 times the number of successful candidates indicated in this competition notice and published on the EPSO website (www.eu-careers.eu).

(4)  Details of the keyboards available will be provided with the invitation to the assessment tests. Standard European keyboards will be provided.

(5)  Where a number of candidates tie for the last available place, they will all be placed on the reserve list.

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