Some EPSO exam candidates might have heard the name of 2010 Administrator (AD) exam applicant, Dimitrios Pachtitis. Mr. Pachtitis is the candidate who successfully challenged EPSO’s pre-selection method by highlighting the "mis-allocation of competences

Now that the political agreement on the new European External Action Service (EEAS) has been made, the question arises: who will this new service have as its staff?

The idea to have 1/3 Commission (mainly RELEX and some related DGs), 1/3 Council (from its Brussels Secretariat) and 1/3 Member States (national diplomats) in the service is interesting. Senior people mention some 1200-1600 starting staff, but it is widely held that the total number of the service staff will go up to as much as 6000 until 2013.

When EPSO announced its new selection procedures, it was welcomed by many with enthusiasm. Lowering the barrier to entry while selecting more suitable candidates via the Assessment Center by removing EU knowledge tests was a big relief for most people. But recruitment is not limited to EPSO: consider the (s)election of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), the European Commission President and other senior politicians. Maybe a change of procedures is the answer to the EU's problems?