The winner of our latest caption contest plays on the fact that after enough preparation for the EPSO abstract reasoning test, shapes and objects in the physical world, from french fries to traffic lights, all start to seem like building blocks in a test.

Enjoy! :)

In the Museum of Fine Art...EPSO rules don't apply!

Have you ever wanted to see through all the fog surrounding EPSO's selection procedures?

Online EU Training is here to help you with that. Our new infographics will tell you everything you need to know about getting a job within the EU -  in less than 3 minutes!

Now that webcast is behind us, is there any specific issue you would like to have answered on our website?
 

·         Is it necessary to have any kind of second language certificate?
 

No certification is necessary and language never has to be proven in an EPSO exam by documents, only by practically demonstrating your knowledge via e.g. verbal reasoning or the assessment centre.
 

·         Are the AD7 tests significantly more difficult than the AD5s?
 

No, they are more likely the exact same level as the AD5, the difference is in the required work experience to qualify for AD7.
 

Read on for further questions and answers!

Some of our users who recently purchases our Situational Judgement (SJT) simulation tests expressed some concern about the sudden and unannounced change in the number of test questions included in the packages. We indeed made some changes to much better reflect the real EPSO SJT tests and we probably could have better explained the need for this change. I am taking the opportunity now to do just that.

There are many  treacherous ways to get into the EU Institutions, but we offer you the easiset and the best one.

This was the main idea behind the ad campaing Online EU Training launched in March.

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

Ever wondered what European Commission and other EU officials do? Click to see the truth !

For all EU career fans who live in places where extreme cold and snow has arrived, here is a truly European account of how Finns cope with winter:

+15 °C, Spanish wear caps, gloves and winter coats, Finns are sunbathing.

+10 °C, French desperately try to get their central heating on. Finns plant flowers.

+5 °C, Italian cars won't start. Finns...

Presenting complex issues such as how European Union institutions make decisions has never been easy. Hence the new genre of infographics has emerged: don't talk about it, show it!

A great example of summarising what the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council of Ministers do has just been posted on the Irish Institute of European Affairs (IIEA) website...

Having decided a year ago to make a commitment to getting a job in the European Commission, I realised I had some serious work to do if I was going to be ready for the EPSO Competitions this year.

I started researching everything I could about the various stages of the process, and what competitions I would be eligible to apply for. For 2010-11, my options were Administrator (AD5-7) in the field of European Public Administration and Assistant in the secretarial field (AST1), so I applied...

2010 has been an eventful year at Arboreus Online EU Training:

• we launched our brand new website & interactive test engine
• we created packages & webinars for almost all EPSO exams
• we offered 10,000+ EU tests for ADs, ASTs, Specialists & Linguists
• we trained 500+ candidates from 20+ countries via webinars
• we held...
   

(click to read on & see our promise to you for 2011)

We at Arboreus have been working on e-learning presentations about the European Union policies and EU institutions for several months.

We are launching e-courses about the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers, the European Commission, the EU Treaties, the EU's Commercial Policy, EU Law and the Judicial Bodies, Various EU institutions including the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions, the European Central Bank and others, so we thought a a few teasers could get you in the mood.

Prepare for Europe's 1st ever online EU training multimedia e-courses - available for everyone, everywhere!

Launch date: Before the end of January 2011 - let the countdown begin! Click to see 5 more screenshots!
 

EPSO's recruitment reform from March 2010 has been a huge success. It has lowered the barrier to entry for many potential candidates by eliminating the much hated EU knowledge tests (think of "How many times has Viviane Reding been a European Commissioner until now?") and thus opening the door for some 37,000 applicants for the Administrator exams this spring.

But this new system has a huge inherent danger: many of the new recruits will know very little about how the EU institutions operate when they start working in them...

The Financial Times ran an article this weekend on 'Why proper English rules OK' about the disproportionate advantage native English speakers enjoy against their non-native counterparts, also in the EU institutions.

Is it true? Yes.
Is it fair? No.
Does it need to be considered by those dealing with EU affairs? Absolutely.


So why is the matter so serious...?

In the age of Google and Facebook, being findable has become the most important asset you can have.

Websites are optimised to show up as the 1st hit in Google when specific words are searched. But what about your CV when those searching for an EU expert, a Greek translator, a consultant with experience in the European Parliament, type in those magic words into LinkedIn, a recruitment database, or EPSO's e-laureates list? Adding the right words into your profile description can make or break a job interview invitation.

The Maslow pyramid, or the hierarchy of needs, is a well known concept of the basic and higher-level needs of human beings. Did you know that the same exists for Internet users?

This week we have undergone one of the toughest days in the life of Online EU Tests (or rather our new brand, Online EU Training). Moving servers, upgrading to a new site, migrating data and fine-tuning a new system cuts into level 1 and 2 needs: internet was working for our users, but many times you could not connect, got interrupted or the system slowed down.

...

We at Arboreus are constantly experimenting. In the online world, customer feedback is an ambiguous thing: you don't see your customer's body language, tone of voice or behaviour but you can effectively measure browsing paths, email feedbacks and website analytics. The fundamental question is: how can we make your online experience better?

A challenge has come up recently in the form of usability improvements. We want to make the "flow" better so that users will need less clicks and clearer paths to find a menu, check out or download an e...

 We asked our Facebook fans why they are interested in getting an EU job and an amazing 39 answers were given. Here are the reasons why European job seekers are looking to work for the European Union in Brussels (only first names are shown for privacy) - a fascinating read!

I'M REALLY INTERESTED TO GET AN EU JOB BECAUSE...

1. " ... the salaries and benefits are excellent while the competences required and the content of the job are unclear, and there is plenty of unemployment in other sectors!" (Sophia)

2.  "‎... no one in the EU in...

Did you think EU Commissioners have an easy or safe job? Think again! Since the Lisbon Treaty entered into force, their life and moral safety is under threat: the Ukrainian orthodox Greek-Catholic Church has just issued a scathing statement...which, in our view, may even endanger Ukraine's (anyways uncertain) EU accession..!!