Supports available for EU job applications
The Department of Foreign Affairs offers Irish candidates support at all stages of the EU recruitment process. To help candidates prepare for the preliminary tests, we provide training packs in partnership with EU Training – please see more information on this below.
The Department also arranges free information and training sessions to help Irish candidates prepare ahead of upcoming EU Concours. These sessions are open to all Irish citizens who have registered for a specific competition, or those who intend to do so.
You can join our mailing list to be notified of any upcoming webinars. To join our mailing list, please contact us.
While every effort has been made to ensure the integrity and accuracy of all referenced material, candidates should be aware that the Department of Foreign Affairs can take no responsibility for the information provided by any external source, including those listed below. Nor should the listing of any text or firm be considered an endorsement of same.
Preparation for the EPSO reasoning tests
The Department offers support packs for the EPSO Competition Reasoning Tests in partnership with EU Training, a leading provider of practice material for EPSO tests.
If you would like to avail of these supports, which includes practice material for the numerical and abstract reasoning tests as well as verbal reasoning and language comprehension tests, please email us requesting a pack along with the following documents:
- A scanned copy of your Irish Passport;
- Proof that you have submitted a full and valid application (a scan or screenshot of the completed application page will suffice).
The Department also offers interview preparation for applicants successful in the initial stages of the application process.
There are many books available on how best to prepare for the competition process. The following texts are some of the best known:
- The Ultimate EU Test Book (Administrators) 2024 edition, Andras Baneth: Covers the new competition process all the way through to the establishment of the Reserve List − the list of laureates eligible for recruitment to permanent posts by the EU institutions. It has practical advice on how to maximise your chances of success and hundreds of sample test questions, explaining the shortcuts to answer questions quickly and the common errors that candidates make.
- Numerical Reasoning MCQ for the European Institution Competitions, Emmanuel Hetru and Jean - Luc Bizeur: Methodology, strategies and practice tests for numerical reasoning skills.
- Verbal Reasoning MCQ for the European Institution Competitions, Emmanuel Hetru and Jean - Luc Bizeur: Methodology, strategies and practice tests for verbal reasoning skills
- Abstract Reasoning MCQ for European Institution Competitions, Emmanuel Hetru and Benoît Crepin: Methodology, strategies and practice tests for abstract reasoning ability.
- Situational Judgement Test for European Institution Competitions, Jean - Luc Bizeur, Pascal and Isabelle Maen Farchy: Provides information, strategies and exercises for the behavioural test in the first round
- Ultimate Psychometric Tests, Mike Bryon: Provides over 1000 practice exercises in the field of numerical, verbal and abstract reasoning ability.
Supports for the Irish language
The Ultimate EU Test Book as Gaeilge
The University of Galway, with the support of the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media, has translated the Ultimate EU Test Book into Irish.
This will be very useful to those who are taking part in the EPSO recruitment competitions and using Irish.
Please note that this is the 2020 version of the EU Test Book and therefore does not cover the latest competition model. The 2024 Ultimate EU Test Book will be available in Irish in due course.