MAKE A DIFFERENCE – JOIN THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Do you want to help shape the future of the European Union? Make the planet greener,
promote a fairer society, or support businesses and innovation across the EU? Then come and
work for the European Commission where you can really make a difference!

Commission staff are a diverse group of people, who are motivated to help make Europe – and
the world – a better place. They come from the 27 Member States of the European Union.
Different nationalities, backgrounds, languages and cultures make the Commission a vibrant and
inclusive place to work.

WE OFFER GREAT JOBS AND GREAT WORKING CONDITIONS:

•

Interesting and challenging positions with plenty of opportunities for training and
acquiring new skills and competencies throughout your whole career

• Opportunities to move between different policy areas throughout your career
• A package of flexible working conditions including the possibility of teleworking – we

care about your work-life balance

• A competitive financial package, including comprehensive healthcare, accident and

pension schemes

• A multilingual, multicultural workplace where personal and career development are

strongly promoted

• Multilingual schools for your children

We recruit from a wide range of backgrounds and actively promote diversity and
inclusion:

We do not only recruit political scientists and lawyers but are also looking for all kinds of
profiles, including scientists, linguists, IT experts, data analysts and economists, as well as drivers
and engineers.

We are committed to equal opportunities and to fostering a rich, diverse and inclusive working
environment. We aim for our workforce to be representative of European society and strongly
welcome applications from all qualified candidates. We actively seek to create a workplace where
each staff member feels valued and respected, can give their best and can develop to their full
potential.

To promote diversity and establish a geographically balanced pool of candidates, we strongly
encourage applicants from Member States which are currently underrepresented in the European
Commission workforce to apply. These Member States are currently Austria, the Czech
Republic, Denmark, the Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg,
Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Sweden1. Recruitment will however remain strictly based on the
merits of all applicants and no positions will be reserved for nationals of any specific Member
State.

STAFF RECRUITED ON CONTRACTS

In addition to permanent officials, the European Commission offers non-permanent positions.
There are two categories of non-permanent staff:

•

temporary agents are recruited to fill vacant positions for a set amount of time or
to perform highly specialised tasks.

• contract agents may provide additional capacity in specialised fields where an

insufficient number of officials is available or carry out a number of administrative or
manual tasks. They are generally recruited for fixed-term contracts (maximum 6 years in
any EU Institution), but in some cases they can be offered contracts for an indefinite
duration (in offices, agencies, delegations or representations).

For more information on different staff categories

1 Please note that the list of underrepresented Member States may be subject to future amendment based on potential
data changes over time.

(Reference: Call for interest EC/2026/RTD/498516)

Policy Officer

in DG RTD – European Commission

Job title: Policy Officer
Domain: Science and Research
Where: Unit A.2 – ERA, Spreading Excellence and Research Careers, Brussels
Function Group: FG IV
Contract Type: 3b
Express your interest until: 16.08.2026 – 12.00 (noon, Brussels time)

WE ARE

The objective of the unit RTD.A2 – ERA, Spreading Excellence and Research Careers is to bring
together the actors (Commission, Member States, stakeholders and associated countries) and
policies that contribute to establishing a single market for knowledge, allowing for the free flow of
researchers, data and ideas, encouraging national investments and addressing the R&I disparities
among EU countries. The unit is organised in three teams covering European Research Area (ERA),
research careers and spreading excellence (widening).

The ERA team is responsible for ERA Governance (the ERA Forum, ERAC and the ERA Monitoring
Mechanism) and the design and implementation of the ERA policy agenda in order to deliver on the
four objectives of the new ERA: prioritising investments and reforms, improving access to
excellence, translating R&I results into the economy and deepening the ERA.

The Research Careers team works to make research careers in Europe attractive and sustainable at
every stage, from early inspiration in schools to retirement. It develops policies and practical
initiatives for researchers, the institutions that hire and support them, and national policymakers.
Its work strengthens researchers’ skills, working and employment conditions, career development,
and mobility across the European Union, while helping Europe attract and retain research talent
from around the world.

The unit is also responsible for promoting the Spreading of Excellence and coordinating the
preparation and implementation of the work programme on “Widening participation and
strengthening the European Research Area” (WIDERA).

WE PROPOSE

Unit RTD.A2 – ERA, Spreading Excellence and Research Careers is seeking to hire one policy officer
working on ERA policies and programmes with a focus on research careers, an interesting and
challenging position with the following main tasks:

• Contribute to the development of European Research Area policies, in particular related to

research careers and the European labour market for researchers.

(Reference: Call for interest EC/2026/RTD/498516)

• Develop policies and initiatives that make research careers in Europe more attractive,

sustainable, and competitive at all career stages.

• Contribute to the implementation of the European framework for research careers and the

new Charter for Researchers.

• Contribute to the ERA Policy Agenda Structural Action on Research Careers by identifying,
consulting, and involving relevant stakeholders in policy development and implementation.
• Design measures that strengthen researchers’ skills, career development opportunities, and

working and employment conditions.

• Promote researcher mobility and support a more open, integrated, and accessible European

research labour market.

• Support policies and initiatives that help Europe attract, develop, and retain international

research talent.

• Collaborate with higher education institutions, research organisations, Member States, and

other stakeholders on research career policies.

• Contribute to stronger synergies between the European Research Area and the European

Higher Education Area.

• Monitor, analyse, and assess policy developments and activities relevant to researchers and

research-performing organisations.

• Engage and coordinate with the other Commission services concerned, as well as the

Research Executive Agency;

• Organise meetings and workshops with relevant actors, such as Member States,

stakeholders and external experts;

• Provide strategic advice and prepare policy papers, technical documents, briefings, reports,

and presentations for the Commissioner and senior management;

• Represent the Commission and Directorate-General in external and internal events and

fora.

The colleague we recruit will also have the possibility to work on other files of the Research Careers
team and ERA team, depending on their interests and competencies.

WE LOOK FOR

We are looking for a committed and motivated colleague with knowledge and understanding of EU
research and innovation policy and work programmes. Strong coordination skills, a good
understanding of research careers, the ERA, Horizon Europe and higher education policy, strong
analytical, drafting and briefing skills, and experience in dealing with stakeholders are essential.
The candidate should also have a service-oriented attitude and a problem-solving mindset. You
should be able to:

•

•
•

communicate in a clear and structured way, both orally and in writing, in particular in
English;
familiarise yourself quickly with the relevant IT applications and procedures;
train and guide other team members and colleagues involved in the work programme
tasks;

• work effectively with colleagues across the organisation and at all levels;
• demonstrate sound judgement and an ability to identify potential issues and to propose

solutions.

(Reference: Call for interest EC/2026/RTD/498516)

HOW TO EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST?

With a view to guaranteeing equal access to all, the Commission recruits from an open database of
spontaneous applications. The present call for interests aims at helping the recruiters to identify
potentially interested candidates within this database.

In practice, to express your interest, please follow the subsequent two steps:

1.

If you are not registered yet in the open EPSO database, please do so at the following
address: CAST Permanent. Please select under selection procedures for contract agent the
CAST permanent profile that best suits your education and experience.
2. You should send your documents in a single pdf in the following order:

2. completed application form.
these documents

1. your CV
Please send
the
publication deadline indicating the call for interest reference EC/2026/RTD/498516 in the
subject.

to RTD-A2-CA-APPLICATIONS@ec.europa.eu by

No applications will be accepted after the publication deadline.

(Reference: Call for interest EC/2026/RTD/498516)

ANNEX

1. Selection

 Am I eligible to apply?

You must meet the following eligibility criteria when you validate your application:

Our rules provide that you can only be recruited as a contract agent at the European Commission if
you:

General criteria:

• Are a citizen of a Member State of the EU and enjoy full rights as a citizen;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service;
• Are physically fit to perform the duties linked to the position;
• Produce the appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of the

duties.

• Have passed an EPSO CAST in the relevant Function Group for this position. At the stage of

the application, it is sufficient to be registered in the EPSO CAST data base.

Qualifications:

(a) Have a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies of at least

three years attested by a diploma.

Only qualifications issued or recognised as equivalent by EU Member State authorities (e.g. by the
Ministry of Education) will be accepted.

Languages:

• have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1) of one of the 24 official languages of the

EU2

• AND have a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2)3 of a second official language of

the EU, to the extent necessary for the performance of the duties.

2 The official languages of the European Union are: BG (Bulgarian), CS (Czech), DA (Danish), DE (German), EL
(Greek), EN (English), ES (Spanish), ET (Estonian), FI (Finnish), FR (French), GA (Irish), HR (Croatian), HU
(Hungarian), IT (Italian), LT (Lithuanian), LV (Latvian), MT (Maltese), NL (Dutch), PL (Polish), PT (Portuguese),
RO (Romanian), SK (Slovak), SL (Slovenian), SV (Swedish).
3 For details on language levels, please see the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages
(https://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/en/resources/european-language-levels-cefr).

(Reference: Call for interest EC/2026/RTD/498516)

 What about the selection steps?

The selecting unit chooses from the EPSO database4 candidates with the appropriate profile and
invites them to an interview. For the interview a selection panel is set-up to assess the best
candidates. Due to the large volume of applications that we may receive only candidates selected
for the interview will be notified.

For operational reasons and in order to complete the selection procedure as quickly as possible in
the interest of the candidates and of the institution, the selection procedure will be carried out in
English and possibly in a second official language.

2. Recruitment

The candidate selected for recruitment will be requested to provide documentary evidence in
support of the statements made in the database and, where relevant, the call for interest.

The successful candidate will be required to undergo a mandatory pre-recruitment medical check-
up carried out by the Commission.

 Type of contract and working conditions

The place of employment will be in Brussels.

The successful candidate will be engaged as a contract agent under Article 3(b) of the
Conditions of Employment of Other Servants, in function group FG IV. General information on
Contract Agents can be found at this link.

The grade or proposed grade range, as well as the step in that grade, will be defined on the basis
of the candidates’ previous professional experience, in accordance with Commission Decision
C(2017)6760 laying down the criteria applicable to classification in step on engagement.

The duration of the first contract will be of 1 year. Subject to the interest of the service, the
contract may be renewed one or more times up to a maximum duration of 6 years.

The duration of the renewal(s) will be defined according to the General Implementing Rules in force
at that moment (currently, Commission Decision C(2017)6760 on policies for the engagement and
use of contract agents).

4 Therefore, candidates who did not pass already a CAST on the level Function Group IV, should register their
profile at this address: https://eu-careers.europa.eu/en/Cast-Permanent

(Reference: Call for interest EC/2026/RTD/498516)

Contract agents recruited in Function Group IV have to successfully complete a 9-month
probationary period.

The pay of staff members consists of a basic salary supplemented with specific allowances,
including, where applicable, expatriation and family allowances. The provisions guiding the
calculation of these allowances can be consulted in the Conditions of Employment of Other
Servants. As a member of staff of the European institutions, your pay is subject to a tax raised by
those institutions.

The European Commission applies a policy of equal opportunities and non-discrimination in
accordance with Article 1d of the Staff Regulations.

Should you need further information on working conditions, please refer to Working conditions and
benefits of EU Careers.

For information related to Data Protection, please see the Specific Privacy Statement under “7.
Information to data subjects on their rights”, to find your rights and how to exercise them in
addition to the privacy statement, which summarises the processing of your data.

(Reference: Call for interest EC/2026/RTD/498516)