"My name is Maria and I am Spanish, from Madrid. I have lived in Brussels for the last 20 years and I have to say that I have very much enjoyed it since the start. Brussels is a not so big, but it is very cosmopolitan, which suits me very well. In the streets, you overhear so many languages and see so many different types of people, which strangely makes me feel at home.
Having a background as a lawyer, I have been working in DG ECHO since 2008. DG ECHO deals with Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection. Specifically, since 2016 I have been working in the directorate dealing with emergencies, first in the European Emergency Response Center (ERCC) and now dealing with the European Humanitarian Response Capacities (EHRC).  
The ERCC helps to coordinate a coherent EU response to major disasters occurring inside and outside the EU: earthquakes, conflicts, cyclones, floods, etc. The unit provides a platform for coordination within the EU institutions and Member States.  The Center also has a 24/7 duty system that coordinates with partners like the UN, international organizations, NGOs and other crises centers in the EU and the world.
Concretely, now I work as a Team Leader in the EHRC which designs, follows, and monitors DG ECHO's directly implemented operations outside the EU, especially after emergencies: transport of humanitarian cargo, passengers, establishment of warehouses for partners, regular routes for inaccessible areas in central Africa, emergency expertise, etc. 
Unfortunately, there are too many crises in the world, but what I really like about my job is that I can bring my contribution whenever disasters strike vulnerable populations, partially fighting the feeling of helplessness that we all have before them. 
If you feel this itch and like to work in an international environment, I encourage you to join us. It is also a very dynamic environment, with many dedicated colleagues driven by a shared passion to bring European solidarity to those in need.  Good and committed professionals have plenty opportunities to grow, travel, live abroad while doing a fulfilling job at the European institutions."
 

“Working in the Budget and Cohesion Unit in the General Secretariat of the Council is not all about crazy Excel tables and getting caught up in figures. It is actually a very exciting policy post! People may think that budgetary affairs are boring, but the opposite is true. We work in a very political environment where the real priorities of the EU get decided: where the EU spends the money is what really matters, and we are right at the heart of that interesting and (sometimes) exhilarating decision-making process!”

“I am currently leading a team of economists providing scientific support for digital policy initiatives. Working for the European Commission has been so far an incredible experience, both personally and professionally. From a professional perspective, it has been a real challenging intellectual journey, facing difficult requests that require a combination of analytical and problem-solving skills. However, even if these are relevant, it is necessary to complement them with soft skills such as collaboration, teamwork, communication and resilience. Personally, I’ve had the opportunity to meet some of the most interesting people I have ever met: intelligent, responsible, caring, amusing… All that in a multicultural environment where you can learn and enjoy every day, while you contribute to the greater good. Can you imagine a better place to work?”

“I have been working in the Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Seville for almost eight years. Currently I coordinate the maintenance and update of EUROMOD, a model that allows estimating the impact on households of reforms of taxes and benefits in EU Member States. Although I started as a contract agent, two years ago I managed to pass an AD6 competition and, very luckily, continue working on my previous project.

Before coming to the Commission, I was an associate professor in the University of Vigo (Galicia, Spain). Although I liked my work, I always felt the need of working closer to the policy world, and the JRC represented a unique opportunity to work at the crossroads of research and policy-making.”

“My name is Agnieszka Ruminska, I am Polish and I have been working for the Council since 2010. I was attracted to join this Institution because of the role it plays at the EU level - the Council is an essential EU decision-maker. Discovering the mechanics of the Member States’ negotiations and working every 6 months with different bosses (rotating Presidencies) has been for me an amazing experience! I started in the unit dealing with the EU General Budget and the Financial Regulation. The EU budget is like a lens where all the EU actions and programs come together - in numbers. And when it comes to the taxpayers’ money – the negotiations can be very tough! Not only among the 27 Member States as the second arm of the Budgetary Authority, the European Parliament, must agree on the numbers too. After a lengthy discussion that can last until late at night – you learn the art of compromising.

After 7 years I moved to completely different field of work: banking and financial services, which opened for me a door to a world of finance. The legislative activity at that time focused mainly on handling the legacy of the financial crisis and making sure our banks remain safe.

Currently I still work in finance – but relatively far from the political activity - I am responsible for the preparation and oversight of the implementation of the Council and the European Council budget. Although political negotiations are not part of my job anymore, I still feel responsible for making sure that the conditions for an agreement are there, and that discussions among Member States are taking place in an optimal and pleasant working environment.”

“My name is Robert and I am working in the Joint Research Centre (known internally as ‘JRC’), where I lead a small team working on Applied Environmental Economics. With a view on the EU Green Deal, we support the development of Circular Economy policies, comparing different options and providing ex-ante assessments on their market and non-market impacts. I love what I am doing because the topics keep changing and always offer new learning opportunities, and the exact same can be said about my colleagues and the working environment! If you – like me – want a job ‘with a purpose’ and one that is intellectually and personally stimulating, then you should apply!”

“Hello, my name is Katharina and since 2018 I have been working as an Economic Analyst at the European Commission’s Directorate General for Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN). Currently, I am coordinating the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plans in Member States. It is an exciting work to contribute to the implementation of NextGenerationEU, with the biggest spending programme of the European Union so far.

I am a trained economist and before joining the European Commission as an official, I worked in the public administration in Austria and later as Seconded National Expert and Contract Agent in the European Commission’s Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion (DG EMPL) on the implementation of the European Semester and the European Social Fund.

What makes the work at the European Commission so stimulating and motivating is that I can make a difference by contributing to policy-making with my analytical skills and by creating solutions for European citizens. On top this, I very much enjoy working in such a dynamic and international environment.

Check out the EPSO website and apply!”

“My career as an economist at the European Commission started at the Joint Research Centre, back in 2010, as a regional and innovation economist. In 2013, I joined the Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs, where I oversaw the Research and Innovation dossier and of research activities in the field of structural reforms and contributed to the European Semester policy cycle. In 2016, I moved to Rome as European Semester Officer at the Representation of the European Commission to Italy, a bridge between Brussels and Italian National Stakeholders. In 2019, I took a leave and worked as Head of European Affairs at Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, the Italian National Promotional Bank. In 2022, I re-joined the Joint Research Centre. Here, I am the team leader of the European Semester Project and I coordinate JRC’s scientific contribution to the European Commission's monitoring of Member States’ economic and fiscal reforms.

All this to say that my career path shows how heterogeneous and interesting the career of an economist at the European Commission can be, and it starts by applying!”

“I first crossed the door of a European Commission building back in 2005, as a visiting young economic policy expert from Greece. EU economic policies have been in the centre of my professional activities, and over time, working for the EU has become one of my central professional targets. I passed the EPSO competition in 2018 and now I work as an economic analyst in DG ECFIN. My main responsibility is the economic surveillance of Member-States and in particular their macroeconomic and budgetary performance and compliance with the commonly agreed rules.

Working for the European Commission is demanding but also a unique experience. It is not only the friendly and empowering work environment but also the fact that you interact and work with a diversified crowd of very competent professionals on a daily basis. It is above all the inspiration from being part of an institution that materialises the vision of peace and prosperity in Europe. It is also the motivation from working in the interest of more than 400 million people and the challenge of making the life of all of us a little bit better through our work.”

“Since 2021, I’ve worked as an economic analyst/modeller at the Fiscal Policy Analysis unit of the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the scientific service of the European Commission. I lead the development and usage of models to analyse consumption taxes (incl. ‘green’ ones). My team provides scientific evidence to support Commission policies like the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, the Review of the Energy Taxation Directive or the European Semester, the macroeconomic surveillance framework of member states, during which latest cycle, we assessed the measures supporting households against the 2022 inflation shock.

I joined the Commission in 2012 and studied the impact on jobs and the environment of global value chains, productivity, and the digital economy. I have provided scientific background for Commission official policy documents in Corporate Taxation, International Trade and Internal Market, Productivity, Energy or Emissions. I often represent the JRC in groups and task forces of the Commission, G20 and UN.

Before joining the Commission, I was a visiting researcher at Tilburg University (the Netherlands). When doing a European PhD in Economics, I worked for the Andalusian Regional Statistical Institute and the Spanish Trade and Economic Office (Embassy of Spain in Chile). I lectured Quantitative Methods for more than ten years at Pablo de Olavide University (Seville, Spain), where I am Associate Professor on special leave to serve the Union.”