EPSO’s 2nd Diversity Survey report is an important step forward in understanding and promoting diversity among candidates to EU careers.

Based on more than 6 400 replies received via voluntary self-declarations of the respondents, the report covers the key characteristics of EPSO’s current applicant pool.

You can access the full survey report as well as a two-page flyer that summarises the key findings of the diversity survey at a glance.

What is the survey about?

This second survey builds on the insights from EPSO’s 2021 pilot survey and provides a clearer picture of who is applying to EU career opportunities. It also helps us measure progress over time and evaluate the impact of our efforts to reach out to more diverse communities.

What did we learn?

Despite inherent limitations such as voluntary participation and self-declaration, the 2024 results largely confirm earlier trends while highlighting some encouraging changes — notably in terms of ethnicity, socio-economic background, and disability.

In summary:

• The typical EPSO candidate remains broadly similar to 2021, but with some positive shifts in key diversity dimensions.
• The age of candidates has risen compared to the 1st survey in the ‘over 50’ age category, where the percentage increased from 12% in 2021 to 22% in 2024). This is a result of running mostly specialist competitions requiring significant work experience.
• We observed an increase in candidates declaring a specific ethnic background, from 8.8% in 2021 to 16.8% in 2024.
• Respondents from underprivileged socio-economic backgrounds rose from 19.5% to 23.2%.
• Candidates with a disability or medical condition increased from 5.1% to 7%.

These trends, along with shifts in family status, may partly reflect the nature of competitions during the survey period. Despite its limitations, and while indicative, these insights are valuable in the absence of a formal diversity monitoring system and will help inform our ongoing work to foster equality and diversity.

The findings from this survey will help shape EPSO’s future endeavours to increase the diversity of its candidate pool to better reflect the diversity of the Member States.

EPSO thanks all respondents who participated in the survey!