Internship: Traineeship at the EU Council

Location: Brussels, Belgium

Dates: 1 February to 30 June (first period) and 1 September to 31 January (second period).

Participating countries: EU

Apply here: application form

Number of participants: 20

Organizer: General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union

Contact: traineeships@consilium.europa.eu, +32 22813677

Deadline to apply: 28 September 2020

Salary: non-paid

Traineeship at the EU Council

At a glance

The GSC offers around 20 unpaid traineeships per year. These traineeships are for third, fourth or fifth year university students who have to do a compulsory training period as part of their course.

Also students who are required to do research for a thesis or a doctorate may apply.

Traineeships are split into 2 different periods, each lasting from 2 to 5 months:

  • 1 February to 30 June (first period)
  • 1 September to 31 January (second period)

There are other types of traineeships in the Council, you can choose a traineeship which is of interest to you:

Application

Applications are open for a limited period, please see the Apply now box on the top of the page. You must apply using the online system. During registration you will be asked to upload:

  • an official certificate from your education establishment certifying either that you are required to complete a traineeship as part of your studies or for access to a profession, or that you are required to do research for a thesis or a doctorate

The application form is available in English and French. You must have a thorough knowledge of one of these two languages in order to apply.

Supporting documents do not need to be sent with the application form. You will be asked for them if you are offered a traineeship. You will not be admitted unless you supply the complete file. You will have to deliver proof for all information in your application form (i.e. education, professional experience, language knowledge) if you are selected. Therefore you should only include information in the application form for which you have supporting documents.

Address in your profile

Please ensure you notify the traineeships office by email if your address changes. This address will be used both in the traineeship offer and for the administrative processing of your file, and will be considered as your place of recruitment.

Emails from the traineeships office or “Traineeship” often end up in the spam folder, please check it regularly for incoming messages from “Traineeship”.

What do you need if you are successful?

  • a legible copy of your passport or identity card
  • a copy of your diplomas or official certificates (where necessary)
  • proof of your professional experience (where necessary)
  • proof or a substantiated declaration of your knowledge of the languages stated on the application form

Successful candidates

If you are successful, you will receive an offer by email stating the period of your traineeship and the department where you will work. You will be asked to supply certain documents by e-mail to support the information in the application form.

After verification of the supporting documents, the traineeships office will send you a traineeship agreement for signature.

The GSC does not sign any document (“convention de stage” or “placement agreement”) with a third party (e.g. your university). A traineeship agreement is signed by the GSC and the trainee.

Unsuccessful candidates

Non-selected candidates will be informed by email after the selection procedure has ended.

If you are interested in a future traineeship at the General Secretariat of the Council of the EU and still satisfy the conditions for admission you can reapply for the next traineeship period.