Economist

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/RTD/517141)

Economist

in DG RTD – European Commission

Job title: Economist
Domain: Science & Research
Where: Unit RTD.G.1 – Chief Economist Unit – Common R&I Strategy & Foresight service, Brussels
Function Group: FG IV
Contract Type: 3b
Express your interest until: 22.06.2026 – 12.00 (noon, Brussels time)

WE ARE

The Chief Economist Unit (RTD.G1) of DG Research and Innovation, a group of 20 enthusiastic and
motivated colleagues, who enjoy working together. We contribute to the formulation of evidence-
based policies on research and innovation (R&I) to increase Europe’s prosperity and well-being. We
produce targeted analyses and evidence on the contribution of R&I to the Commission’s policies, to
help minimise trade-offs between economic, social and environmental objectives. We focus on R&I
investments as well as reforms and regulation in the field of R&I. We also lead the foresight
process for R&I policy and coordinate foresight across the Framework Programme. We also act as
the economic service of the DG R&I and the Common Policy Centre. As such, we work closely with
numerous partners: Member States, business sector, other international organisations, research
centres and think tanks.

WE PROPOSE

You will contribute to the work of the unit on economic analysis, and to the collection, processing,
analysis and dissemination of R&I statistics, data and indicators with a policy purpose. You will
contribute to the preparation and dissemination of specific economic analyses, with a focus on
investment, technology, productivity, and economic impact of policies. You will also be responsible
for the preparation of analytical input for other DGs, the Cabinet, and for the analytical work and
the flagship publications of the Unit, such as the Science Research and Innovation Performance in
the EU, and the working paper series. The job implies also interaction with external stakeholders
(research centres think tanks, other international organisations: the European Central Bank (ECB),
the European Investment Bank (EIB), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)). You will work in a dynamic,
positive and rewarding environment.

Your responsibilities:

• Provide quantitative economic analyses on a wide range of R&I-related topics and

contribute to the publications of the team;

(Reference: Call for interest EC/RTD/517141)

• Ensure the link between the economic analyses and the main policy initiatives of the

Commission;

• Collect, analyse and validate data, including derived data and estimates, projections, graphs

and figures;

• Advice the rest of the DG and the Senior management on key findings of our analytical

work;

• Monitor and analyse external sources of information on economic issues and produce

relevant output for the DG;

• Prepare and give presentations and speeches on the activities of the team and DG RTD in
meetings, conferences and workshops as well as contribute to the valorisation of the
results of the analyses;

• Attend and represent the unit in meetings, conferences and workshops of interest;
• Ensure close relations with other Commission services, Member States, think tanks, and

other international organisations (ECB, EIB, IMF, WB, OECD, WEF, etc…)

WE LOOK FOR

A highly motivated team player with proven experience in economic and econometric analysis. The
ideal candidate should be able to apply quantitative methods (statistics and econometrics) to
address meaningful and policy-relevant research questions. S/he should have a strong sense of the
political relevance of the major economic questions, and work with the team to address them with
sound economic analyses. A positive attitude and the capacity to work well in a team are
fundamental qualities, as well as good writing, analytical and communication skills, in English. An
advanced degree in economics, statistics, or econometrics, would be an advantage, as well as good
AI and programming skills (main statistical tools).

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.

1. your CV
Please send these documents to [email protected] by the publication
deadline indicating the call for interest reference EC/RTD/517141 in the subject.

No applications will be accepted after the publication deadline.

(Reference: Call for interest EC/RTD/517141)

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/RTD/517141)

 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 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/RTD/517141)

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/RTD/517141)