Traineeships at the General Secretariat of the Council in Europe

Every year, there are around 100 places available for paid traineeships, around 20 places for unpaid compulsory traineeships and up to 6 places for paid trainees with a disability.

What can you expect from your traineeship?

A traineeship at the General Secretariat of the Council (GSC) offers:

• first-hand experience of the work of the GSC
• EU knowledge – insight into the processes and policies of the EU institutions
• an opportunity to contribute to the Council’s day-to-day business
• the chance to work in a multicultural, multilingual and multi-ethnic environment
• an opportunity to share your fresh point of view and the knowledge you have acquired during your studies 

Important information: the organisation of traineeships is currently affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Find out more, by reading the section on COVID-19 implications for traineeships.

What does a traineeship involve?

Depending on the needs of the service, your daily work would generally be equivalent to that of junior administrator officials at the beginning of their career, such as:

• preparing meetings and drafting minutes
• attending meetings of Council preparatory bodies and Coreper (Committee of the Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the member states to the EU)
• researching on a particular project
• translating documents
• compiling documentation, writing reports

Trainees will also be invited to take part in a study programme that includes visits and conferences at other EU institutions in Brussels, Luxembourg and Strasbourg.

Learn more about the details of the traineeship, the tasks involved and the domain in which you may find yourself working should you be successful

Official website