Opportunities for international experiences for young people in Croatia are often limited due to their financial capabilities, which is why paid internships sound very attractive to many. Therefore, the chance for such an internship in the European Parliament should be seized.
Currently, applications are open for internships for the next year – the last day interested candidates can try their luck is October 15. Young people from all over Europe will be filling out applications during this period and competing for desirable internship positions – five months of paid experience in the European Parliament next year – from the beginning of March until the end of July.
The purpose of these internships is to enable individuals with higher education to expand the knowledge acquired during their studies and to familiarize themselves with the activities of the European Union, specifically the European Parliament. Thus, graduates, or at least bachelor’s degree holders, must meet only a few conditions – be of legal age, EU citizens, have an excellent command of one of the official languages of the Union (that is, any of the languages spoken in the Union, including Croatian), and must not have previously completed an internship or work funded by the European Union budget. It is important to emphasize that there is no upper age limit for applications, meaning that those who graduated long ago can also apply.
High Competition The financial conditions of the internship are such that they sound too good to be true for many in Croatia – a stipend of around 1200 euros per month, which can be slightly higher as it adjusts to the living costs of the country where the person is interning. The European Parliament covers health insurance costs, and interns who are married or have children are entitled to an additional 240 euros per month. Considering that accommodation in Brussels or Luxembourg can be found for ‘Zagreb’ prices starting at 300 euros, many find temporary internships very attractive.
So what kind of internship is this? The internship in the European Parliament, the only directly elected body of the European Union, is funded by the Robert Schuman Foundation. The foundation is aptly named after the statesman who played a key role in building post-war Europe and transatlantic integration, and, as in most similar programs, it is quite difficult to secure a position. Last year, 8465 candidates applied for the internship, and 431 were accepted. This means that for each position, 20 candidates competed. It is important to know that the internship is limited to five months and this period cannot be extended. There is no way to secure a permanent job through good work or effort, as permanent positions are obtained through a more complicated procedure via EPSO (European Personnel Selection Office). Of course, not everything is black and white, as there is a possibility that an intern does an excellent job, successfully passes the EPSO selection process, and then gets hired by their former boss – which is what ambitious interns aim for. But the simple scenario where someone comes to intern and then stays to work is simply not possible.
Pre-selected Departments This type of internship is divided into two main types – general and journalism direction. Candidates for the general direction can come from any field, while those for journalism scholarships must prove professional experience based on published works, membership in a journalists’ association, or qualifications obtained in journalism.
Applications for internships are submitted exclusively via an electronic form available on the European Parliament’s website. It is recommended not to fill out the application close to the deadline as there is a risk of technical problems due to high website traffic.
Candidates already specify in their application which two departments they would like to intern in, most often in those related to their field of education. In addition to the departments of the Parliament in Brussels and Luxembourg, candidates can also apply to work in one of the information offices of the European Parliament in one of the EU member states, but in that case, they need to speak the language of that country. The selection process is strongly linked to this choice as candidates’ applications are sent only to the two departments they expressed interest in. Thus, departments that wish to accept interns choose from those who specifically want to work there.
Therefore, when submitting an application, it is wise to choose the main directorates that match the candidate’s profile, so it is good to study the pages of the European Parliament’s General Secretariat beforehand. Although it may seem that it would be good to apply to ‘less popular’ departments to increase chances, the materials from the European Parliament state that this does not really work as smaller departments accept many fewer interns.
On the official website, it states that the selection of interns depends on the professional experience required to perform tasks in a department – so it is difficult to determine the exact criteria by which interns are selected. In a situation where the number of unemployed youth in Europe is increasingly concerning, with Croatia being in an unfortunate third place, it is expected that many from various countries will try to seize this opportunity and apply regardless of whether they have professional experience.
