Trainee Defence Research Support

EDA - European Defence Agency

Brussels, Belgium

THE TRAINEESHIP

The traineeship will be within the RTI Coordination Team which is responsible for transversal and cross-directorate tasks. The team is involved in vertical as well as horizontal activities such as the Overarching Strategic Research Agenda (OSRA), the Action Plan on Emerging and Disruptive Technologies (EDTs), R&T aspects of the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD), the R&T Ad Hoc project portfolio in close cooperation with the Capability Technology Groups (CapTechs), the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in Defence, as well as the organisation of meetings and events within the remit of the activities of the RTI Directorate.

The traineeship will be focused on the coordination of defence research, transversal cooperation, data analysis and reporting.

TASKS AND DUTIES

Under the supervision of a trainee advisor, the trainee will contribute to the tasks of the RTI Coordination Team for the following activities:

secretarial support and data analysis tasks related to OSRA, Ad Hoc project portfolio, and other activities of the RTI Coordination Team;
perform desktop research on topics related to the European defence R&T landscape and on Emerging Disruptive Technologies (EDTs);
support the organisation of meetings and events under the auspices of the RTI Directorate;
support the preparation and follow-up of operational workshops with experts as well as political meetings with Member States;
support the RTI directorate in streamlining operations;
take on additional tasks as required in the interest of the service.

A typical day at work includes:

involvement in meetings relevant to the RTI Coordination Team;
performing desktop research, i.e. on Emerging and Disruptive Technologies;
support the portfolio management of defence R&T projects, i.e. with data analysis;
drafting reports and other material related to EDA work strands;
updates and analysis of databases, i.e. key performance indicators of the directorate;
supporting the organisation of operational and political meetings;
drafting minutes/operational conclusions of meetings;
involvement in research and innovation activities, i.e. with the CapTechs;
liaise with Ministries of Defence on specific matters (i.e. on the Ad Hoc procedures).

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Project outputs & learning outcomes:

The trainee will get familiar with and will acquire practical experience in drafting policy papers, data analysis, organisation of international meetings, and working in an international/multinational defence environment.

The trainee will be involved in OSRA, the only defence research prioritisation officially validated at EU level, the Action Plan for Emerging and Disruptive Technologies, as well as linkages of research, technology, and innovation to defence capability development.

The trainee will also get more familiar with the way of working of EU bodies and will gain knowledge in defence research prioritisation and organisation, as well as in research portfolio management.

This could be an excellent basis for future work in European bodies, in national administrations or in industry involved in defence research.

Technical/Soft skills to be acquired:

From this experience, the trainee will gain:

ability to work in a team in a multicultural environment;
accuracy and attention to detail;
very good organisational and communication skills;
affinity with security and defence;
research and analytical skills;
quantitative and qualitative data analysis;
report preparation and writing skills;
understanding of project management principles and operational analysis;
time management;
multi-stakeholder relations/management;
organisation of (international) meetings and events;
ability to work effectively in an EU environment;
organisation of defence research.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

To be considered eligible to take part in this selection procedure, on the closing date for the submission of applications candidates must satisfy all the eligibility criteria as specified below:

be a national of a Member State participating in the Agency;
be entitled to their full rights as citizens;
produce the appropriate character references as to their suitability for the performance of their duties (extract from the “judicial record” or certificate of good conduct will be requested prior to recruitment);
be physically fit to perform their duties;
have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1 oral and written) of one of the languages of the participating Member States and a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2 oral and written) of another of these languages to the extent necessary to discharge their duties;
have no personal interest (financial, family relationship, or other) which could be in conflict with disinterested discharge of their duties within the Agency;
hold, or be in a position to obtain, a valid Personnel Security Clearance Certificate (national or EU PSC at SECRET UE/EU SECRET level);
have completed at least the first (minimum three-year) cycle of a higher education course (university education) and obtained a full degree or its equivalent by the closing date for applications;
have not previously undertaken for more than six weeks a paid or unpaid traineeship or any kind of employment in another EU institution, Agency, or body.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Only applications meeting all essential selection criteria will be assessed.

The pre-selection of candidates to be invited to an interview is based on a comparative assessment of all applications against the selection criteria and additional assets.

It should be highlighted that the selection criteria constitute a minimum threshold and that only candidates considered as most suitable are invited to an interview.

Essential:

On the closing date for the submission of applications candidates must satisfy all the essential criteria as specified below:

a University degree (or equivalent academic degree) in at least one of the following fields: Science, Engineering, Political Science, Law, European Studies, or similar;
advanced IT skills, particularly in MS Office applications (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) and SharePoint (or database notions), and the ability to work on collaborative and AI-supported office applications (Microsoft Office 365, SharePoint, Copilot, Dynamics, etc.);
a very good command of written and spoken English (minimum level C1).