Interpretation Closing in 7 days

Administrative Support Agent - European Commission (AST-SC1, Brussels)

Grade AST-SC1
Contract Type Temporary Agent
Salary Range €3,292 - €3,725/month
Deadline 30 July 2026

About this position

The summary below is published by European Commission on the official vacancy notice. Our own analysis — salary realism, comparable openings, career trajectory, language profile — follows further down the page.

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 jobs 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…

Excerpt shown; read the full notice on the official page. The structured breakdown below covers the key facts.

Key responsibilities

According to the vacancy notice, the role centres on the following duties:

  • Assess needs and undertake recruitment of Auxiliary Conference Interpreters (ACIs) in a cost effective manner
  • Manage ACI contracts
  • Act as leave manager for staff interpreters
  • Help monitor resources and their availability
  • Maintain contacts with various stakeholders, including meeting organisers, interpreters and colleagues in other SCIC services
  • Process staff interpreters' absence requests and work patterns
  • Contribute to forecast ACI recruitment needs
  • Take tasks related to time management of interpreters

Are you eligible?

Check these requirements from the notice before investing time in an application:

  • Education: Post-secondary education attested by a diploma, or secondary education attested by a diploma giving access to post-secondary education
  • Experience: Appropriate professional experience of at least three years; experience with provision of interpretation services in the context of the EU Institutions and in particular in the recruitment of freelance interpreters is an asset
  • Languages: English, French
  • Key skills: Excellent organisational skills, Ability to work autonomously, Data analysis skills, Good communication and interpersonal skills, Ability to deliver high-quality results, Ability to work within tight deadlines
  • Eligibility: 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; physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post; produce appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of the duties

Selection process

The notice describes the following selection steps:

  • Submit CV and completed application form in a single PDF

Contract and working arrangements

Contract duration: Temporary agent contract.

Working arrangements: Flexible working conditions including the possibility of teleworking; located in Brussels.

Hiring unit: Unit SCIC.B.2 - Programming of Interpretation, Directorate-General Interpretation (DG SCIC).

Position details

Reference
SCIC/COM/2026/1450
Directorate-General
SCIC – Interpretation
Vacancy Notice
Download PDF
Last Verified
23 July 2026

Position overview

This is the official EU Careers listing for Administrative Support Agent at European Commission based in Brussels at the AST-SC1 grade level (Temporary Agent). The vacancy reference is SCIC/COM/2026/1450. It is hosted by SCIC – Interpretation, the Directorate-General responsible for this policy area. The role falls under the Interpretation domain.

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 jobs 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. (Selection reference SCIC/COM/2026/1450)

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, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Sweden 1. 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.

For more information ec.europa.eu/work-with-us

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

> 1Please note that the list of underrepresented Member States may be subject to future amendment based on potential data changes over time.

(Selection reference SCIC/COM/2026/1450)

# Administrative Support Agent - ACI Recruitment

# Directorate-General Interpretation (DG SCIC) of the European Commission

Selection reference: SCIC/COM/2026/1450

Domain: Interpretation

Where : Unit SCIC.B.2 - „Programming of Interpretation“, Brussels

Staff category and Function Group : Temporary agent 2b – Administrative agent

Grade range: AST/SC1-2

Publication deadline : 30.07.2026 - 12.00 (Brussels time)

WE ARE

The Directorate-General for Interpretation (SCIC) facilitates the EU’s democratic decision-making

process by providing high quality conference interpretation to EU institutions, bodies and agencies

and by delivering corporate conference organisation and meeting room management services

across the Commission.

Directorate B (Interpretation Services Management and Professional Support) manages provision of

interpretation in EU institutions by i) helping attract talent and train future interpreters ii)

programming teams of staff and freelance interpreters to meetings serviced by DG SCIC, iii)

ensuring client interface and support to interpreters with documentation and terminology and iv)

administering the interinstitutional pool of freelance interpreters. Unit B2, in charge of

Programming of Interpretation, coordinates and manages the provision of interpretation in

meetings of the Commission, the European Council, the Council of the EU, the European Economic

and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions as well as other agencies and bodies of the

European Union.

The unit is located in Brussels. It is a central unit in the DG interacting with a wide range of

interlocutors, be it externally with our customer Institutions or internally with other units within

Directorate B, with the Interpreters Directorate, the Resources and corporate services Directorate,

interpreters themselves and staff representatives.

The unit is currently staffed with 29 colleagues and a group of interpreters providing ad-hoc

assistance. The Head of Unit is supported by a Deputy Head of Unit, and three Heads of Sector.

Within Unit B2, the ACI recruitment sector plays a central role in contributing to ensure availability

of a sufficient number of interpreters, thanks to the recruitment of Auxiliary Conference

Interpreters (ACIs) to complement the permanent staff interpreters assigned to meetings and time

management of staff interpreters in line with the specific framework that applies to them. This is a

central operation to SCIC's activities since ACIs account for around 50% of all interpretation (Selection reference SCIC/COM/2026/1450)

provided. It involves some 50 000 contract days being issued in an average year and annual

expenditure of up to EUR 50 million.

WE PROPOSE

You will deal with a variety of tasks in the area of freelance interpreters’ recruitment. You will be

responsible for recruiting the needed ACIs to cover demand for given dates and languages and for

assessing and processing staff interpreters’ absence requests and work patterns. You will also be

called to help monitor available resources and to contribute to forecast ACI recruitment needs. You

may be called to take tasks related to time management of interpreters.

Among your daily tasks, you will:

- assess needs with a view to satisfying the highest possible demand, and undertake the

recruitment of ACIs in a cost effective manner

- manage ACI contracts

- act as leave manager for staff interpreters

- help monitor resources and their availability

- maintain contacts with various stakeholders, including meeting organisers, interpreters and

colleagues in other SCIC services.

For that, you will use SCIC internal databases as Pearl, Indisponibilité, Engagements, Signalétique

as well as corporate tools like Sysper and ARES.

WE LOOK FOR

You are a dynamic, result -driven colleague, with excellent organisational skills, able to work

autonomously and to deliver high -quality results. You know how to analyse data and effectively

use these for future planning. As you will be in regular contact with a wide range of stakeholders,

especially interpreters and meeting organisers, you will need good communication and

interpersonal skills, which will allow you to smoothly integrate the team where members work

closely together.

Occasionally, you must be ready to work within tight deadlines when dealing with last-minute

requests.

Experience with provision of interpretation services in the context of the EU Institutions, and in

particular in the recruitment of freelance interpreters, is an asset.

Our Unit works in English and French. (Selection reference SCIC/COM/2026/1450)

HOW TO EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST?

You should send your documents in a single pdf in the following order:

1. your CV 2. completed application form.

Please send these documents by the publication deadline to SCIC-B2-SECRETARIAT@ec.europa.eu

indicating the selection reference SCIC/COM/2026/1450 in the subject.

No applications will be accepted after the publication deadline. (Selection reference SCIC/COM/2026/1450)

## 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 temporary 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 post

• Produce the appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of the duties.

Qualifications:

In order to be recruited for this position, you must have at least

• a level of post-secondary education attested by a diploma, or

• a level of secondary education attested by a diploma giving access to post-secondary education, and appropriate professional experience of at least three years.

Only qualifications issued or recognised as equivalent by EU Member State authorities (e.g. by the Ministry of Education) will be accepted. Furthermore, before recruitment, you will be required to provide the documents that corroborate the eligibility criteria (diplomas, certificates and other supporting documents).

Languages:

> •

have a thorou

Salary at this grade

Basic monthly salary at AST-SC1 runs from €3,292 (step 1) to €3,725 (top step), giving an annual range of roughly €39,504 to €44,700 before tax and allowances. Steps increase automatically every two years; the figures here are taken from the salary grid in the EU Staff Regulations.

Eligible staff posted away from their country of nationality also receive an expatriation allowance worth 16% of basic salary (around €527 per month at step 1 of AST-SC1) together with household, dependent-child, and education allowances where applicable. Take-home pay is then adjusted by the country correction coefficient for Brussels. For a worked example see our correction coefficients guide and the EU salaries overview.

Application timeline

This vacancy was first listed on 15 July 2026, 7 days ago.

The application deadline is 30 July 2026, 6 days from today. Late applications are not accepted, so submit through the official EU Careers portal well in advance.

Last verified against the EU Careers feed on 23 July 2026.

Where to learn more

For full responsibilities, requirements, and career progression at AST-SC1 see our AST-SC1 grade page; for headcount, mission, and other open vacancies at European Commission see the European Commission institution page; for the cost of living, correction coefficient, and other postings in Brussels see our Brussels location page; for related vacancies in the Interpretation field browse our Interpretation domain page.

New to EU careers? Our beginner's guide walks through entry routes, EPSO competitions, and what to prepare. For application logistics see application tips and EPSO competitions.

Net pay at this grade

At step 1 of AST-SC1, gross monthly basic salary on the Secretaries/Clerks grid is €3,292. Eligible expatriate staff add a 16% expatriation allowance on top (roughly €527 per month) before two automatic deductions reduce the taxable base: the joint sickness insurance scheme (JSIS, ~3.6%, €137) and the EU pension contribution (~10.3%, €393). EU community tax (Council Reg. 260/68) is then applied progressively; for the AD7-equivalent band the effective rate sits in the 11 to 13% range, which works out to about €395 per month here.
Brussels carries a correction coefficient of 100.0% (Article 64 of the Staff Regulations), so the net is multiplied by 1.00 to reflect the local cost of living. On those assumptions take-home pay is approximately €2,893 per month, or about €34,720 per year, before household and dependent-child allowances, which can add several hundred euros monthly for staff with families. For the exact bracket-by-bracket computation see our net-pay methodology, and our correction coefficients guide for the full duty-station table.

Comparable recent roles

In the last twenty-four months European Commission (and the wider Commission and agencies family) has filled several adjacent roles at the same AST-SC1 grade level. The most recent comparable vacancies, with their actual application windows:
  • Administrative Assistant at European Commission (ENV – Environment) (published 2026-07-22, closed 2026-08-05)
  • Secretary at European Commission (TRADE – Trade) (published 2026-07-22, closed 2026-08-26)
  • Secretary at European Commission (Connect - Communications Networks, Content and Technology) (published 2026-07-21, closed 2026-08-25)
  • Secretary / Administrative Agent at European Commission (COMP – Competition) (published 2026-07-20, closed 2026-08-03)
  • Administrative Agent - to the Head of Unit at European Commission (DIGIT – Digital Services) (published 2026-07-20, closed 2026-08-03)
Pattern recognition matters here: recruiters at the same Directorate-General often re-advertise nearly identical profiles every six to nine months, so candidates who miss one window can typically position for the next one. Browse the live catalog: all AST-SC1 openings, other vacancies at European Commission, more roles in Interpretation.

Career trajectory

Career progression for AST-SC1 staff is governed by Articles 44 to 46 of the Staff Regulations (consolidated text on EUR-Lex) and Annex IB on the promotion procedure. Step increases are automatic every two years (Art. 44); grade promotion is competitive, based on the appraisal exercise (Art. 45) and the Career Development Review. For roles at SCIC – Interpretation, AST grades progress one level every three to five years on merit; AD reclassification via a CAST or internal competition is the longer-term route. Article 46 governs the classification at recruitment, which sets the starting step within the grade (usually step 1 for external recruits without prior EU service, step 2 or 3 where relevant professional experience is recognised).
Mobility within the institutions is encouraged via the inter-institutional and intra-institutional vacancy publication system: temporary agents who pass the probation period and reservists from EPSO laureate lists can typically apply to internal vacancies after one year of service. Lateral moves between Directorates-General reset the seniority clock for promotion only if the new post carries a different grade.

Language profile

Beyond the formal language requirements stated in the vacancy notice, the day-to-day working languages at this employer are English and French in roughly equal measure, with German appearing in some technical files. Internal meetings and most policy drafting in Brussels run in English; French remains the preferred internal language in Luxembourg-based services and parts of DG TRADE.

Application cadence

Across the past twenty-four months 26 comparable openings with the same grade and Interpretation signature have been advertised by European Commission or related EU bodies, 26 of them in the last twelve months alone. That cadence (roughly 13.0 per year) suggests a candidate who narrowly misses this competition can reasonably expect a similar profile to reopen within six to nine months.

Source: This job listing was sourced from the official EU Careers portal (EPSO). First published: . Salary estimate based on EU Staff Regulations.

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