Publications Management and Editorial Unit

The European Parliament's Directorate-General for Parliamentary Research Services (DG EPRS) provides comprehensive research and analytical support to the Members of the European Parliament, its parliamentary committees and the European Parliament as a whole. The EPRS philosophy is to provide independent, objective and authoritative information. More than 300 staff work in the DG's 25 units and services.  

More information about EPRS is available here:

• https://youtu.be/sMBLKXKhOhE?si=W7_bKixnb382sEq4
• https://epthinktank.eu/about/

Why choose a traineeship at DG EPRS?   

'Empowering through knowledge' is the guiding principle of EPRS. As an EPRS trainee, you will be exposed to the core of the research and analysis process in the European Parliament. Surrounded by colleagues working on publications covering a wide range of EU policies, you will gain detailed knowledge of the EP's workings while honing your skills in your specific topic of interest. If you choose a traineeship in one of EPRS's library units, you will help the parliamentary community find the resources they need for their work.   

The Publications Management and Editorial Unit is at the hub of the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS). This is where the hundreds of research notes, briefing papers and studies written for Members by our policy specialists undergo the final linguistic, stylistic and editorial review. Our main job is to provide support and an extra pair of eyes to make sure that those documents meet the highest quality standards before we publish them online and print for distribution. The DataViz Office within the unit provides graphical content for an increasing proportion of publications, as well as stand-alone infographics. Our team of 16 people includes editors, statisticians and data visualisation experts, and editorial assistants. We work closely with authors (policy analyst colleagues within EPRS) throughout the publication process, providing guidance and advice on drafting and style questions, as well as assistance with data research and analysis and the preparation of infographics. Our work is very much deadline-driven - timeliness, quality and accuracy are key.

Working with us as a trainee, you will find yourself in a varied and fast-paced environment, dealing with texts and information covering a wide range of EU policy areas and activities, and being involved in different types of task, as needs arise, which could be creative, technical or practical in nature.  Your main tasks, for which you will of course receive all the mentoring, guidance and supervision you need, are likely to include:

• Assisting with drafting and editing material for use on social media and other platforms;
• Assisting with proofreading and editing research products prior to publication;
•  Assisting with specification and trialling of new IT tools for use in the publication process;
•  Assisting with preparation of guidance and training material for colleagues across EPRS, on editorial/linguistic issues, and/or on the use of IT tools available to us;
• Assisting authors and/or statisticians with the research, analysis and presentation of material for EPRS publications, infographics and other products;
• Assistance with practical organisation of events, publications promotional activities, communications actions, etc.

We are looking for candidates who have a keen interest in written communication and the publishing process and have an excellent eye for detail.

• You will need very strong English-language drafting skills, and be ready both to draft texts yourself and to edit texts drafted by others;
• Our trainee should be able to process complex information, to present it in a structured, accurate and user-friendly manner, and to assist colleagues in doing the same;
• You should have a very good knowledge of Word and Excel, and knowledge of Adobe suite software would be welcome;
• You will be prepared to turn your hand to a wide variety of tasks as needs arise;
• Flexibility, reliability, a sense of diplomacy, the capacity for team work and an ability to work accurately while respecting deadlines are also very important.