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Where can I find sample EU exams? What should I know? How are they marked?
Autor vlákna: RenataR
RenataR
RenataR
polština -> angličtina
+ ...
Jan 20, 2004

Can anyone tell me where to find sample tests for the EU exams?
Is there anything I should know about those exams?
How are these tests marked and what are their cryteria?

Thanks a lot.
 
Williamson
Williamson  Identity Verified
Velká Británie
Local time: 08:35
vlámština -> angličtina
+ ...
An attempt to answer Jan 20, 2004

Type EPSO in Google.
Thorough knowledge of two foreign languages is a basic requirement.
Depending on which institution (Commission, Parliament, and Council) psychological tests are the first elimination factor (commission exams). If you do not pass these, the rest of the exam is not scored.
Translation is always in the mother-tongue. For some languages, dictionaries are not allowed and you are required to translate a short text of 100 (far-fetched) words into your mother-tongu... See more
Type EPSO in Google.
Thorough knowledge of two foreign languages is a basic requirement.
Depending on which institution (Commission, Parliament, and Council) psychological tests are the first elimination factor (commission exams). If you do not pass these, the rest of the exam is not scored.
Translation is always in the mother-tongue. For some languages, dictionaries are not allowed and you are required to translate a short text of 100 (far-fetched) words into your mother-tongue. In most cases French>mother-tongue is required
If you do not obtain the minimum score (24/40) on your first text, the second is not scored.
Those who remain after the first test will be called upon to pass an oral exam. At that exam your knowledge of E.U.-institutions and treaties has to be very good. ▲ Collapse
 
Parrot
Parrot  Identity Verified
Španělsko
Local time: 09:35
španělština -> angličtina
+ ...
Try this Jan 20, 2004

http://europa.eu.int/epso/index_en.htm

Click on "Competitions > Interactive Tests" (the samples are English, French and German).

The exams will depend, of course, on the position applied for. Details on the procedure are published in the specific issue of the Official Journal in which the particular competition is announced.
 
HRiley
HRiley  Identity Verified
Local time: 09:35
španělština -> angličtina
+ ...
Check Official Journal Jan 20, 2004

RenataR wrote:

Can anyone tell me where to find sample tests for the EU exams?
Is there anything I should know about those exams?
How are these tests marked and what are their cryteria?

Thanks a lot.


When the competitions are announced, all application conditions, marking criteria and so on are published in the Official Journal. If you want to see samples, click the link that Parrot gave you, go to Ongoing competitions and then click on the Official Journal link for the competition you want to find out about.

Different institutions run their competitions in different ways. For example, the Council, in their last competition for EMT translators, required 3 languages other than mother-tongue. A pre-selection test was held to eliminate those with insufficient French, followed by translation tests (no dictionary) from three languages into English. The final stage was an oral exam to assess candidates' knowledge of the EU and their ability to converse fluently in their working languages.

The Commission run their competitions differently, and I assume that the Parliament may well have a different procedure too.

If you are hoping to apply for one of the competitions, you will have ample time to prepare for it once it has been announced in the Official Journal. The wheels of the EU machine turn *very* slowly indeed, and it may well be over a year from the time you send your application until the tests are actually held.


[Edited at 2004-01-20 13:29]
 
RenataR
RenataR
polština -> angličtina
+ ...
AUTOR TÉMATU
What criteria are used when marking these tests? Jan 20, 2004

What to look out for?
I checked all the sites you suggested but I still did not find any material on how the papers are marked.
Are there any other translation tests that do give specific mark scheme and criteria?

Thanks again for your help.
 
Parrot
Parrot  Identity Verified
Španělsko
Local time: 09:35
španělština -> angličtina
+ ...
Marking... Jan 20, 2004

... is explained when the specific competition has been published. Under "ongoing competitions" you will find links to previous published competitions, which may involve calls for linguists, economists, general service personnel, etc.

For language services, try this page (click on the "... See more
... is explained when the specific competition has been published. Under "ongoing competitions" you will find links to previous published competitions, which may involve calls for linguists, economists, general service personnel, etc.

For language services, try this page (click on the "Official journal" links).

http://europa.eu.int/epso/competitions/news_en.cfm#90

[Edited at 2004-01-20 18:30] ▲ Collapse
 
Williamson
Williamson  Identity Verified
Velká Británie
Local time: 08:35
vlámština -> angličtina
+ ...
Marking for linguists. Jan 20, 2004

Parrot wrote:

... is explained when the specific competition has been published. Under "ongoing competitions" you will find links to previous published competitions, which may involve calls for linguists, economists, general service personnel, etc.

For language services, try this page (click on the "Official journal" links).

http://europa.eu.int/epso/competitions/news_en.cfm#90

[Edited at 2004-01-20 18:30]


As far as I can remember, the translations you hand in are anonymous. Photocopies are taken and sent to different places to be corrected by different people. These people (translators) give a mark. An average of that mark is calculated. That figure constitutes your marks for say language A. The same procedure takes place for languages B&C.
If you score 12/20 on languages A, B and C, languages D&E (optional) will be corrected and added to your score. In fact, you must know A, B, C very well and the knowledge of rare language may constitute a +, although it is not explicitely mentioned. Last exam I took part in there was 1 candidate out of a room of 200 people with Finnish in his language-combination.
 
cicru
cicru
angličtina
EU-Exams.com Feb 20, 2004

Easy for all information about Eu recruitment and exams have a look at http://www.eu-exams.com
 


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Where can I find sample EU exams? What should I know? How are they marked?







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