THE EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND
CONTROL
Vacancy for the post
EDITOR (ECDC/CA/III/2007/ECO-ED)
Applications are invited for the above Contract Agent post at the European Centre for
Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
The Centre is located in Stockholm, Sweden. The legal base for the Centre is Regulation (EC)
No 851/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 establishing a
European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control1.
General description of the tasks and role of the ECDC
The mission of the Centre is to identify, assess and communicate current and emerging
threats to human health from communicable diseases. Within this broad mission statement,
the main technical tasks of the Centre fall into the following four categories:
a. Scientific opinions, bringing together technical expertise in specific fields through its
various EU-wide networks and via ad hoc scientific panels;
b. Technical assistance and communication about its activities and results, and
disseminating information tailored to meet the needs of its different audiences
c. Epidemiological surveillance and networking of laboratories, i.e. the development of
epidemiological surveillance at European level and the maintenance of networks of
reference laboratories
d. Early Warning and Response, based on ‘round the clock’ availability of specialists in
communicable diseases,.
See also the Centre home page at www.ecdc.eu.int
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Official Journal No. L 142 of 30 April 2004, page 1
0
External Communications (ECO)
ECDC’s external communications activities are aimed at both the European public health
community and a broader general public in all EU Member States, and comprise the ECDC
website, press/media services, scientific reports, promotional activities and the scientific
journal Eurosurveillance. ECO is presently a function within the Director’s Cabinet, but will in
2007 organisationally become a unit.
Job description
The jobholder will report to the Head of External Communications.
He/she will in particular have the following tasks:

provide editing services to the ECDC units and projects (editing, proof reading, etc);

do layouts of reports, newsletters and other ECDC publications;

write shorter texts (executive summaries, meeting reports, minutes, newsletter
articles, website articles, brochure texts, etc);

help ensuring that ECDC guidelines on layout, design and writing style are consistently
applied;

contribute to the evolution and development of ECDC’s “style guidelines” in line with
the Centre’s needs;

assist the overall communications activities and projects of the Centre;

represent ECO in internal meetings with the projects and technical units;

assist in liaising with external editors, copy-writers and other contractors and assist in
procurement;

assist the Eurosurveillance editorial office, web team and media team when needed.
Qualifications and experiences required
A. Formal requirements
In order to be an eligible candidate you need to have a set of formal requirements. These
requirements are:
 A level of post-secondary education of at least three years attested by a diploma and
at least 5 years of appropriate professional experience after that diploma; or a level of
secondary education attested by a diploma giving access to post-secondary education
and at least 8 years of appropriate professional experience after that diploma;
 A thorough knowledge of at least two of the official languages of the European Union;
 A nationality of one of the EU Member States or of Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway;
 To have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the laws concerning military service;
 To be entitled to your full rights as citizen;
 To have the appropriate character references who can inform about your work
performance;
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 Be physically fit to perform the duties.
B. Selection criteria
To qualify for this post we have identified essential criteria in regard of professional
experience and personal characteristics/interpersonal skills. These are:
Professional experiences:

Excellent knowledge of English at the level of a native speaker;

Excellent skills and experience in editing texts in English;

Excellent skills and experience in writing texts in English;
Personal characteristics/interpersonal skills:

High level of service orientation and customer service spirit;

Good organisational skills;

Good communication skills;

Excellent team worker.
We have also identified experiences and skills that are advantageous for this post. These are:

Skills and experience in desktop publishing and layout;

Command of the following software: Microsoft Office Suit, Adobe Photoshop,
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, and Adobe Acrobat.

Professional experience of public relations / external communications;

Experience of working in an international environment;
Depending on the number of applications received, the selection committee may apply stricter
requirements within the aforementioned selection criteria.
Appointment and conditions of employment
The jobholder will be appointed on the basis of a shortlist proposed by the Selection
Committee to the Director. This vacancy notice is the basis for the establishment of the
Selection Committee’s proposal. Candidates should note that the proposal may be made
public and that inclusion in the shortlist does not guarantee recruitment. The shortlist of
candidates will be established following an open selection process.
The jobholder will be recruited as Contract Agent, pursuant to Article 3 a) of the new
Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities. The successful
candidate will be recruited in function group III Grade 8 step 1. The contract will be for two
years and may be renewed. Applicants should note the requirement under the EU staff
regulations for all new staff to complete successfully a probationary period.
The place of employment will be Stockholm, where the Centre has its activities.
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The candidate might be required to be available at a short notice.
Reserve list:
A reserve list will be drawn up by ECDC. The list will be used as a reserve for recruitment,
should similar vacancies arise. It will be valid until 30 April 2008 and may be extended.
Equal opportunities
ECDC apply equal opportunities and accepts applications without distinction on the grounds
of age, race political, philosophical or religious conviction, sex or sexual orientation and
regardless of disabilities, marital status or family situation.
Application procedure
For applications to be valid, you need to submit by email:

A detailed curriculum vitae in European format (available in
http://europass.cedefop.eu.int/europass/home/vernav/Europasss+Documents/Europass
+CV/navigate.action )

A letter of motivation, which also indicates your availability.

The eligibility and selection criteria grid completed (see below)
Candidates selected for an interview will be requested to take a written test to evaluate
editorial skills. The test is arranged in the Centre in connection with the interview.
You will be requested at a later stage to supply documentary evidence in original in support of
the statements that you make for this application. As a candidate you are to be informed that
in a later part of the recruitment process a mandatory medical analyses and physical check-up
is done with selected medical service.
Applications preferably in the working language of the Centre, which is English, should be sent
by e-mail in Word or PDF format to Recruitment@ecdc.eu.int clearly indicating the vacancy
reference (ECDC/CA/III/2007/ECO-ED) and your family name in the Subject line.
Closing date for the submission of applications is 10 April 2007.
Due to the large volume of applications only candidates selected for interviews will be notified.
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Eligibility and Selection criteria grid
EDITOR
(ECDC/CA/III/2007/ECO-ED)
Last name (in capitals):
First name:
Gender:
Male:
Female:
A. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
(1)
I have a level of post-secondary education of at least three
years attested by a diploma and at least 5 years of
appropriate professional experience after that diploma; or a
level of secondary education attested by a diploma giving
access to post-secondary education and at least 8 years of
appropriate professional experience after that diploma:
Yes
No
(2)
Number of years of appropriate professional experience Specify:
following the award of my diploma:
(3)
I have a thorough knowledge of at least two official languages
of the European Union.
Yes
No
(4)
I am a national of a Member State of the European Union or
Yes
No
Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway.
(5)
I am entitled to my full rights as citizen.
Yes
No
(6)
I have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the applicable laws
concerning military service.
Yes
No
(7)
I have the appropriate character references who can inform
Yes
No
Yes
No
about my work performance.
(8)
I am physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post.
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B. SELECTION CRITERIA
(1 = slight; 2 = good; 3 = very good; 4 = excellent)
(9)
I have a knowledge of English at the level of a native speaker:
Yes
(10)
My skills and experiences in editing texts in English are:
1
(11)
My skills and experiences in writing texts in English are:
1
2
3
4
(12)
My level of service orientation and customer service spirit is:
1
2
3
4
(13)
My organisational skills are:
1
2
3
4
(14)
My communication skills are:
1
2
3
4
(15)
My ability to work in a team is:
1
2
3
4
(16)
I have skills and experiences in desktop publishing and layout:
(17)
My
command
Microsoft
of
the
following
software
Office
No
2
3
Yes
4
No
are:
Suit
1
2
3
4
Adobe
Photoshop
1
2
3
4
Adobe
Illustrator
1
2
3
4
Adobe
InDesign
1
2
3
4
Adobe Acrobat:
1
2
3
4
(18)
I have a professional experience of public relations / external
communications:
Yes
No
(19)
I have experience of working in an international environment:
Yes
No
5