EUFTE — Free-Text Essay on EU Matters
The written test is the one you cannot cram.
Forty minutes, in your second language, on a document you were given two weeks earlier. Part 2 of AD5 ends with it.
What the EUFTE actually is
You receive a background document about two weeks before the exam. On exam day you have 40 minutes to write a structured response to a task set on that document — a briefing note, a policy summary, or an analytical report on EU matters. You write it in your Language 2, not your best language. Nothing about it rewards speed-reading or memorised templates: it rewards knowing what the task type expects and getting to the point.
The five criteria you are marked against
These are EPSO's own words. The notice of competition says the assessment is based on the anchors published on the EPSO website, and these are those five anchors, quoted exactly. The sentence under each one is ours, not EPSO's.
1. Structures written communication with a logical flow of ideas.
A marker is looking for an answer they can follow without backtracking: a clear opening, one idea per paragraph, and an order a reader would have chosen themselves.
2. Writes concisely, avoiding unnecessary words and sentences.
A marker is looking for sentences that carry their weight — no throat-clearing, no restating the task before you start answering it.
3. Presents subject matter in a clear and understandable way.
A marker is looking to finish your text knowing exactly what you meant, with no term left unexplained and no sentence that needs a second reading.
4. Adapts and tailors writing to suit the intended audience and purpose.
A marker is looking for the register the task asks for: a note to a director does not read like an essay, and the stated purpose decides the tone, the opening and what comes first.
5. Uses the information provided effectively to address the assignment.
A marker is looking for the document to be used rather than summarised: the relevant parts selected, applied to the question actually asked, and nothing asserted that the document does not support.
Where these come from. EPSO calls them "anchors". The notice of competition for the AD5 graduates competition, EPSO/AD/427/26 (Official Journal C/2026/711), Section 4.3.2(e), states that the EUFTE is neither a language test nor a test of factual knowledge and that "the assessment will be based on the specific anchors published on the EPSO website", citing the EU Careers page below. The same five anchors govern the written test in the AD7 and AD8 competitions.
EU Careers — What is the written test? (the page cited in the notice; checked 13 September 2026)
What practising it here looks like
A real 40-minute simulation against a real background document. You write; the draft comes back assessed against the same five criteria, with what to fix before the next attempt — structure, clarity, EU context, register, and the one thing to change first. Immediate, not days later.
The three task types
Briefing note
Written for someone who has to act and has no time. The conclusion goes at the top, the reasoning underneath, and the test is whether a busy reader could take a decision from it without opening the dossier. Short, labelled sections; no build-up.
Policy summary
Written for someone who needs to understand a position rather than decide on one. It compresses the document into what the policy is, where it came from and what is at stake, in an even register, without taking a side the material does not take.
Analytical report on EU matters
Written for someone who wants the reasoning, not just the verdict. It weighs options or arguments against the evidence in the document, names the trade-offs, and arrives at a conclusion the reader can check back against the material.
Practise the EUFTE with the writing coach
The EUFTE writing coach is included in Advanced (10 graded drafts a month) and in All-In (up to 20 a day). It is not part of Starter and it is not part of Free.
Advanced is €99 and All-In is €149. VAT included. One payment, no subscription.
See Advanced and All-InIndependent EPSO preparation material. Not affiliated with EPSO, EU Careers, or the institutions of the European Union. Always read the official notice of competition for authoritative information.