Public agent: how to prepare for a competition?

Verified 21 February 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

You can receive training to prepare you for the exams of the competitions and professional exams of the public service. The conditions of access to these training courses vary depending on whether you are a member of the public service of the State (FPE), territorial (FPT) or hospital (FPH).

EPF

You can receive training in preparation for written and/or oral tests of professional competitions and exams.

The competitions and examinations concerned may be competitions or examinations for access to body of the State civil service, or if you are an official at grades of advancement.

They may also be competitions or examinations for access to territorial employment frameworks or to hospital body or to posts in the EU institutions.

Training can take place in person, by mail or online.

The training can be organized by your employer administration or by external training organizations approved by your administration.

They may take place in whole or in part on your working time.

If the training takes place during working time, your request for absence may not be refused if the duration of the training is less than or equal to 5 full-time working days per year.

The request for absence may, however, be postponed a maximum of 2 times if service requirements impose it.

You can use your acquired training rights on your personal training account or apply for the benefit of vocational leave to prepare for a competition or exam.

You can also optionally use your saved days on your time savings account to take you away.

If you have completed preparation for a competition on your working time, you may not be granted vocational training leave until at least 12 months after the completion of that preparation.

In order to promote your professional development, you will have priority access to training in preparation for the competitions and professional exams if you are in one of the following situations:

  • You belong to a body or hold a category C job and you don't have a bachelor's degree
  • You have a disability and you are entitled to theobligation to employ
  • It is established, after consulting the occupational doctor, that you are particularly exposed, in view of your individual professional situation, to a risk of professional wear and tear

When the training you request is provided by your employer administration, you get it automatically.

If you have more than one course that matches your request, your employer administration may decide to send you the course it provides itself.

If the training you are requesting is not not insured by your employer administration, the conditions for implementing your priority access are specified by ministerial order. That order may provide for funding ceilings.

You can also ask for personalized support to help you develop and implement your professional project.

FPT

You can receive training in preparation for written and/or oral tests of professional competitions and exams, subject to operational requirements.

The competitions and examinations concerned may be competitions or examinations for access to job managers of the territorial civil service, or if you are an official at grades of advancement.

They may also be competitions or examinations for access to state or hospital bodies or to posts in the EU institutions.

Training can take place in person or remotely.

They may take place on your working time.

Your employing community can only refuse you 2 successive refusals to a training preparation for competitions and professional exams after notice from the HEADING: titleContent if you are a public servant, or CCP: titleContent if you are a contractual person.

Preparations for competitions and professional examinations in the territorial civil service are organized in particular by the CNFPT: titleContent.

When you have received training in preparation for the tests of a competition or professional examination during your working time, you may not receive further training in preparation for the tests of a competition or professional examination until at least 12 months after the end of your 1re training.

This duration is reduced to 6 months if the duration of your 1re training was less than 8 working days, divided or not, and if the cumulative duration of the 2 courses does not exceed 8 working days in a 12-month period.

These 6 or 12 month deadlines do not apply if you have not been able to fully follow your 1re training due to operational requirements.

You can use your acquired training rights on your personal training account to prepare for a competition or exam.

In order to promote your professional development, you will have priority access to training in preparation for the competitions and professional exams if you are in one of the following situations:

  • You belong to a employment framework or hold a category C job and you don't have a bachelor's degree
  • You have a disability and you are entitled to theobligation to employ
  • It is established, after consulting the occupational doctor, that you are particularly exposed, in view of your individual professional situation, to a risk of professional wear and tear

When the training you request is provided by your employer community or the NCTF, you get it automatically.

If more than one course fits your demand, your employing community may decide to send you to their own training.

If the training you are requesting is not not insured by your employer community or the NCTF, the conditions for implementing your priority access are specified by your employing community. Your employer community may have funding limits.

You can also ask for personalized support to help you develop and implement your professional project.

FPH

You can receive training in preparation for written and/or oral tests of professional competitions and exams, subject to service requirements.

The competitions and examinations concerned may be competitions or examinations for access to body of the hospital civil service, or, if you are a public servant at grades of advancement.

They may also be competitions or examinations for access to territorial employment frameworks or to State body or to posts in the EU institutions.

Training in preparation for the tests of a competition or a professional examination entered in the training plan you must be granted such training if you have not received it for 3 years.

However, your employing institution may postpone your training departure for up to one year because of operational requirements after the HEADING: titleContent if you are a public servant, or CCP: titleContent if you are a contractual person.

Your employing institution can only refuse you 2 successive refusals to prepare for competitions and professional exams after having received the opinion of the CAP or the CCP.

Training can take place by correspondence or online.

They may take place in whole or in part, during your working time, when the nature of the preparation warrants it or outside working hours.

When training takes place during working hoursHowever, you may be granted leave to complete all or part of the training.

You must be granted these absence authorizations when they are less than or equal to 5 full-time working days per year.

However, your employing institution may defer your absence authorizations due to service requirements, unless you request them for the 3e times.

You can use your acquired training rights on your personal training account or apply for the benefit of vocational leave to prepare for a competition or exam.

If you have completed preparation for a competition on your working time, you may not be granted vocational training leave until at least 12 months after the completion of that preparation.

Preparations for competitions and professional examinations in the hospital public service are organized by the National Association for the Continuing Training of Hospital Staff (ANFH).

In order to promote your professional development, you will have priority access to training in preparation for competitions and professional exams if you are in one of the following situations:

  • You belong to a body or hold a category C job and you don't have a bachelor's degree
  • You have a disability and you are entitled to theobligation to employ
  • It is established, after consulting the occupational doctor, that you are particularly exposed, in view of your individual professional situation, to a risk of professional wear and tear

When the training you request is provided by your employer institution, you get it automatically.

If you have more than one course that matches your request, your employing institution may decide to send you the course it provides itself.

If the training you are requesting is not pitch ainsured by your employer institution, the conditions for implementing your priority access are specified by your employer institution. Your employing institution may have funding limits.

You can also ask for personalized support to help you develop and implement your professional project.