Trainee IT Frankfurt am Main

General Information

• Type of contract: Traineeship
• Who can apply?: EU nationals eligible for our traineeship programme
• Grant: The trainee grant is €1,170 per month plus an accommodation allowance (see further information section)
• Working time: Full time
• Place of work: Frankfurt am Main, Germany
• Closing date: 28.09.2024

Your team

You will be part of the Directorate General Statistics. Our Directorate has around 350 staff providing statistical products and services, as well as a whole range of aggregated and disaggregated data, to inform not only central banking and banking supervision policy decisions but also the public at large. This is done in close collaboration with the European System of Central Banks, the European Commission (namely Eurostat), the banking industry, national competent authorities and international bodies.

In your role as a trainee, you will directly contribute to the work of the Directorate General Statistics at what is a very interesting and exciting time. We are currently experimenting with generative artificial intelligence to speed up basic activities, revamping data reporting from banks and developing new data products and services. By joining the Directorate General Statistics, you will form part of a team responsible for collecting and validating data, producing and publishing statistical indicators and keeping the related documentation fit for purpose. You will work closely with relevant stakeholders such as economists, analysts and banking supervisors. 

The ECB is an inclusive employer and we strive to reflect the diversity of the population we serve. We encourage you to apply irrespective of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation or other characteristics.

Your role

As a trainee in the Directorate General Statistics you will:

• gain an insight into the methodology, validation, compilation, management and publication of macroeconomic statistics and/or large-scale granular/micro datasets in a policy-oriented environment;
• work both in a team and independently under the guidance of a mentor, taking initiative and interacting with other staff members and management;
• have an opportunity to participate in your team’s regular activities, complete a conceptual or empirical study and support the development of statistical concepts, tools or processes;
• directly contribute to the work of the Directorate General.

The position offers you excellent opportunities to modernise the ECB’s data culture and data management in a period of rapid financial innovation. You will be part of a multicultural team that strives for continuous innovation to make a positive impact on the lives of European citizens. 

Qualifications, experience and skills

Essential:

• a bachelor’s degree or higher in statistics, data science, economics, finance, mathematics, computer science, operational research or another relevant field; 
• experience using at least one of the following programming languages/statistical packages: C/C++, FAME, HTML, Java, JavaScript, Mathematica, MATLAB, Perl, Python, R, R Shiny, SAS, Scala, Spark, SQL, Stata, Tableau or VBA;
• experience in data and metadata management, including collection, cleaning, validation, aggregation, visualisation and analysis; 
• familiarity with statistical or mathematical software packages and/or relational databases for managing large-scale structured data;
• a good knowledge of the MS Office package (in particular Teams, Word, Excel and PowerPoint);
• an advanced (C1) command of English and an intermediate (B1) command of at least one other official language of the EU, according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Desired: 

• familiarity with monetary and financial statistics, macroeconomic statistics (such as financial accounts, balance of payments or price statistics), supervisory data, micro/granular financial data, household or corporate surveys, or the governance and management of integrated data and metadata;
• familiarity with international standards for macroeconomic statistics, accounting or banking supervision;
• knowledge of financial concepts and the functioning of financial markets; 
• knowledge of the techniques used in the development of applications and tools for data management and visualisation, and of machine learning.

You are curious and eager to learn, and want to further develop your ability to analyse complex information. You are keen to collaborate with others, pursue team goals and learn from other people’s diverse perspectives. You strive to know and anticipate stakeholder needs, and will signal any need for change and propose alternative solutions.

You are motivated to contribute to the ECB’s mission, to serve the citizens of the EU as a member of a public institution and to work with colleagues from all over Europe. You are keen to be part of our team and to use your skills and competencies to achieve the aims of this position.

Further information

Initial traineeship of 6 months, with a possible extension to up to 12 months in total. The start date will be in 2025.

Other details on the conditions applicable to traineeships at the ECB can be found on our website.

For additional information on this specific vacancy, you can speak to Rodrigo Oliveira-Soares, on +49 (0)69 1344 6777 between 12:00 and 14:00 on Monday, 23 September 2024.

Application and selection process

The recruitment process for this position will include a pre-recorded video interview in the pre-selection phase and – if you are invited to participate in the subsequent selection phase – an online interview. 

Further information on how to apply is available on our website.

If you are not selected for this position but are still considered suitable, you will be placed on a reserve list for 12 months from the closing date for applications, from which you might be considered for other traineeship positions within the ECB.