Competitive entrance examinations for ENA

Entrance into the principal curriculum at ENA that prepares for careers in the higher civil service is by competitive examination. This is taken either at the conclusion of university-level study, or while the candidate is already in the civil service or in professional life outside. There are three separate entrance examinations for entry to ENA each year; as noted above, these are:

• the concours externe for students having received a university-level diploma for at least the equivalent of three years of studies after secondary school (bac+3)
• the concours interne for career civil servants or government employees with at least four years’ professional experience; no diploma is required
• the troisième concours for elected officials, labor leaders and private-sector employees, with a total of at least eight years of professional or elected experience; no diploma is required.

These 3 competitive entrance examinations have been open to citizens of the European Union since 2004. It should also be noted that no-one can take a single type of entrance examination more than three times, or any combination of the three examinations more than five times.