European Institute for Gender Equality

Mission and mandate

EIGE was established by Regulation (EC) No 1922/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006. The agency became operational in 2010 after a setup phase. Its mandate, set out in Article 2 of the founding regulation, is to contribute to and strengthen the promotion of gender equality, including gender mainstreaming, in all EU policies and the resulting national policies; to fight against discrimination based on sex; and to raise EU citizens' awareness of gender equality. The Regulation gives EIGE no regulatory powers — it is a research-and-tools agency, not a regulator.

EIGE's six core outputs are: (1) the Gender Equality Index — the agency's flagship product, a composite indicator measuring progress towards gender equality across six core domains (work, money, knowledge, time, power, health) plus two satellite domains (intersecting inequalities, violence). The Index is published annually, ranks the 27 EU member states, and has become the EU's most-cited single gender equality data product; (2) gender-based violence — data collection, victim-support tools, work with the FRA on the EU-wide survey on violence against women, and tools to support implementation of the Istanbul Convention and the Directive on combating violence against women adopted in 2024; (3) gender mainstreaming methods — tools and guidance for Commission services and national administrations to integrate gender into policy development across all areas of EU competence; (4) the EuroGender online resource hub — research, statistics, case studies, country comparisons, sectoral analyses; (5) sectoral gender analysis — work on gender in specific areas such as economy, digital, climate, COVID-19 recovery, EU enlargement; (6) cooperation with EU candidate countries and external action — gender equality work in the Western Balkans, the Eastern Partnership, and globally through Team Europe initiatives.

EIGE works closely with the European Commission's DG JUST (the policy owner), with EU member states, with EU candidate countries, with international organisations (UN Women, OECD, Council of Europe), and with civil society organisations active on gender equality.

Structure and operational divisions

EIGE is led by a Director (Carlien Scheele from 2020) and a Management Board representing the EU member states and the Commission, plus a Forum of Experts. The agency is structured into operational units aligned with its work areas: Gender Equality Index and Research (the Index team, gender-based violence research, sectoral gender analyses); Knowledge Management and Communications (the EuroGender resource hub, communications, conferences); Gender Mainstreaming (the methods team supporting Commission and national administrations); and Corporate Services (HR, finance, ICT, legal, infrastructure). The small headcount means many staff hold cross-cutting responsibilities and rotate across teams.

Geographically the agency is concentrated in Vilnius at Gedimino prospektas in the city centre, opposite Cathedral Square. The Old Town location is one of the most distinctive of any EU agency. There are no field offices. The agency runs an active stakeholder network across member states and candidate countries but maintains no permanent presence outside Vilnius.

A structural particularity: EIGE shares some corporate-services elements with other EU agencies through the EU Agencies Network (EUAN) cooperation arrangements, which provide economies of scale for small agencies on functions like e-procurement and HR services.

Hiring landscape over the last 12 months

EIGE hiring is dominated by research and policy analyst posts. AD5–AD7 posts in the Gender Equality Index and Research team cover statistical analysis, gender-based violence research, and sectoral gender analyses — typically requiring a master's degree in statistics, sociology, gender studies, economics, or political science plus prior research experience. AD7–AD9 specialist posts in gender mainstreaming methods cover the development of practical tools for Commission and national administrations and typically require prior experience at a national gender equality body, a Commission DG, or in an applied gender mainstreaming role.

Contract agent posts at FG III–FG IV cover communications, the EuroGender hub editorial work, finance, HR, and ICT support. The small total headcount (around 50 staff) means that hiring volume is low overall — typically 5–15 vacancies per year — but turnover at AD level is steady and reserve lists are reused efficiently.

The agency runs a structured traineeship programme advertised on its careers page. Inter-institutional mobility from the FRA, the Commission's DG JUST, the European Parliament's FEMM Committee secretariat, or Eurofound is a common route into senior posts.

Salary realism by grade and the Vilnius coefficient

Vilnius has a correction coefficient of 73.6 under Article 64 of the Staff Regulations — one of the lowest of any EU duty station hosting an agency headquarters. An AD7 step 1 grosses €7,876 monthly basic at the 2024/2025 grid; with the Vilnius coefficient that becomes €5,797 monthly basic before allowances. Add the 16% expatriation allowance (€1,260, not modified by the coefficient — this is a key compensating factor in low-coefficient duty stations), a household allowance for a married hire (~€220 plus 2% of basic), and a dependent-child allowance per child (~€510), and an AD7 expatriate with one child lands around €7,700–€8,400 gross monthly before tax. EU tax is progressive; net take-home is roughly 80–84% of gross at AD7.

Vilnius is one of the most affordable EU duty stations. A two-bedroom apartment in the Old Town or in the Žvėrynas, Antakalnis, or Pilaitė districts runs €700–€1,100 monthly — materially below Brussels, Frankfurt, or Paris. Restaurants, transport, and groceries are also materially cheaper than Western European duty stations. Expatriate purchasing power in Vilnius is substantially better than in Brussels for staff with families. The European School of Brussels-Luxembourg model does not have a local Vilnius branch; international schooling is available locally and is largely covered by the education allowance. The non-financial trade-off is the smaller English-speaking community than Brussels or Cologne, and winters that are colder and longer than Western Europe. Use the [salary calculator](/guide/salary-calculator/) to model an AD7 take-home for Vilnius against Brussels.

Languages, security clearance, and competition profile

English is the working language across EIGE. All internal meetings, written products, and external communications are in English. Lithuanian is useful for daily life in Vilnius but not required for the job. Knowledge of a second EU language is the regulatory minimum for AD and FG posts. For researchers working on particular national gender equality contexts, additional languages — German, French, Italian, Spanish, Polish — are valued as they widen the range of national sources accessible without translation.

Security clearance is not required at EIGE. The agency does not handle classified material in its routine work; its outputs are public research products.

Competition profiles favour candidates with a strong research background — a master's degree in gender studies, sociology, political science, statistics, economics, public policy, or a related discipline, plus prior research experience. The Gender Equality Index team specifically values strong quantitative skills (R, Stata, SPSS, Python). The gender mainstreaming team values applied policy experience at a national gender equality body, a Commission DG, or an international organisation. AD5 entry posts are open to candidates with a strong master's and limited prior research experience; AD7+ specialist posts typically require 5+ years of relevant research or policy experience.

Application paths

EIGE recruits via three routes. Direct temporary agent recruitment — the main channel for AD posts. Vacancy notices are published on eige.europa.eu/about/recruitment and circulated via the EU Careers portal. Applications are submitted through the agency's online system with CV (Europass or equivalent), motivation letter, language self-assessment, and supporting documents. Shortlisted candidates undergo a written test (typically a research case study, statistical analysis exercise, or policy brief drafting task tailored to the post) and a structured interview with the line manager, head of unit, and an HR representative.

Contract agent via CAST Permanent — candidates register on the EU Careers portal in the relevant FG profile (Project/Programme Management, Communications, ICT, Finance, Administrative Support) and respond to specific EIGE notices. CA posts are typically 3–5 year contracts, renewable.

Seconded national experts — serving officials from national gender equality bodies (the Spanish Instituto de las Mujeres, the German Antidiskriminierungsstelle des Bundes, the French Haut Conseil à l'égalité, etc.) apply through their national point of contact for 2–4 year deployments. SNEs are a smaller stream at EIGE than at larger agencies but exist. The EIGE traineeship programme is a realistic entry route for early-career candidates with a gender studies or related master's. Inter-institutional mobility from the FRA, Eurofound, or the Commission's DG JUST is common at AD9+.