ESA newcomers

Accepting a job at ESA means not only adjusting to a new work environment but in some cases, also adjusting to a new country, a new culture and a new language. Many staff also have concerns about finding the right accommodation, schooling and childcare.

ESA offers a number of services to help staff settle into their new environment more easily. These may vary from Establishment to Establishment. More detailed information can be obtained from the local personnel office once a contract has been offered.

ESA's main Establishments have a Sports, Social and Cultural Committee whose goal is to provide opportunities for staff members and their families to join a wide variety of social and sports clubs. Staff can enjoy these facilities outside working hours either on site or close by. 

The variety and number of facilities and activities offered vary between locations, but whatever your interests you are sure to find a club that caters for them.

Medical services

Every main Establishment has an in-house medical advisor. It is their job to provide emergency medical care and conduct an annual medical examination of staff. They can also give advice on finding a family doctor, dentist and other local medical services.

Some Establishments also have a welfare officer/social worker who can provide support and assistance to staff and their spouses on issues such as stress management, personal problems, childcare facilities and dealing with handicapped children.

Other services

Some of the other services that ESA can offer are:

• a relocation service to assist staff find accommodation
• an orientation programme for newcomers
• internal language classes
• an internal local affairs service to take care of processing documents required by local authorities
• an in-house bank and post office
• a summer camp for children

Spouse support network

ESA has a number of initiatives to help the spouses of staff members settle in and to help those looking for work to find employment. Some establishments have a spouse network, partially run by spouses of staff, to help newcomers adjust to living in the local community.

ESA also works with private networks specialising in support for expatriates and exchanges job vacancies with other international organisations that may be present in the locality.

Expat Networks

There are a number of external sites with useful information for expatriates, including information such as local transportation, international schools, telephone directories, housing, itinerary planning and much more.

These sites can provide additional information for prospective candidates. As they are external to ESA's Portal, ESA is not responsible for their content.

Expatica - link to sites for expats in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany

Expatriates - links per country, classifieds and other ads, for and by expats

Expat Focus - general expat site ‘Expat news, community and advice’

British Expats - for British nationals

European Council of International Schools – searchable database of international schools

Jobs in Europe - database of agencies and organisations that deal with multilingual recruitment