16.1 Full Mock Simulation & Endurance Management for Parts 1 and 2

16.1 Full Mock Simulation & Endurance Management for Parts 1 and 2

Official anchor: Notice EPSO/AD/427/26 as amended on 30 June 2026. Part 1 (from October/November 2026): verbal 35 min + numerical 20 min + abstract 10 min, one remote session on one day, no rescheduling. Part 2 (2027, for candidates who pass Part 1): EU knowledge 40 min + digital skills 30 min + EUFTE 40 min. The order of tests within a part may differ from the order in the notice.

Because of the amendment, you will not sit one marathon session. You will sit at least two separate remote sittings, months apart. EPSO has confirmed that Part 1 is a single session on one day, but has not yet said whether the 110 minutes of Part 2 tests will be taken in one sitting. Mock practice should mirror that: a 65-minute Part 1 simulation and a 110-minute Part 2 simulation, each preceded by the check-in routine you will face on the day (log-in, ID capture, a 20–60 second room scan). Practising only isolated 10-minute drills leaves you unprepared for the pace changes inside each sitting.

---

The Two Session Architectures

Each test has its own timer in TAO: time left over in one test cannot be carried into the next. Within a test you can move freely between questions, bookmark items, and check the overview panel for unanswered questions before submitting.

Where to Spend Energy

• Part 1: verbal reasoning is the heaviest-weighted test in both rankings, and it shares the session with the numerical/abstract gate. The gate needs only 10/20 combined, so aim for a safe 12–14 and protect your concentration for verbal.
• Part 2: EU knowledge and digital skills carry 30% each in the preliminary ranking that decides whose essay is marked, so every MCQ point counts. The EUFTE matters only if you rank high enough, but you cannot know that in advance. Write it as if it will be marked, using documentation you studied beforehand (Chapter 15).

---

Building Realistic Mocks

Suggested cadence (Part 1 is weeks away at the time of writing): one full Part 1 mock per week plus short daily drills until the final week, then taper (Section 16.2). Start Part 2 mocks once your Part 1 date is behind you, but keep EU knowledge and DigComp revision running in parallel from now.

---

Managing Fatigue Within the Rules

The proctoring rules shape what "endurance management" can mean:

• No leaving the camera view, no standing up. The TAO instructions list these as behaviours that can invalidate a session. The instructions describe no general breaks. Extra breaks exist only for candidates whom EPSO has authorised in advance for special needs, and when such a break ends the system moves on automatically.
• Plan food, drink and a restroom visit before check-in. A label-free drink and two plain white tissues are the only comfort items allowed on the desk.
• Micro-resets: use the instruction screen at the start of each test for two slow breaths and a deliberate reset of pace, for example from reading-heavy verbal to rapid numerical estimation. Keep your face in view throughout.
• Posture: set chair, screen height and lighting before the session. Good lighting also helps Proctorio's face and ID checks.

Unmanaged fatigue shows up as missed negative words in question stems ("not", "least", "unless"), skipped unit checks in numerical tables, and rushed final items. Your mocks should reveal where your own concentration dips, so you can plan a reset for that point.

---

Language Switching Now Happens Between Parts

With the two-part model, you no longer switch from Language 1 to Language 2 mid-session: Part 1 is entirely in L1 and Part 2 entirely in L2. The switch that matters is in your preparation. In the months before Part 2, study EU knowledge and DigComp material, and draft practice essays, in your Language 2, so that institutional vocabulary (co-decision, conferral, subsidiarity, phishing, metadata) is automatic in that language on test day.