Only complete applications will be considered.

As the Agency serves the health needs of everyone, at all stages of life, across the entire country, it seeks to ensure that its governing bodies, through their composition and the experience of their members, are capable of addressing all such situations.

Applications will be selected by a jury convened by the Agency, based on the information provided in the cover letter, the candidates’ alignment with the sought-after skills, and an analysis of conflicts of interest. The jury will ensure that the combined skills and experience within the Scientific Council enable it to fully carry out its missions. It will also ensure that gender parity and diversity are taken into account during the selection of candidates.

Declarations of interest will be reviewed by Santé publique France’s Internal Ethics Committee.

Candidates will be informed of the outcome of the review of their application via email from the Scientific Council secretariat following approval of the Scientific Council’s composition by the Board of Directors (during the fourth quarter of 2025).

Members will be appointed for four years by the Board of Directors.

The composition of the Scientific Council is published on the Agency’s website; the declarations of interests of Scientific Council members are published on the DPI SANTE portal

Membership on a Santé publique France expert committee is incompatible with participation in any other Agency committee, including the Scientific Council, as well as with any direct contractual relationship with the Agency.

The Scientific Council consists of twenty-seven members, including its chair, at least four of whom are currently working or have previously worked abroad or within European or international organizations. The agency aims to significantly expand the international scope of its Scientific Council.

Members are appointed upon the recommendation of the Director General for a four-year term, renewable by decision of the Chair of the Board of Directors, following approval by the Board of Directors of the list of members. They are selected from among scientific experts competent in the Agency’s areas of expertise and recruited following a call for applications, after review of their professional background and conflicts of interest, in accordance with the provisions of Article L. 1451-1.

The duties of a member of the Scientific Council are incompatible with membership in any other body of the Agency and with any contractual relationship with it.

The Chair of the Scientific Council is appointed from among its members by order of the Minister of Health, following the Scientific Council’s recommendation.
In the event of a vacancy, for any reason whatsoever, a new member is appointed under the same conditions for the remainder of the term of the person they are replacing.

The Scientific Council may call upon the assistance of any qualified person.

The aim is to recruit individuals whose expertise and experience will enable the Scientific Council to conduct a collective and comprehensive analysis of the Agency’s science policy, to examine how it carries out all of its missions based on the best available scientific evidence, and to analyze its various programs in greater detail.

Given the Agency’s missions, members of the Scientific Council are expected to possess

• Proven and recognized scientific expertise in public health, demonstrated through their work and publications, and extensive experience in applying this expertise to various fields of public health research or practice, as outlined below:

• The ability to grasp the scientific strategy of a national public health agency dedicated to a population-based approach, as well as the scientific and operational challenges of the activities it carries out in the fields of surveillance, early warning, prevention, health promotion, and preparedness and response to health crises;

• A solid knowledge and understanding of the national and international challenges and stakeholders in the field of protecting and improving the health of populations, and strengthening public health systems and services.

Candidates with experience in the following areas will be particularly sought after:

• Experience in developing and implementing a scientific policy for a public health expert organization;

• Experience in using evidence and data to inform public decision-making;

• Experience in designing, implementing, and evaluating surveillance, early warning, and monitoring systems;

• Experience in generating knowledge and evidence regarding public health interventions and their application in prevention and health promotion;

• Experience in generating knowledge to document the impacts of climate change on population health and to implement public policies and interventions aimed at reducing these impacts;

• Experience in collecting and analyzing environmental data for cross-referencing with health data;

• Experience in generating knowledge to document social and regional health inequalities and in evaluating public policies and interventions aimed at reducing them;

• Experience in the development, analysis, and use of public health indicators, particularly regarding the assessment of the public health burden of diseases and health determinants;

• Experience in applying innovations to public health;

• Experience supporting responses to health crises and evaluating government responses;

• Experience in designing and implementing public policies and interventions aimed at improving the health status of populations, including social marketing interventions;

• Experience in the economic and social evaluation of public health interventions;

• Experience in public health advocacy and the implementation of public health policies among the population;

• Knowledge of issues related to institutional capacity building in public health, particularly with a focus on field-level actions and decision support;

Functioning

Members of the Scientific Council are appointed for a term of four years.

The Scientific Council is convened by its chair, or at the request of the Director General, or upon the reasoned initiative of at least one-third of its members, or at the request of the Board of Directors. It meets in plenary session at least three times a year, either in person or via web conference.

Agendas are prepared jointly by the Chair of the Scientific Council, the Deputy Scientific Director to the Executive Director, and the Secretariat of the Scientific Council, which is managed by the Scientific and International Division.

The minutes of Scientific Council meetings and the annual activity report are prepared by the Scientific Council Secretariat prior to approval by the Scientific Council.

The Scientific Council’s opinions and recommendations are drafted by the Scientific Council, without the involvement of the Scientific Council Secretariat. The same applies when conducting program or strategic direction reviews, or for evaluation reports requested by the Agency.

The Scientific Council may be called upon to work jointly with the Ethics and Professional Conduct Committee and/or the Committee for Policy and Dialogue with Society.
The Scientific Council may refer matters to the CED [4].

Members of the Scientific Council are bound by confidentiality and professional discretion regarding any document or information of which they have become aware in their capacity as members of the Scientific Council.

Members sign a “Confidentiality and Commitment Agreement” and commit to regularly attending meetings and participating in any necessary drafting or proofreading work in between meetings. They also commit to familiarizing themselves with the applicable ethical principles and to adhering to them.

Members will have access to information held by Santé publique France that is necessary for the requested work.

Working Language

The working language of the Scientific Council will be adapted to the composition of the Scientific Council (French and/or English).

Workload for members

To ensure optimal performance, the Scientific Council typically meets three times a year in plenary session (two two-day in-person meetings and one one-day or two half-day remote meetings). Ad hoc meetings may be organized as needed, particularly within the framework of working groups for specific activities (program evaluation, review of the work program, etc.), or joint working groups with members of the CED and the COD.

Role and Additional Responsibilities of the Chair of the Scientific Council

The Chair of the Scientific Council attends the Agency’s Board of Directors meetings in an advisory capacity [5]. The Board of Directors meets three times a year.

The Chair is invited to present the annual activity report to the Administrative Board.

He or she may be invited to attend CED or COD meetings to ensure a link with these bodies.

His workload is estimated at 10 to 12 days per year

He is an ex officio member of the ANSES Scientific Council [6] and may appoint a representative to it.

Travel and subsistence expenses are reimbursed in accordance with the terms and conditions applicable to civilian government employees.

Compensation for loss of income in the case of self-employed individuals, as well as compensation for time spent attending meetings and for work performed, will be provided in accordance with the schedule established by the Board of Directors of Santé publique France.

Your personal data is processed under the responsibility of Santé publique France. The processing is based on the implementation of pre-contractual measures related to the applicant’s application to the committee.

• For unsuccessful candidates: CVs and application materials will be deleted within three months following the conclusion of the selection process;

• For candidates selected for the committee:

  • CVs and application files will be retained for up to one year after the end of the term of office in connection with your participation on the Scientific Council; Certain financial documents (bank account information, proof of identity, etc.) that may be requested from you at a later date, as they are necessary for the reimbursement of your travel expenses and allowances, must, in accordance with the law, be retained for 5 years after the final payment.

The data will be processed by authorized personnel at Santé publique France, and its subcontractors will have access to this information only to the extent necessary for the performance of their duties.

You may exercise your rights to object, access, rectify, erase, and restrict the processing of personal data by contacting Santé publique France, Data Protection Officer, 12 rue du Val d’Osne, 94415 Saint Maurice Cedex or dpo@santepubliquefrance.fr (please mention the Scientific Council).

You may exercise your rights of access, rectification, and restriction regarding other data by also contacting Santé publique France, Data Protection Officer, 12 rue du Val d’Osne, 94415 Saint Maurice Cedex or dpo@santepubliquefrance.fr (mention the Scientific Council).

If you believe that your data rights are not being respected, you may file a complaint with the National Commission on Informatics and Civil Liberties.

For more information on this data processing: dpo@santepubliquefrance.fr.