Online calculator shows that my expected living allowance is $2,650/month X 24 months = $63,600 Then the additional family allowance says $450/month X 24 months = $10,800 since I have more than 2 dependents. $4000/entrance allowance $225/month exit allowance X 24 months = $5,400. In total for 24 months I would make $83,200 for 24 months or $41,600 per year. Is there any fees that get taken out of that money? Because $41,600 USD without taxes or anything taken out of it is pretty good. That equals to making $75,000 Canadian salary with taxes and all other fees taken out. Because $41,600 usd is approximately $56,000 cad. $75,000 CAD salary is only $56,000 after taxes and all other fees. Am I missing something or because this sounds like a pretty good deal for something with the title volunteer in it.

Hi all, i have my interview for G5 position this week. It’s in operations - data processing and i need genuine suggestions on how to prep for it? What questions to expect? It’s going to be a 30 mins long online interview. I need guidance. Help me out here!! Don’t wanna lose this opportunity :(

Hi people, I am looking for serious advice. I have been asking people, and thinking for myself but I am still very undecided. So, here is the breakdown of my situation:

1. I graduated with a master’s degree almost a year ago and have a job that pays the bills. This is my first job and I don’t have a lot of work ex. I started the job in April.
2. Before the job, I was working with my current company as an intern, and they only finalised that they would hire me in March and so I was looking for opportunities when job offer was not confirmed. I applied for the UNOPS internship and recently got to know, that I got it.
3. I have a hate-love relationship with my job, I have been learning a lot here but I also expect the same from UNOPS. The internship is paid but I might have to ask for help from my parents.
4. Also for some more context, the current company that I am working in is a growing start-up, so I am developing a lot of skills but my CV lacks big names.
5. Also, I have a visa situation. After my graduation I am now on a job-seeking visa in Germany which I could convert to work visa with my current job but haven’t gotten an appointment to do so and now if I take the UN opportunity I won’t be able to. Visa would expire during the internship if I take the offer, and I mentioned this to the UN HR and they said people were able to extend their visas before, but what I have heard is a 18-months job seeking visa that you get after graduation in Germany cannot be extended. Does anyone know what is the case, can it be extended or not? Does UN have a different visa system?

Is it worth risking it all, especially since I am a foreigner and not a student anymore, for an internship with UNOPS?

Any meaningful advice would be really appreciated!

Hi All

I am writing my first assessment for the above position at P3 level. Please assist me with tips or any preparatory material I can use.

Any info will help as it is my first attempt.

Thank you.

Hi, I recently got invited for an interview for a G5 position. I am based in a different city from the duty station. In fact it’s a whole different province. I don’t have any problem with relocating, just wanna know if UN provides accommodation to people with G positions or I would have to arrange something on my own??

I found job a Fishery Resources Specialist but the pay grade said n/a what does that mean how the pay decided

I applied for a P4 position several months ago and was invited for a pre-recorded interview. I didn't receive any follow-up so I assumed I wasn't short-listed but I just got a request for documents including my passport, diplomas, last payslip, etc. They also said they had enclosed a short guide to assist in navigating the process, but did not attach anything.

Since I haven't heard anything else from them, I just wanted to ask if this is a regular part of the process? I'm assuming it's a good sign but I'm unsure what the next stage of the recruitment process is or if this is just an automated email?

Hi everyone!

I was just wondering if any applicants for the UNU Office of the Rector Fellowship in Tokyo had heard back from the hiring team. + Looking for former fellows to share their experiences.

Thank you!

I'm from Nepal and there aren't any good universities here to study in. Will I still get a job in the UN if I study my bachelor's in Nepal?

Hi all, I am wondering if anyone is familiar with the hiring process at the International Criminal Court and can give me a rough guesstimate of how long I should be waiting/how long the process usually takes.

I applied for a job about 7 months ago and got an email two weeks ago that I had been invited to do the written examination, which I completed yesterday. I am now wondering (a) how long it will take for them to get back to me, and (b) if I did do well on the test, a rough timeline of how many interviews/background check?/anything else they may need, so that I can align my life in the coming months with the process.

I have already emailed to ask but also wanted to get some anecdotal experience if people have some to share. TIA!

So I applied for an internship at FAO in early March. I got an invite for an interview this early May, and they asked me my available start date. The problem is, the position is for six month, and I have an Erasmus exchange starting in September. I was thinking can I say my earliest availability is February 2025, or asking it would hurt my chance bcs it's too far? Or do I have to just choose one, Erasmus or Internship?

I replied the email saying I can start by July, thinking that if I got accepted then I will choose Erasmus or this; but if February is possible then I might ask them

Does anybody know, what does it mean if UN Women contacts the references months after an interview?

Specifically, do they contact the references for all recommended candidates, or only the one they want to hire? This is for a P level position in a country office.

Thank you

Wondering if anyone has had experience working for the UNJSPF in New York and how it was? Did you feel part of the UN, or a bit peripheral? Thanks!

Hey guys)

Is there anyone who applied to ILO internship. If so, did u hear back?

I have applied for a job at UNDP and I was told by one of my references that they contacted him which is great, however I discovered that one of my references have changed her place of work which means her old email is not active anymore, even though I indicated her phone number too I'm a bit anxious, what will happen if they can't reach her out? Did anyone have similar experience?

Does anybody have an experience working at AIIB in Beijing? I might be receiving an offer and would like to hear anything about them, as I cannot really find much on the internet.

Thank you in advance!

Hello! I’m new here. Just wanted to ask if anyone has applied for the FAO internship for this year - if so, has anyone received any feedback yet? I sent in my application the end of March 2024.

Thank you so much!

I am an International Relations graduate and non-EU citizen who wants to find an internship in EU countries. Most EU instituations require EU citizenship while UN internships don't. I wonder if there are other internship programs other than UN that welcome non-EU citizens. I would be extremely glad to hear about any related opportunities:)

Hi everyone! I recently reconnected with someone who works at the UN. I knew this person personally, and we had a good relationship. I reached out to them recently asking if they knew of any career opportunities that I could get started in, and they wanted me to send my CV to them so they could circulate it amongst their colleagues and friends. Specifically, I am interested in health research and advocacy, as well as women’s/gender issues. My connection said they would share my CV with their friends at WHO and in their department’s health sector. I would say this person has a higher up position in the organization and has worked at the UN for a number of years already. Do you think any opportunity might come out of this? Especially since I haven’t submitted any formal application. I am pretty unfamiliar with how the UN works so I thought I’d ask here. Thanks!

Hello all! Hoping someone will be able to help me with my query as no amount of Internet sleuthing has led me to any definitive answers. Some background: I have about 14 years of applicable marketing, communications, insights, and market research experience under my belt. I've really enjoyed my time and experience in the industry, having been lucky enough to have worked across multiple sectors with some of the biggest brands and clients in the world. My career has allowed me to work and live in some wonderful cities around the globe and grow into a Senior Director (VP) position. While I've loved working on consumer goods and B2B projects over the years, I've most enjoyed the work I have done on social good, cause marketing and with NGOs and international charities. I'd like to now make a move to work more permanently in that space and explore positions within the United Nations. Which leads me to my question. I'm very open to location and I'm aware there are probably communications jobs in many, many cities around the world, but I'd like to focus my efforts when it comes down to networking, researching and applying. Would anyone be able to tell me what 2-3 UN locations would be best for communications/marketing/strategy/etc.? When I say "best" I'm using that word loosely, but essentially, I mean which cities may have the most available positions, the biggest teams, do the most heavy lifting globally in regards to outputs etc. So what would be the smartest locations to home in on? Perhaps the answer is obvious (NYC, Geneva, Nairobi?)....but maybe the answer is not so obvious and there is some additional context or insights that someone could offer. Thank you all so much! Lookout forward to hearing some feedback or just having a discussion about the topic. Much appreciated :)

I’ve been working for an international NGO for the last 2.5 years and have had significant growth. I just recently received an offer to join UN in a National Officer position in the capital city of my country. Since I started working in the humanitarian field, my goal has been to join the UN. This offer has a 25% lower salary than my current position in the NGO, which would be the equivalent of a P-2. I’m in a good path currently to continue growing; however, because of religious reasons I feel at some point that growth would stop (christian NGO).

How challenging is it to grow once you’re inside UN system? I’ve seen colleagues from different organisms in national positions that have been stuck in their roles for years or leaving for NGOs. If I took the risk of moving to a NO UN, I’d like to be sure to be able to grow and maybe in a couple years land a P position. What are your thoughts and experiences?

Does anyone have any experience with Young Experts Programme? Was 5k per month enough for you? How much were you able to actually earn from that 5k?

Hello! I've been offered a job in NYC, I just got married and my wife would join me. For her career it would be important to keep working in the non-profit field. What was your experience for finding jobs in the US? Challenges, tips? Of course she will have G-4 visa and EAD. Just wondering what would be the timeframe we could expect for her to join with a job! Thank you

Hi all,

Just curious about the relocation grant, when selected for an international position does one receive the relocation grant before relocating? Or do you receive it along with the settling in grant once in the duty station? Although it has been mentioned in this group, there's very little information on the specifics.

I was taking care of my father for almost 8 years and is the reason why I haven’t explored a lot of international roles or had been able to hold a job while going through law school.

I am a professional with over seven years of experience, and this consultancy requires to have at least 5 years of experience. It’s a full time consultancy.

Given that this is based in Geneva, and I was informed that I’ll have to do all my taxes and social security and would also need to take care of my health insurance.

What is an ideal daily rate that I should try to negotiate for this consultancy.

Any tips or recommendations from GVA based people would be helpful.

As the question says, when do you think a gap in your CV (unemployment) can become a problem to find work at the UN? Especially if the gap is not justified with care responsibilities, etc. but you were unemployed just because you couldn’t find work.

Hello all, I’ve been offered a traineeship position at ICRC and will be paid 3850 CHF. Is it possible I find a room to rent in Geneva at least 30-40 min train/bus distance from the HQ for like 600 CHF per month 😭 please help. How do I live with only this much income in Geneva?? And how much would you suppose I’d spend monthly on food? Thank you very much beforehand!

Lastly, where should I look for renting rooms and where do you suggest I buy groceries from?

I have recently been offered a consultant position at UNECE in Geneva that pays $5000 monthly. Coming from WFP in Rome where I had the same salary, at first that seemed reasonable but the more I look into it, the more it seems like 5000 would be only slightly above minimum wage in Geneva and definitely not sufficient for living comfortably. Is there something I'm missing? Considering I'd be a communications coordinator for a project, I don't think I should have to share an apartment with roommates and struggle every month. Is this the reailty for a lot of UN professionals here?

One of the recent posts on this forum gave away some peaces of advice for writing a good cover letter that made for a bit of a confusion. This advice was based of the claim that individual departments’ hiring managers don’t see the resumes of internship applicants, only their CLs and bits about their education, as supposedly, HR filters resumes out. Is that actually the case??