UNDP

Careers

Facts and Faq

FACTS

Benefits

While you’re taking care of building a more fair and equitable world for everyone, we believe in taking care of you. UNDP fosters safe and healthy workplace environments in which our people can achieve a true sense of fulfillment.

UNDP provides a wide range of benefits and policies to ensure a caring and enabling environment for our employees. UNDP will continue to foster further support systems in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Benefit packages will vary by location and contract, but the general package includes the following:

Generous leave policies:

We believe family-friendly policies are essential for ensuring greater gender equity both in the workplace and at home and they make sure that employees can easily balance their personal and professional commitments. This includes fully paid maternity, paternity leave and adoption leave, in addition to facilitating return to work for those who have taken extended leave.

Flexible working arrangements:

We offer a set of flexible working arrangements, with the goal of increasing wellbeing and work-life balance, as well as to support staff through different life events and challenges.

Available arrangements include part-time work, staggered working hours, telecommuting and compressed work schedules.

Health and other insurance policies:

UNDP offers a complete set of insurance policies to make sure you’re taken care of. Insurance coverage depends on contracts and location.

Spousal Support:

We believe that properly caring for our people means also caring for their families. UNDP offers support for the integration and employment of the spouses and partners of our staff, in addition to communities of support for the families of personnel being transitioned to new duty stations.

Mental health and wellness:

UNDP cannot expect to deliver excellence in our work without ensuring the mental wellbeing of our workforce. Our efforts in this area have been further expanded in light of the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. To employees in hardship duty station we also provide robust pre- and post- deployment supports.

More information available at: United Nations Salaries, Allowances, Benefits and Job Classification

Professional development

When you join UNDP, we aren’t just offering you a job. We are offering an investment in you and your future. UNDP believes in the capacity of its people for continuous growth both within UNDP and the broader UN system.

We provide a wide range of opportunities for career and capability development, targeted by contract type and seniority level. These include:

  • Opportunities for staff to independently set goals and enhance their own careers through online websites and platforms featuring a wide range of resources, such as Fuel50 and career journey websites.
  • Opportunities to learn from other UNDP professionals through career labs as well as coaching and mentoring.
  • Opportunities for on-the-job learning programmes, short-term work placementsand certifications.
  • As part of our People for 2030 Strategy [link], UNDP is committed to making sure that managers at all levels of the organization are capable of leading and helping their people develop effectively. UNDP offers a range of programmes and courses specifically designed to help our managers enhance these skills.
Opportunities

UNDP offers a wide range of opportunities, including fixed-term staff positions requiring different levels of experience and expertise, short-term assignments such as consultancies and contracts, as well as internships and other young professional programmes

Application

You can visit our vacancies page for open positions. Please review our application process and then make sure you fulfill all minimum criteria before continuing with your application.

UNDP uses the eRecruit system, which allows applicants to update their personal profile regularly. This profile can be used to apply for multiple UNDP positions. All applications must be submitted through this system. This includes applications for specialist positions including those in IT, for consultancies and contracts as well as for internships. Applications submitted via email or mail will not be accepted.

UNDP internship opportunities are decentralized. Positions are advertised on the main UNDP job site under their respective programmatic area. 

You must be enrolled in the last year of a bachelor’s degree, enrolled in a master’s studies or have finished your studies within the past year to apply. We do not require previous work experience. Applicants should demonstrate an interest in the field of development and highlight any technological or other expertise relevant to the position.

The Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Programme provides young, talented professionals with the opportunity to gain a foothold in the UN system. The Specialist Development Programme (SP), offered through the JPO framework, provides the same for young professionals with a specific expertise. Our recently launched Graduate Programme offers opportunities to promising new graduates with no prior work experience.

As part of our mission to foster inclusion for those with disabilities, UN Volunteers has partnered with UNDP to provide a Talent Programme for Young Professionals with Disabilities under the age of 35. 

Young professionals wishing to apply to be a JPO or to the SDP are encouraged to read more and discover current vacancies by visiting our JPO Programme page.

To become a UN Volunteer, you can create a profile online using the VNAM system. Our VNAM system can also be used to apply for special calls, including the Talent Programme for Young Professionals with Disabilities. Those aged 18-29 years old may apply to work on the frontlines of UNDP operations across the globe by becoming a UN Youth Volunteer.

We also welcome volunteers who cannot join our offices but wish to contribute to our mission remotely. These individuals are invited to explore our opportunities for volunteering online. 

For any information regarding UNDP’s application and selection process, please read our “How to Apply” page.

Selection criteria

Diverse field experience in developing countries would be a strong asset. Such experience can be obtained through, among other things, work with INGOs or non-profit branches of consulting firms. Project management experience is an asset for many positions. Typically, an additional UN language (especially French) will also be an asset.

Most importantly, we are looking for candidates who exhibit a commitment to our mission and values. For more information on the personal and professional qualities we look for, please review our Competency Framework and Values.

Exposure to the UN, for example through work alongside one of its agencies, is recommended. It is always important that candidates ensure their experiences align strongly with the requirements of the position before applying.

For any information regarding UNDP’s application and selection process, please read our “How to Apply” documentation.

Internship

UNDP internship opportunities are decentralized. Positions are advertised on the main UNDP job site under their respective programmatic area. 

You must be enrolled in the last year of a bachelor’s degree, enrolled in a master’s studies or have finished your studies within the past year to apply. We do not require previous work experience. Applicants should demonstrate an interest in the field of development and highlight any technological or other expertise relevant to the position.

Internships do not count toward minimum required years of experience. Nevertheless, our internships can provide you with a better understanding of UNDP’s mission and culture, strengthen your network and CV and may lead to opportunities that enhance your chances of joining UNDP in the future.

Internships usually last a maximum of 6 months. For those receiving academic credit, internships may last a maximum of 9 months.

Unless sponsored by another institution or State, UNDP interns are eligible for a stipend, which is a single monthly rate that varies by duty station.

Miscellaneous

UNDP is committed to a diverse workforce and strongly encourages those with disabilities to apply for vacancies. To make sure this is possible, our eRecruit system provides numerous accessibility features. These include: adjustments to monitor settings, keyboard navigation, and the ability to function with a range of standard assistive technologies. To receive this or other support during the application process, applicants with disabilities may select the reasonable accommodation option in UNDP’s eRecruit system.

UNDP makes sure that our people have the opportunity to learn and grow within the organization, whether they are beginning their careers with UNDP or joining us in a leadership position. We offer a wide range of professional development opportunities for all fixed-term employees and junior professionals. To learn more about professional development opportunities for full-time employees, visit our Professional Development page.

UNDP promotes a culture of work-life balance by offering a large array of benefits to full-time staff including flexible working arrangements, leave policies and other forms of support. UNDP also recognizes the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and has reemphasized our commitment to taking care of our people. To find out more, please visit our Benefits and Wellbeing page.

All staff at our New York Headquarters must be registered with the Host Country authorities, in this case the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. UNDP personnel working at our Headquarters who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents must be in G-4 visa to be eligible for employment.

Those applying for UNDP internships should note that each host country will require a different type of visa. You will have to check the relevant visa and submit your application independently. However, you do not need a visa before applying for an internship position with UNDP.

For further assistance, applicants may contact the HelpDesk.