UN Internships – for everyone!

Finally, we have it! A compilation of 32 possible internships that a student can do with United Nations or with one of its associated organizations. These internships are for everyone, be it a management guru, finance wizard, budding journalist, legal eagle, literati folks or engineering geeks. Barring a few, most of these are unpaid internships but there couldn’t possibly be a price tag for this experience of a life time! Hope you enjoy knowing about these opportunities as much as we have enjoyed discovering them :). Upfront apologies for it being a long read…

1. Internship with United Nations International Computing Centre (UNICC), Geneva – Final year and recently graduate students studying Information Technology and Computer Science can join this prestigious internship program at Geneva. It’s a running internship program which can be joined at any time of the year. The duration is of 3-6 months. This is a paid internship program and the students selected for this internship will be paid an amount of Swiss Franc 2500 on a monthly basis by UNICC. More details here: http://www.unicc.org/employment/internship.asp

2. Internship with World Bank, Washington D.C. – Students pursuing Master’s Degree or PhD programs can apply for this very prestigious internship opportunity with World Bank. It’s a paid internship program where the bank pays the interns on an hourly basis of their work. Students have to manage their own accommodation though. The duration of this internship is a minimum of four weeks. More info here: http://goo.gl/wioDK

3. Internship with International Monetary Fund (IMF), Washington – PhD students (age less <32) studying Macro Economics or related field can now intern with IMF as part of its Fund Internship Program (FIP). The internships are usually 10-13 weeks in duration between May-October 2012 and the applications are open till December 20th, 2011. ~50 graduates every year are selected for this prestigious internship program among thousands who apply. The interns are paid a salary comparable to Senior Level Support staff, economic class round trip fare to Washington DC, limited medical insurance and assistance in finding accommodation in DC. For more details, please visit – http://www.imf.org/external/np/adm/rec/job/summint.htm

4. Internship with International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) – Students planning to intern with IFAD should have completed at least two years of under graduate studies. IFAD aims at giving students an idea of how the United Nations handle the funds for agricultural development in the various member states of the UN. This is a paid internship program and IFAD will be paying the interns an amount of USD 600 per month. It’s a running internship program and the interns should expect a ‘real’ work environment. Official website: http://www.ifad.org/job/intern/index.htm

5. Internship with World Trade Organization (WTO), Geneva – Post graduate students who want to gain valuable insight into the international trading system can avail the opportunity to intern at WTO, Geneva. WTO screens the applications from the students and finally decides upon how many interns they will hire on paid basis (fixed stipend CHF 1500 per month) and how many students will be working as a non-paid intern. It’s a running internship and the duration of the program is generally up to 12 weeks. Application details can be found here:

https://erecruitment.wto.org/public/hrd-cl-vac-view.asp?jobinfo_uid_c=3475&vaclng=en

6. Internship with International Maritime Organization (IMO), London –Masters and PhD students from member countries of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) are eligible to intern with IMO. Students have to apply to the Legal Affairs and External Relations Division of the IMO with a letter of sponsorship. This is a running internship and the applications will be accepted at the starting and mid-month, on first come first served basis. It’s not a paid internship and hence, the letter from the sponsor is a must. A certificate of attendance, indicating the acceptance of the student at IMO, will be issued at the end of the internship program. Internship duration may range from 2 weeks – 2 month. More info here:
http://www.imo.org/About/Careers/Internship/Pages/Default.aspx

7. Internship with United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (UNCHS) and United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Nairobi –Pre-final & final year undergraduates/ Masters/PhD students can intern with UNCHS/UNEP at Nairobi for 3-6 months. This is an unpaid internship and hence, endorsement from a sponsoring institution or any regulatory body is a must. This also is a running internship, and these FAQs are extremely helpful: http://goo.gl/q9Czm. Please visit http://www.unon.org/intern_ship/interns/registers.php to apply

8. Internship with United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) – Interested students must be enrolled in a current graduate or post-graduation course related to the field of international/social development, problems and survival of children or subsequent development and management. This internship opportunity is for academically bright students, as the screening process of the applications indicates. The internship period may range from 6-16 weeks. This is an unpaid internship and the students will need to support themselves. The next application window will be open until 1^st March, 2012, for the internship period of June-August 2012. For further info, please visit: http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/index_faq.html

9. Internship with United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), Vienna – This is another prestigious but unpaid internship which can last 2-6 months depending on student’s performance. This internship opportunity is for graduate students studying Commercial Trade Law, International Trade Law, Private International Law etc. The internship can be roughly divided into two sections: A Legislative Section and a Technical Assistance Section. Applications are accepted for both. More details here: http://www.uncitral.org/uncitral/en/vacancies_internships.html

10. Internship with United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Germany – Graduate students studying in related field can apply to the ad-hoc internship opportunities at the UNCCD. This internship opportunity will help them get a first-hand experience of handling international problems and also provide them with an insight of how the United Nations work. This is not a paid internship and the students are recommended to arrange for a sponsoring institution to be a part of this internship. More info: http://www.unccd.int/publicinfo/internship.php

11. Internship with United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), New York – This is a running internship, meant specifically for PG students. The duration of the internship can be 6 weeks-1 year. This is an unpaid internship and hence, the student should bear their own expenses. More info here: http://www.unifem.org/about/internships.php

12. Internship with United Nations Economic Commission for Europe – Statistical Division (UNECESD) – This internship of about 2-6 months needs graduate students who have completed a minimum of four years of study at any university from around the world. The positions are filled on an ad-hoc basis, and hence, applications are accepted throughout the year using the online application form. UNECESD does not provide financial remuneration to the interns. This internship program is intended to promote a better understanding of the ECE’s work in the field of East-West Economic co-operation. Further details about the internship program can be found here: http://www.unece.org/oes/internships/internship_prog.html

13. Internship with United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) – Students from wide range of disciplines can apply for the 1-4 months internship program of UNESCO, either at the Headquarters or at the field offices. Graduate and post-graduate students are eligible to apply for this internship, which will make them aware about multicultural world among themselves. UNESCO does not pay the interns, and hence, it is recommended that the students approach a sponsoring institute for support. It’s a running internship and applications should be sent one month before the starting date of the program. Further info here: http://www.unesco.org/general/eng/about/interne.shtml

14. Internship with United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change (UNFCCC) – The objective of this program is to provide an idea of the framework required in professional fields to the postgraduate students through field work assignments. The duration of the internship can be 2-4 months. In case, there are special academic requirements, the maximum period can be extended to 6 months. Interns are not reimbursed for their expenses during the internship period and should support themselves. With three windows of application, the next deadline to send an application is Mid-March for the program period of June-August. More info here: http://unfccc.int/secretariat/internship_programme/items/2653.php

15. Internship with United Nations High-Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR), Geneva – Graduate students enrolled with programs related to the works of the United Nations (like, International Law, Political Science, History, and Social Sciences) are expected to apply for this prestigious program. Maximum 24 interns are selected by UNHCHR on a twice-a-year basis, once in June and another time during December. With the duration of the internship being 3-6 months, the time division looks pretty smooth for international students to take part in it. More info can be found on http://www.ohchr.org/EN/AboutUs/Pages/InternshipProgramme.aspx

16. Internship with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Geneva – Undergraduate or graduate students studying in the area of law, political science, economic and social development, international relations, public policy and administration can be a part of this internship program. The duration is of 2-6 months, and is specifically meant for UNHCR’s Geneva and Budapest offices. More info here: http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49c3646c49d.html For the similar internship with the Germany based office of UNHCR, this should help: http://www.unhcr.de/

17. Internship with United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), Geneva –Five application/internship period windows are available in a year; January-March, April-June, June-August, July-September and October-December. It’s recommended to apply three months before the program period you want to join in. Students can apply for eleven different sections that UNIDIR has declared as a part of their internship program. The UNIDIR internship program is held in their office in Geneva. The application letters from the students must be accompanied with an Introductory letter as well their CVs. Detailed info here: http://www.unidir.org/html/en/opportunities.html

18. Internship with United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI), Rome – UNICRI accepts a limited number of interns every year on an ad-hoc basis. Graduate and Post-Graduate students with diverse academic background can apply to this program using the application form at http://www.unicri.it/institute/staff/vacancies/internships.php. The duration of the course is 2-6 months and the academic background of the students should be similar to the functioning of United Nations. This is an unpaid internship and students are advised to handle their own expenses.

19. Internship with United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Vienna – This internship with UNODC is based in Vienna and invites students who are enrolled for a graduate degree with any University. The students should be enrolled with any of the various fields of study like Journalism, Finance, Information Technology, Business Administration, Economics, International Relations etc. This is an unpaid internship with 2-6 months duration. Details about the UNODC internship can be found here: http://www.unvienna.org/unov/en/job_internship.html UNODC, Bangkok also hosts a similar internship program, details here: http://www.unodc.org/eastasiaandpacific/en/who-we-are/full-time-internship-eap.html

20. United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), New York – UNFPA offers internship opportunities to graduate students only. It’s a high priority internship opportunity for the students to experience the functioning of UNFPA as an insider. A non-remunerative program that it is, students are recommended to get required financial support from sponsors to handle their personal expenses during the entire duration of the internship. More detailed information can be found in the UNFPA website here: http://www.unfpa.org/employment/internship.htm

21. Internship with United Nations Staff College (UNSC), Turin – UNSC caters to students who are studying in fields related to Knowledge Management, Learning and Training. It’s a six months internship program and the students are expected to work from the UNSC office at Turin. It’s a strictly non-paid program. For more info please visit: http://www.unssc.org/home/

22. Internship with United Nations University (UNU), Tokyo – The UNU offers around a hundred internship opportunities each year to students by challenging them with work related to daily functioning of the University. Mostly post-graduate students and young hard working professionals are expected to apply for these positions. It’s an unpaid internship and the students take back with them loads of experience of working with an international administrative body of the stature of the UNU. Link to the UNU, Tokyo: http://unu.edu/about/hr/internships/unu-centre-tokyo, the UNU, New York: http://unu.edu/about/hr/internships/unu-at-united-nations and the UNU, Paris: http://unu.edu/about/hr/internships/office-at-unesco

23. Internship with World Federation with United Nations Associations (WFUNA), New York and Geneva – This much prestigious international internship program boasts of students participating in it from around 37 countries in the world. Students will have to work at the United Nations Headquarters, and hence, should be at the best of their conducts. It’s an unpaid internship and the duration will be of six months. Please visit http://www.wfuna.org/internships-at-wfuna for more information.

24. Internship with World Health Organization (WHO), Geneva and Worldwide – WHO provides internship opportunities to students from a diverse educational background. The duration is 6-12 weeks, and there’s no stipend paid to the students participating in it. This internship provides opportunities to students to work at the Geneva office of WHO as well as in many other field offices in various countries in the world. The internship has limited seats and is only applicable to students enrolled in a graduation programs at a University. Details here: http://www.who.int/employment/internship/interns/en/index.html

25. Internship with World Tourism Organization (WTO), Madrid – Graduate and post-graduate students who are willing to work on a voluntary basis are welcome by WTO as interns in their office at Madrid. An application letter mentioning the field of preference is all that is needed to grab this internship. It’s an unpaid internship. Details: http://unwto.org/en/about/employment/internships?op=1

26. Internship with International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), Hamburg – Post graduate students having a good command over English and/or French and with an interest in understanding functioning of the ITLOS can apply for this internship opportunity. It’s based at Hamburg and general duration is 2-6 months. The next available internship program is from April to June 2012. To avail this opportunity, interested students must apply by 31^st December, 2011. More details can be found here: http://www.itlos.org/index.php?id=2&L=0

27. Internship with United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) – Graduate and Post Graduate students in Law, Economics, Finance, Public Policy, Political Science etc. can apply for internship programs with UNITAR. Every year, 2-3 interns are selected for UNITAR’s Debt and Financial Management (DFM) Training Program which runs for 1-6 months. Information about the various internship programs at the various offices of UNITAR can be found at http://www.unitar.org/job/internships. It is worth mentioning here that UNITAR’s Geneva office hosts three internship programs, which are ‘Climate Change Training’ program, ‘Diplomacy and International Affairs Management’ program and the ‘Application of International Environment Law’ program. Whereas, only ‘Multilateral Diplomacy and International Affairs Program‘ is held at its New York office. Largely, these internship opportunities are for unpaid programs and students are recommended to take help from sponsoring companies.

28. Internship with International Labour Organization (ILO), Geneva –International Labor Organization, based at Geneva, differentiates their internship program into two different types – 1. Professional Internship program. 2. Secretarial Internship program. ILO is devoted to provide internship opportunities to interested students to spread principles of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. Students studying for Master’s Degree or higher can apply for these internship programs which last for 3-6 months. In case an intern is not supported by an institution (university, government or other institution), a stipend to cover basic subsistence costs will be paid by the ILO. The official website of ILO has very detailed information about the program:
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/pers/vacancy/intern.htm

29. Internship with International Court of Justice (ICJ), Hague – ICJ offers internship opportunities to recent graduates and young professionals in the related fields to have an experience of the functioning of the ICJ under registered officials. It’s an internship of 1-3 months and the numbers of seats are very limited. Interns will not receive any financial compensation from the ICJ during their internship period. The application form to apply for this prestigious program can be found here http://www.icj-cij.org/registry/index.php?p1=2&p2=5&p3=4

30. Internship with United Nations Development Program (UNDP) – This is a very prestigious internship program and only students with outstanding performances during their graduation are taken as interns. It includes development oriented studies with practical experience in diverse fields. Students should have fluency in at least two of the three official languages of the UNDP, which are English, Spanish and French. UNDP does not pay the interns any stipend during the program. More info: http://www.undp.org/internships/

31. Internship with United Nations (UN) Headquarters – This is the most important as well as the most prestigious internship opportunity among all the internship programs run by the subsidiary departments of the United Nations. The UN provides internship opportunities for the interns in all its working offices at New York, Geneva, Vienna, Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Bangkok, Beirut and Santiago. These internship opportunities are created to provide students a clear understanding of the working procedure of UN. The duration of the program is of 2 months, and is available in 3 separate time windows in a year. Mid-January to mid-March, early June-early August, and mid-September to mid-November. Detailed information here –
http://www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/sds/internsh/index.htm. Also information on internship programs specific to New York Head Quarters of the UN can be found here: https://careers.un.org/lbw/Home.aspx

32. Internship with United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Vienna – UNIDOaccepts a limited numbers of unpaid interns every year for promoting the goals of the organization among the bright minds of future generations. The duration of the internship is usually 3-6 months. For an internship with UNIDO students MUST be studying Economics, International Law, Public and Business Administration, Engineering, Information Science, Statistics etc. A complete list of requirements and application form can be found here: http://www.unido.org/index.php?id=o82311.

Editor’s note: – Information above is our interpretation and paraphrasing of what we found on the shared links. If you have any more specific information on this internships or have interned in these program before and would like to share your experience, please leave a comment.

This internship was shared by Neha Goel from School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi and with this, she wins another prize in Get Rewarded for your internship hunt! Contest. Congratulations Neha!

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