About the internship:

This HRM internship is an international internship with the Staff Development Unit (SDU). Under the leadership of the Chief of the Human Resources Management Section (HRMS), the Staff Development Unit wants to provide opportunities for learning and skills development to all staff to support the fulfillment of the OHCHR mandate; and to be a strategic partner in assessing organizational and individual learning needs, by proposing learning solutions and by evaluating the impact through a collaborative approach. The application for this UN internship is open now.

The intern shall work closely with and report directly to the Head of Staff Development Unit.

Quick details of internship:

Application period:  2 July 2020 to 29 June 2021

Posting Title: Internship – Human Resources Management [Staff Development], Temporary Job Opening

Position Title: Intern – Human Resources

Organization: UN

Department/Office: Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

Duty Station: Geneva, Switzerland

Job opening number: 20-Human Resources-OHCHR-137857-J-Geneva (A)

Internship Period: Three months (renewable to 6 months)

About OHCHR:

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is UN the Secretariat department in charge of enhancing international human rights mechanisms; fostering equality and battling with discrimination; fighting impunity and enhancing accountability and the rule of law; incorporating human rights in development and in the economic area; expanding the democratic space; and early warning and protection of human rights in circumstances of dispute, violence, and insecurity.

Summary of internship

This internship is an UNPAID and full-time engagement that provides a framework through which students from diverse academic backgrounds get exposure to the work of the United Nations by way of their service within Secretariat entities. Interns must comply with the established weekly working hours of the duty location, though not more than five days per week (35 hours) and a one-hour lunch break.

Duties & responsibilities

The intern shall support OHCHR in fulfilling its mission:

• To work for the protection of all human rights for all people;
• To help empower people to realize their rights; and
• To assist those responsible for supporting such rights in ensuring that they are implemented.

Furthermore,

The daily responsibilities of HRM [Staff Development] interns will depend on the individual’s background and duties and may include but are not limited to:

• Supporting the Staff Development Unit in general and, in particular, the intern may: Update the content of the external website for the internship program in preparation for the advertisement on inspira;
• Update the intranet page of the Internship Programme for the Interns forum;
• Develop an extensive frequently asked questions (FAQs) page for interns;
• Assist with the processing of internship applications for the winter semester;
• Assist with the onboarding of interns;
• Support the administration of interns; and
• Perform administrative tasks as assigned by the supervisor, as appropriate.

Qualification and eligibility criteria

Applicants should be keenly interested in the work of the United Nations with a commitment to the principles of the Charter and have the proven ability to successfully communicate with people of diverse cultural backgrounds and beliefs – which includes enthusiasm to realize and be tolerant of different opinions and views.

COMPETENCIES

• The applicant has to show pride in work and in achievements; demonstrate professional competency and mastery of subject matter;
• Be faithful and efficient in fulfilling commitments, meeting deadlines and achieving results;
• Be motivated by professional rather than personal concerns;
• Shows persistence when confronting intricate problems or challenges; and
• Keeps composure in stressful situations.

COMMUNICATION:

• Has clear and effective spoken and written skills;
• Listen to others, properly interprets messages from others and responds suitably;
• Seek clarification, and display interest in having mutual communication; modifies language, tone, style and manner to match the audience; and
• Exhibit openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

TEAMWORK:

• Has to work collaboratively with colleagues to obtain organizational goals;
• Ask for input by genuinely respecting others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others;
• Advance team agenda rather than personal agenda; support and take actions in agreement with final group decision; and
• Gives credit to team accomplishments and admits joint responsibility for team weaknesses.

CLIENT ORIENTATION:

• The intern has to consider all those service recipients to be “clients” and attempt to see things from clients’ point of view;
• Establish and maintain fruitful relations with clients by getting their trust and respect;
• Identify clients’ needs and adapts them to right solutions;
• Oversee ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to stay informed and foresee problems; provides clients with information on progress or setbacks in projects; and
• Meet the timeline for delivery of products or services to clients.

Education

To qualify for the United Nations Secretariat internship program applicants must:

• Be registered in a graduate school program (i.e., Master’s degree or equivalent degree, or higher) or in the final academic year of a first-level university degree (i.e., Bachelor’s degree or equivalent degree),
• have completed an above-mentioned academic degree, preferably in the area of human resources management, business or public administration, social sciences, education or a related field, AND,
• If selected, the intern must begin the internship work within the date indicated on the acceptance letter.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this program, fluency in English or French is required; knowledge of the other is an addition. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is preferable.

Assessment process

Applicants must provide complete and accurate information relating to their personal profile and qualifications as per the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current assignment. And, the hiring manager will contact the short-listed candidates for an informal interview after the review of their application directly.

Imperfect applications/personal history profiles (PHPs) will not be considered.

Therefore it is crucial that the cover letter:

– Specifies the area of interest and earliest period of availability;
– indicates why you are an appropriate candidate for this internship assignment;
– Notes the title and date of the recently achieved academic degree or the scheduled graduation date for study program currently underway;
– Shows information technology skills and programs in which you are proficient; and
– Specifies three references in the submission.

Reminder

The United Nation’s commitment originates from building a diverse and inclusive workforce and invites applicants from different backgrounds and communities/nationalities, including but not limited to migrants and/or disabled individuals.

How to apply?

Qualified international applicants may submit their applications online through the online recruitment platform after completing the requirements of the program.

Apply now

For more details and information regarding the program and useful information, please refer to the UN Career Website.