
Deadline:
October 05, 2025
Location(s)
United States of America
Overview
Details
Duties and Responsibilities
RCs have the responsibility to lead United Nations country teams (UNCTs), ensure system-wide accountability on the ground for the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (Cooperation Framework), and coordinate UN support to countries in their implementation of the 2030 Agenda. DCO interns may be selected for assignments within a section of the Policy and Programming Branch of DCO, including (1) Policy; (2) Inter-agency Programme Facilitation and Data, (3) Strategic Partnerships, (4) Universal Values Team (human rights, gender equality, youth, disability inclusion) and (5) the Cross-Pillar Team (peace, humanitarian, development), or within Office of the Assistant Secretary-General (Front Office), Regional Office, Communications and Results Reporting Branch, RC system Leadership Branch, Human Resources, and Business Management Branch. Interns typically work full-time, five days per week (35 hours), and report to full-time professional staff in our teams, and focus on one of the two tracks set out below under Responsibilities.
DCO Internships typically last between five and six months NB: Candidates available for five to six months full time are typically prioritized by hiring managers. Internships can be in-person, fully remote, or hybrid, i.e. in person for a limited period in combination with remote work, and can therefore take place from any time zone. Successful applicants may include management from regional offices depending on candidate location.
All modalities provide for a safe, professional, inclusive and respectful environment. The DCO internship programmes runs on a 12-month planning horizon, meaning the internship may begin no sooner than 2-months from your application and may start within 12-months of the application. Typically, two larger cohorts of interns are onboarded to work in the following periods • January - June • September - February In the motivation statement, candidates should indicate the track they are interested in, highlighting any UN 2.0 skillsets:
- Track 1: STRATEGIC PLANNING, DATA & ANALYTICS
- Track 2: POLICY ANALYSIS & PROGRAMME FACILITATION
The United Nations recruits and employs staff regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, and religious, cultural and ethnic backgrounds or disabilities. People with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided with support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application. Applicants from developing countries, female candidates, and those that identify as having a disability are encouraged to apply.
Responsibilities
TRACK 1 AND 2: COORDINATION AND EXECUTIVE SUPPORT
- Help collate guidance materials on knowledge capture and sharing
- Assist collection and sharing of emerging good practice and lessons for DCO and UNSDG members
- Help facilitate various online communities of practice
- Support the preparation of senior-level management meetings (including UNSDG and other inter-agency meetings), conferences and retreats
- Support the preparation of country-level meetings organized from the global level
- Support the preparation of slide decks/PowerPoints, background and option papers for meetings
- Support the tracking and analysis of UNSDG decisions and their implementation
- Help ensure consistent visual concepts and language are used
- Assist in the preparation of speeches and talking points
TRACK 1: STRATEGIC PLANNING, DATA & ANALYTICS
- Support analytics on issues relating to the DCO/UNSDG, including cross-cutting needs, priorities, resources, risks and performance
- Assist in the development of corporate visualization solutions derived from multiple data sources using state-of the-art tools to enable insight and decision-making at various levels
- Support the development of data models, including performance measures, to enable scorecard analysis
- Build interactive dashboards and reports, using corporate analytics applications
- Perform ad-hoc analysis and present results in a clear manner
- Work with MS Excel, Power BI, Tableau, ThinkCell, or other similar self-service analytics toolsets
- Work with relational databases such as SQL Server or other databases
- Support geo-spatial analysis and geographic information systems such as ESRI ArcGIS, QGIS, Leaflet, Carto or Open Street Map
- Work with analytical techniques such as sentiment analysis, predictive analysis or social media monitoring
- Support the analytics teams in maintaining key data sets, data models, indices and reports
- Support the preparation of analytical slide decks for policymakers
- Support in the digital solutions lab in experimenting with Generative AI, Automation, Innovation, and low code solutions
- Work with Python, or other tools to support in automating repetitive tasks •Provide strategic support to the digital solutions lab to turn use cases into products
TRACK 2: POLICY ANALYSIS & PROGRAMME FACILITATION
- Help monitor, identify and analyze geographic, political and thematic global trends (across all units of the Policy and Programme branch (eg. human rights, gender equality and women’s empowerment, climate and environment, inter-agency programming, partnerships)
- Support the preparation of analytical reports, papers, talking points and correspondences
- Assist in coordinating the formulation of strategies, programmes and policies
- Support all areas of the policy process: identification and agenda building, policy development, formulation and adoptions, implementation, and evaluation
- Support the knowledge management of policy and programme data/information including community facilitation, good practice capture, knowledge dissemination, and platform management
- Support the preparation of analytical reports, papers, talking points and correspondences
- Assist in coordinating the formulation of strategies, programmes and policies
- Support all areas of the policy process: identification and agenda building, policy development, formulation and adoptions, implementation, and evaluation
- Support the knowledge management of policy and programme data/information
- Support market intelligence around knowledge management and organizational learning
- Support the preparation of meetings, events, talks and visits
Opportunity is About
Eligibility
Candidates should be from:
Description of Ideal Candidate
Competencies
COMMUNICATION
- Speaks and writes clearly and effectively
- Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately
- Asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication
- Tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience
- Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed
PLANNING AND ORGANIZING
- Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies
- Identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required
- Allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work
- Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning
- Monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary
TECHNOLOGICAL AWARENESS
- Actively seeks to apply emerging technology across tasks
- Keeps abreast of available technology
- Understands applicability and opportunities of technology for the organization
Qualifications/special skills
Applicants to the United Nations internship programme must at the time of application meet one of the following requirements: (a) Be enrolled or recently graduated from a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher) in public policy, information management, data science, international relations, or a similar/related field of study; (b) Be enrolled in the final academic year or graduated from a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor’s level or equivalent)y; Applicants must demonstrate their intention to study further or to work in a field relevant to this internship description. No working experience is required to apply for the United Nations Internship Programme. Your training, education, advance course work or skills should benefit the United Nations during your internship.
Languages
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position(s) advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish) is an advantage.
Dates
Deadline: October 05, 2025
Cost/funding for participants
The United Nations internship programme does not provide remuneration. The United Nations Secretariat is seeking motivated interns to support the work of the UN Development Coordination Office (DCO). DCO is the secretariat to the UN Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG) and manages the Resident Coordinator (RC) system. Resident Coordinators (RCs) are the highest-ranking representatives of the United Nations development system (UNDS) at the country level and are the designated representative of – and report to – the UN Secretary-General.
Internships, scholarships, student conferences and competitions.