Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)H (no hardship)
Family Type (not applicable for home-based)
Family
Staff Member / Affiliate TypeInternship
Target Start Date2025-06-16
Deadline for ApplicationsMay 9, 2025
Terms of ReferenceTerms of Reference
Internship
UNHCR Liaison Office in New York, USA
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is offering a full-time internship with the Liaison Office at UNHCR New York, USA.
Established in December 1950, UNHCR is a global organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights and building a better future for asylum seekers, refugees, returnees, internally displaced communities and stateless people. Every year, millions of men, women and children are forced to flee their homes to escape conflict and persecution. UNHCR currently operates in over 130 countries, using its long expertise to protect and care for millions.
Title: Intern
Duty Station: New York, USA
Duration: 2 months
Contract Type: Internship
Start Date: 16 June 2025
End Date: 15 August 2025
Organizational context
The New York Office (NYO) represents UNHCR in New York-based UN processes and functions as a liaison working closely with UNHCR's Headquarters, regional bureaus, and country operations, along with UN Headquarters (UNHQ), including the UN Departments of the Secretariat, UN agencies, funds, and programs, the General Assembly and its Main Committees, the Security Council, and the Economic and Social Council. NYO also works with Permanent Missions of UN Member States (MS), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and international and other civil society organizations.
NYO engages in advocacy and partnership to ensure that UNHCRโs mandate and positions are promoted with key (UN, MS, and other) stakeholders in New York. Matters of central concern to UNHCR are high on the agenda of the United Nations and are also of prominent concern to MS, civil society, and the media. UNHCR is appreciated as the agency with operational and policy expertise on refugee, displacement, and statelessness matters.
With increasing numbers of refugees and internally displaced persons, the Security Council is often engaged with matters of central importance to UNHCR and the High Commissioner regularly addresses the Security Council. These matters often engage the Department of Peace Operations as well as the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, whose leadership role in integrated and mission settings coincides with some of the largest UNHCR operations globally.
Additionally, NYO is frequently called upon to brief and partner with civil society, including academic institutions, regarding refugees and stateless persons. Moreover, NYO is increasingly the port of call for global media based in New York on issues pertaining to UNHCR's global programs and persons of concern.
The position
The Intern is expected to support colleagues who interface frequently with UN, MS, NGOs, and other counterparts on matters of central protection and human rights concern. The Intern is expected to provide regular and timely analysis of developments within the UN and their possible impact on UNHCR and its operations worldwide, as well as feed into those processes.
More specifically, the Intern will support the officeโs coverage of the High Level Political Forum (HLPF).
The HLPF is the main UN Platform on sustainable development and has a central role in following up and reviewing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the global level. The Forum adopts inter-governmentally negotiated political declarations.
The next HLPF will be held from Monday, 14 July, to Wednesday, 23 July, under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council. This includes the three-day ministerial segment of the forum from Monday 21 July, to Wednesday, 23 July 2024, as a part of the high-level segment of the Council. The last day of the High-Level Segment of ECOSOC will be on Thursday, 24 July 2024.
The theme will be โAdvancing sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals for leaving no one behindโ. The forum will also have an in-depth review of SDG 3 (good health and wellbeing), SDG 5 (gender equality), SDG 14 (life below water) SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth), and SDG 17 (partnership for the Goals).
As part of its follow-up and review mechanisms, the 2030 Agenda encourages member states to โconduct regular and inclusive reviews of the progress at the national and sub-national levels, which are country-led and country- drivenโ. These reviews are voluntary, state-led, undertaken by both developed and developing countries, and provide a platform for partnerships, including through the participation of major groups and other relevant stakeholders. VNR allow the sharing experiences, including successes, challenges and lessons learned, with a view to accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. In 2025, 39 Member States will conduct a Voluntary National Review (VNR).
The intern will be working with the Senior Policy Adviser (Development and Solutions) and following the HLPF. In addition to this, s/he will support the NYP in a desk revision of the VNRs aimed at analyzing how forcibly displaced โ feature in the VNRs.
Duties and responsibilities
โข Attend and report on assigned meetings in an expeditious and timely manner;
โข Support UNHCRโs engagement with humanitarian, development, and other UN bodies and processes;
โข Monitor, analyze, and report on key developments with relevant stakeholders and processes related to issues that may affect UNHCR's operations and activities, an update NYO and UNHCR HQ;
โข Stay abreast of UNHCRโs global operations and policies and support engagement with relevant UNHCR HQ divisions and bureaus to ensure a smooth flow of information;
โข Promote UNHCRโs objectives through participation in briefings and inter-agency meetings, with a view to report on policy development, priorities, and work programs of New York-based bodies and processes related to humanitarian response, human rights, development, peace, and security;
โข Flag opportunities to enhance understanding of UNHCRโs mandate and operations amongst NY-based stakeholders;
โข Make suggestions and provide inputs to ensure that UNHCR's interests and concerns are taken into account in the UN and inter-agency position papers and policy statements impacting UNHCR's operations and protection activities;
โข Enable consistent and comprehensive UNHCR messaging and interventions through close collaboration across NYO Units, as well as UNHCR HQ and field;
โข Follow and report on relevant negotiations of Security Council and General Assembly resolutions of import to UNHCR;
โข Follow and report on high-level events, real-time Security Council briefings and inter-agency meetings and working groups;
โข Conduct research and consultations on the topics of relevance and interest;
โข Support participation of UNHCR in relevant international and bilateral fora in New York.
โข Assist in planning, coordinating, and carrying out public events organized by NYO.
โข Assist in the planning and coordination in preparation for the UN General Assembly High Level Week, including scheduling and administrative support.
โข Create and maintain schedules for incoming visitors, including all administrative support have been completed prior to and during the mission.
โข Provide on-site support during meetings, side event events, including setup, registration, and troubleshooting.
โข Conduct post-event evaluations to assess the success of the event and identify areas for improvement.
The Intern will complete the following obligatory on-line training courses:
1. Basic Security in the field (BSAFE)
2. UN Course on Prevention of Harassment, Sexual Harassment and Abuse of Authority
3. Protection Induction Programme(PIP)
4. Preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse
5. Information Security Awareness Training
The Intern will have weekly meetings with his/her supervisor to reflect on experiences, questions, workload, and learning opportunities.
Through the daily work, the intern will learn elements of UNHCR and UNHQ structure and processes. The learning elements result from the tasks the intern carries out during the assignment, such as knowledge of UNHCR policies, the UN system, and its policies, particularly in relation to humanitarian, political, peacekeeping, peacebuilding, development, human rights, and rule of law issues, and from engagement with experienced staff members on the team.
The Intern will strengthen drafting and analytical skills, through reporting on meetings, events, and other engagements and developments; as well as presentation and negotiation skills, as the intern will assist in advocating for the inclusion of UNHCR positions into UN policies.
The Intern will also develop research skills through more focused and in-depth study into specific thematic and geographic issues.
The Internโs assignment provides an opportunity to develop political awareness and engage in professional networking at an international level. The Intern also can keep up with political and other country-related developments of direct relevance to her/his studies and potential future employment.
Minimum qualifications required
In order to be considered for an internship, candidates must meet the following eligibility criteria:
โข Be either a recent graduate (having completed their studies within two years of applying) or a current student in a graduate/undergraduate school programme from a university or higher education facility accredited by IAU/UNESCO; and
โข Have completed at least two years of undergraduate studies in a field relevant or of interest to the work of UNHCR.
Desirable qualifications and skills
โข Degree in international relations, political sciences, law, or related field;
โข Demonstrated commitment or strong interest in international relations, refugee issues, and humanitarian response;
โข Fluency in English with excellent written and oral communication skills;
โข Proficiency in PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, Excel, and Teams.
Conditions
It is a full-time role with working hours starting from 9.00am to 6:00pm Monday to Friday (40 hours per week). The successful candidate will be assigned to support NYO office team in New York, USA.
Internships normally last two to six months with the possibility of extension up to eight months for full-time internships and twelve months for part-time internships.
How to apply
The selected candidate will receive a link to the UNHCR recruitment portal to create a profile.
Obligations
Acquiring and renewing current visas, residence permits including all associated costs, obtaining medical certification and compliance with taxation requirements (if applicable), are the responsibility of the intern.
A G-4 visa is required for interns who are not US citizens or lawful permanent residents and applying rom abroad. UNHCR can provide support with the required documents for a G-4 visa, however, UNHCR accepts no responsibility for any costs connected to the visa.
International students in the US will be required to provide a work authorization on F1-CPT/OPT. As per the requirements of the host country, UN interns on F1-CPT/OPT in New York can work maximum 32 hours/week.
The selected candidate will need to provide UNHCR with a proof of funding from the sponsoring institution, health insurance coverage and a certificate of good health from a qualified medical practitioner certifying their fitness for work, as well as travel. In the event the candidate is not able to produce the required certificate, they will not be admitted to the Internship Programme.
Allowance and Travel: The Sponsoring Institution shall provide non-reimbursable financial support in the form of a stipend/scholarship/allowance/etc. for the period of internship with UNHCR. Travel expenses to and from the internship location shall be the responsibility of the respective sponsoring institution. UNHCR is not responsible for any renumeration for the intern during the internship period.
If you are a person with a disability and you expect you may face challenges during the recruitment process, you can indicate it in your application form.
There are options to select any health conditions you may have and outline any necessary adjustments related to disabilities during the recruitment phases. Providing this information is optional. It will be treated as strictly confidential and used only for the purpose of finding out how to better assist you during the recruitment process.
Adjustments for candidates with disabilities will be provided as best as possible and as needed upon request.
All candidates will be assessed based on meeting the requirements for each vacancy in relation to experience, skills, and education.
UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process (application, interview, meeting, travelling, processing, or training).
We welcome applications from candidates with a refugee or stateless background.
The UNHCR workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, and opinions. UNHCR seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. Applications are encouraged from all qualified candidates without distinction on grounds of race, colour, sex, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
Standard Job Description
Required Languages English
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Desired Languages
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Additional Qualifications
Skills
Education
Certifications
Work Experience
Other informationThis position doesn't require a functional clearance
RemoteNo