Political Affairs and Partnerships Intern

Duties and Responsibilities

The post is located in the Office of the Director-General, in the Political Affairs and Partnerships Section, in Geneva. Under the overall supervision of the Chief of Section and under the daily guidance of the Professional Officers in the Section, the incumbent will:

• Conduct research, draft or update country profiles, briefing notes and other background materials in preparation for the presentation of credentials to the Director-General or other meetings with high-level dignitaries;
• Monitor and research current development and topical issues in international affairs, and prepare background papers, analytical notes and briefing materials for the Section;
• Monitor developments within the United Nations funds, programmes, specialized agencies and other international organizations, in particular the Geneva-based entities, as well as researching activities of Swiss-based academic and research institutions, think thanks and foundations, and prepare background notes for the attention of the Chief of Section; upon request, attend meetings of these United Nations and other entities and prepares summaries and analytical reports of proceedings and discussions;
• Draft speeches, talking points and other communication materials for the Director-General and other senior officials;
• Attend meetings and events organized by the Section or its partners, take notes and prepare summaries and reports of the discussions;
• Participate in the planning and organization of seminars, workshops and other events with external partners, including, inter alia, through undertaking background research; identifying speakers and invitees; preparing invitations; liaising with speakers; responding to queries and providing relevant information to invitees; and assisting in the overall administration and coordination of events;
• Draft and prepare routine correspondence and other written communication for the Section;
• Assist in maintaining the institutional memory of the Section, including by updating databases, country profiles and other reference material, as necessary;
• Carry out other ad hoc tasks, as assigned by the Chief of Section and/or the Professional Officers within the Section.

Qualifications/special skills

Applicants must meet one of the following requirements: (a) be enrolled in, or have completed, a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher); (b) be enrolled in, or have completed, the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum bachelor’s degree or equivalent). Applicants to the UN Internship Programme are not required to have professional work experience. However, a field of study that is closely related to the type of internship that you are applying for is required. Applicants must be a student in the final year of the first university degree (bachelor or equivalent), Master’s or Ph.D. Programme or equivalent, or have completed a Bachelor’s, Master’s or PH.D. Applicants should have good knowledge of standard software applications, especially MS Word, and MS Teams. Ability to draft communication materials is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Fluency in English and French (both oral and written) is required for the Internship Programme. Knowledge of another UN language is desirable.