Learning how to get a job at UNICEF can help you save the world’s children, one child at a time. The United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF) is one of the largest organizations in the world, catering to the needs of children. They are committed to protecting the rights of children no matter their ethnic backgrounds. Working at UNICEF can be a fulfilling and impactful career.
UNICEF jobs provide basic life needs to children while offering opportunities to improve their quality of life. The organization has an excellent fundraising infrastructure to provide global emergency relief to child victims at a moment’s notice. This article explains how to apply to UNICEF. We include tips for your UNICEF application, salaries, job openings, and relevant information you need to work at this world-renowned organization.
UNICEF: Company Background
Established in 1946 following the end of World War II, UNICEF understood the impact on children and how vulnerable they were in a time of war. They did not discriminate against any cultural background and offered equal opportunities to vulnerable children irrespective of their country’s role in the war.
The organization aims to reach every child in need and protect their rights to survive and attain their maximum potential. UNICEF has continued to uphold these values of humanitarian action for over 75 years to this present day. They are dedicated to global child health and cater to their physical needs, mental health, and general wellbeing.
How Hard Is It to Land a Job at UNICEF?
Landing a job at UNICEF can be hard. Job roles are competitive as UNICEF receives many applications each year from qualified candidates. Pay attention to the details and specialist functions of the position you’re applying for, and build a technical and solid resume. Depending on the position level, you may need specific qualifications.
UNICEF does not discriminate and firmly upholds gender equality. Although it can be challenging to land a job at UNICEF, it will interest you to know that you can apply without prior working experience. In some cases, knowing how the system works can be crucial in landing a role. UNICEF also offers several volunteer positions to help it accomplish its ambitious goals and reduce child suffering.
How to Apply for a Job at UNICEF
- Get familiar. Become familiar with the core values of UNICEF as well as the competencies and levels of responsibilities of different roles. Knowing this will help you to search for jobs that match your skills. Applicants need to be honest regarding their abilities and have three to five relevant skills for a position at UNICEF.
- Search for a role. Go to the UNICEF employment page to search for jobs that match your experience, education, and skills. You can search by using a keyword or filtering through the job listings by location, category, and the field relevant to you. Pay attention to details such as application deadlines and location.
- Apply. Fill out the application form and follow the instructions on the UNICEF page when submitting your application. Don’t rush the process, you can save your application and finish it later. Update relevant documents like your resume and add your email address, so you don’t miss out on any job opportunity.
- Prepare for and take assessments. Shortlisted candidates will likely undergo an assessment and a reference fact-check. The assessment techniques vary for candidates and depend on the needs of the hiring office.
- Wait for the outcome. After finishing every above task, candidates will need to exercise patience as the process can take a range of time anywhere from one to four months to complete. Every applicant will receive information about the outcome of their application.
UNICEF Application Process
The UNICEF hiring team will carefully review the candidate’s application documents, basic education history, core employment competencies, and profiles. They need to identify the most suitable candidates for each job function. Many applicants do not make it, but those who meet the criteria will receive an invitation to proceed to the assessment stage.
UNICEF Interview Questions
- What is the difference between UNICEF and UNICEF USA? Your answer shows your understanding of how UNICEF functions.
- How do you maintain solid relationships with international clients and co-workers? UNICEF workers have a collaborative network that interacts with international professionals regularly.
- If you have had any conflict with a former coworker or manager, how did you handle it? Your answer will reflect your people skills. It’s best to be honest when answering this question.
- How do you handle a disagreement in ideas with a supervisor or manager? Since disagreements are bound to occur in the workplace, the interviewer wants to know if you address these scenarios professionally.
- Share a time you were successful in meeting a challenging fundraising goal. This question is for those applying for fundraising roles. The interviewer wants to assess your functional competencies.
What’s It Like to Work at UNICEF?
As an agency for children, working at UNICEF is a highly rewarding experience. The compensations and benefits are attractive, and the staff has a wide range of personal and professional development opportunities. If you want a career that will make the world better, you may want to learn how to get a job at UNICEF.
With a field office in 190 countries and UNICEF USA, UNICEF UK, and UNICEF Canada headquarters, there are many field duty stations a worker could get posted to in this organization. Working at UNICEF is like being an international civil servant, and the organization strives to offer its workers an exciting opportunity. They want their staff to live satisfying lives both inside and outside the office environment.
Compensation, Benefits, and Wellbeing
At UNICEF, you can rest assured that you and your loved ones will receive every form of support and care you need to succeed. The structured contracts, benefits, and wellbeing policies help you take care of your needs and your family’s needs comfortably.
Professional and Career Development
Staff get active support in their career management and development by understanding their limitations and tapping into their full potential. The learning program builds staff at all levels, from interns to senior-level staff.
Working in Humanitarian Emergencies
UNICEF is passionate about its child protection programs and strives to create a safe environment for children. There are many forms of child abuse, including child trafficking and violence against children. This organization works hard helping to save the lives of children and their families with timely aid and long-term assistance. Staff members have an exciting opportunity to make real change and positively affect the lives of children globally.
UNICEF Benefits
- Tax exemption. Workers at UNICEF do not pay income tax, and staff receive salaries, grants, and allowances in full.
- Holidays and leave. UNICEF staff are entitled to 18-30 days of vacation every year. The vacation period is dependent on the contract type you have with the organization. The company also observes paid holidays for staff, depending on your duty station.
- Rental subsidy. IP staff who are new arrivals at a duty station may qualify for a rental subsidy if their rent is very high compared to their total earnings.
- Hardship allowances. Workers at UNICEF in high-risk duty stations receive a hardship allowance linked to their living and working conditions. In cases where workers are not allowed to bring in family members due to their job posting, they will receive a non-family hardship allowance. In hazardous locations, staff will also receive hazard allowances.
- Family allowances. There are different types of contracts and the benefits depend on the type of contract you have with UNICEF. Workers are entitled to family allowances to help tackle living expenses. This may include dependency allowances and education grants for your kids.
UNICEF Career Opportunities: Job Titles and Descriptions
There are many career opportunities at UNICEF. There is a role for everyone from individual contractors working as consultants to regular staff working full-time. Below, we have briefly discussed 10 different job roles found at UNICEF including relevant information, salary, work experience, and education requirements.
Procurement Specialist
- Salary: $9,674 – $10,486
- Benefits: Tax exemption, rental subsidy, holidays, and leave
- Required Experience: 5 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Master’s degree
A procurement officer’s job description includes supporting market research and intelligence gathering on broadband connectivity and ISPs. You will develop guidelines and templates for global use. You will also advise and guide country offices on procurement strategy and contract modalities for school connectivity.
Programme Specialist
- Salary: $118,258
- Benefits: Health insurance, leave and holidays, tax exemption
- Required Experience: 8 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Advanced university degree
You will provide technical support to the UNICEF headquarters and other regional and country offices. You will focus on conflict sensitivity, analysis, and peacebuilding programs, so you will need strong interpersonal skills. You will also develop staff capacities at UNICEF by organizing events, workshops, and training.
Communication Lead
- Salary: $101,950
- Benefits: Maternity, paternity, adoption and holidays, and leave
- Required Experience: 8 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Master’s degree
You will identify opportunities and teach people about the importance of connectivity for children and teachers. You need management skills to supervise the social media manager’s work and help them put out high-quality content about UNICEF’s Giga work.
Chief Media Relations
- Salary: $128,097 – $137,451
- Benefits: Rental subsidy, family allowances, tax exemption
- Required Experience: 5 – 10 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Master’s degree
You will take the lead in developing media strategies and activities to improve the corporate goals for child welfare in line with global communication practices. You’ll be a spokesperson for the organization at a professional level. You will also build and maintain networks of media contacts globally. This includes working with the UN press corps to push UNICEF’s visibility.
Data Analyst
- Salary: $98,005 – $106,272
- Benefits: Rental subsidy, holidays and leave, tax exemption
- Required Experience: 3 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Advanced university degree
The primary function of this role is to provide support for the MNCAH team as a member of the health and HIV unit, specifically in the data and analytics section. You will plan and monitor events related to harmonizing and updating key indicators. You will also work on developing data-driven products and new data tools.
Finance Manager
- Salary: $130,006 – $140,458
- Benefits: Career support, relocation allowance, retirement pension
- Required Experience: 5 – 10 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Advanced degree
A worker in this role must be innovative, striving to identify opportunities for new tech partnerships to facilitate beneficiary payments at the country level. A finance manager tries to foster transparency and enhance risk mitigation. You will also identify operational risks related to making payments and try to manage such risks.
Internal Auditor
- Salary: $125,916 – $136,26
- Benefits: Career support, rental subsidy, retirement pension
- Required Experience: 8 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Master’s Degree
The internal auditor works under the supervision of the audit chief and has the responsibility of leading teams, assisting the audit chief, and producing advisory services. As an audit manager, you will use effective leadership and people management to develop the internal audit function.
Public Partnership Officer
- Salary: $4,762 – $5,105
- Benefits: Career support, family allowance, holidays, and leave
- Required Experience: 8 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Master’s degree
A public partnership officer supports the senior management of the PPD, helping them deepen their collaboration with key stakeholders. They also assist in providing an interface for knowledge exchange and influencing policies that revolve around the scope of work.
Nutrition Cluster Partners
- Salary: $50,811 – $55,676
- Benefits: Hardship allowance, relocation allowance, tax exemption
- Required Experience: 5 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Advanced university degree
Workers in this role serve in various countries in need of nutrition support staff. As a nutrition cluster partner, you will be required to provide nutrition-sensitive interventions. You will need to help carry out a strategic plan to ensure children are as healthy as they can be.
Impact Evaluation Expert
- Salary: $147,278 – $158,458
- Benefits: Holiday and leave, tax exemption, rental subsidy
- Required Experience: 5 years of professional work experience
- Required Education: Master’s degree
The UNICEF evaluation unit helps the organization produce top results for children by fostering excellent decisions based on solid evidence. The evaluation office liaises with other UNICEF divisions at the headquarters and other countries to carry out annual evaluations.
What Does It Take to Get a Job at UNICEF?
You must have at least an undergraduate degree to work at UNICEF. It would help if you also had a bit of experience and were willing to take up volunteer opportunities in different parts of the world, from East Asia to the Southern Africa region. Keep checking the vacancy page to learn about available UNICEF jobs and start your application process.
How to Get a Job at UNICEF FAQ
UNICEF works with people with at least an undergraduate degree with several years of work experience. Qualified candidates must have an interest in volunteering in different parts of the world.
Yes, UNICEF workers get paid. According to Comparably, the average salary of a UNICEF worker is $133,715, or $64 per hour. Your salary will vary greatly depending on your role in the company.
UNICEF volunteers educate and raise advocacy with funds on behalf of the organization. UNICEF encourages volunteers to participate in their activities a minimum of three times every year.
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To land a job at UNICEF, you will need an advanced university degree in a relevant field. UNICEF accepts only university degrees that meet the education level requirements.
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