Guides
Plain-English reference on how United Nations recruitment actually works, written to save you time before you apply.
How United Nations job grades work: P, D, G, NO and FS explained
What P-3, G-5 or NO-B actually mean on a vacancy, and how to find the grade that matches your experience.
Read the guide6 minHow to apply for United Nations jobs: a practical guide
Where roles are posted, how to tailor your application to the criteria, what the assessments and interviews look like, and the one fee rule that flags every scam.
Read the guide7 minUN contract types explained: staff, consultant, JPO, UNV and internships
Staff appointment, consultant, JPO, UNV or internship: what each contract means for duration, benefits and who can apply.
Read the guide6 minHow to prepare for a United Nations competency-based interview
What competency-based really means, the STAR method, the competencies to prepare, and the mistakes that cost offers.
Read the guide6 minWriting a strong United Nations job application: the P-11, CV and cover letter
How to complete the personal history form, and write a CV and cover letter that map directly to the vacancy criteria.
Read the guide6 minUnited Nations salaries and benefits explained
How UN pay is set, why the same grade pays differently by city, and the allowances and benefits that come with staff posts.
Read the guide6 minUnited Nations internships: how to find and apply
What a UN internship involves, who can apply, where to find them, and how to make the most of one.
Read the guide5 minThe UN Young Professionals Programme (YPP) explained
The competitive exam route into the UN Secretariat for early-career professionals: eligibility, the exam, and the process.
Read the guide5 minHow to spot and avoid United Nations job scams
The single rule that exposes every UN recruitment scam, the red flags, and how to verify a real opportunity.
Read the guide4 minLanguage requirements for United Nations jobs explained
Working versus official languages, what a vacancy really requires, and why a second language can decide a field role.
Read the guide4 minUnited Nations Volunteers (UNV): A Practical Guide to the Programme
What the UN Volunteers programme is, the main ways to serve, who is eligible, and how a UNV assignment can lead into a longer UN career.
Read the guide6 minThe UN Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Programme Explained
How the donor funded UN Junior Professional Officer programme works, why nationality usually drives eligibility, and how a JPO assignment differs from a regular staff post.
Read the guide6 minUN Consultant and Individual Contractor (IC) Roles Explained
A practical look at UN consultancy and individual contractor work: what these non-staff contracts are, how they differ from staff appointments, and how to pursue them.
Read the guide6 minUN Application Portals Explained: Inspira and Agency Systems
What to expect from UN application systems, from the Secretariat Inspira platform to the varied agency portals, and how to apply efficiently across them.
Read the guide6 minThe UN Recruitment Process and Timeline: What Happens After You Apply
A realistic walkthrough of every stage of the UN recruitment process and why selection often takes several months.
Read the guide6 minUN Rosters Explained: What Being 'Rostered' Means for Your Application
A clear explanation of UN rosters, how rostered candidates are pulled for future posts, and what it means for your job search strategy.
Read the guide5 minUN Job Networks and Job Families Explained: How the United Nations Organizes Roles
A clear guide to UN job families and job networks, and how to use them to find roles that fit your background.
Read the guide6 minUN Duty Stations, Hardship, and Mobility: A Field-Work Guide for United Nations Jobs
A practical guide to UN duty stations, hardship classification, family status, and the mobility expected of international staff.
Read the guide6 minThe UN Pension (UNJSPF) and After-Service Benefits Explained
How the UN Joint Staff Pension Fund works at a high level, including participation, contributions, vesting, payout choices, and after-service health insurance.
Read the guide6 minApplying to UN Jobs Without a Master's Degree
How qualifying work experience can substitute for a master's degree on many UN professional vacancies, and how to read and meet the education requirement honestly.
Read the guide6 minHow to Get a Job at UNICEF: Careers at the UN Children’s Fund
What UNICEF hires for, how its recruitment works, and the realistic ways in, from internships and NETI to national and international professional posts.
Read the guide7 minHow to Get a Job at UNDP: Careers at the UN Development Programme
What UNDP does, its newer contract types, how its country-office hiring works, and the realistic ways in for early-career and experienced candidates.
Read the guide7 minHow to Get a Job at WHO: Careers at the World Health Organization
What WHO hires for, how its headquarters-and-six-regions structure shapes where the jobs are, and the realistic ways into the agency.
Read the guide7 minHow to Get a Job at WFP: Careers at the World Food Programme
What WFP hires for, why so much of the work is field-based and logistics-driven, and the realistic ways into the world’s largest humanitarian agency.
Read the guide7 minHow to Get a Job at UNHCR: Careers at the UN Refugee Agency
What UNHCR hires for, why so much of the work is field and emergency based, and the realistic ways into the UN Refugee Agency.
Read the guide7 minHow to Get a Job at IOM: Careers at the International Organization for Migration
What IOM hires for, why so many roles are project-funded and field based, and the realistic ways into the UN migration agency.
Read the guide6 minHow to Get a Job at FAO: Careers at the Food and Agriculture Organization
What FAO hires for, the technical and operational mix, and the realistic ways into the UN’s food and agriculture agency.
Read the guide6 minHow to Get a Job at the ILO: Careers at the International Labour Organization
What the ILO hires for, how its tripartite (governments, employers, workers) structure shapes the work, and the realistic ways in.
Read the guide6 minHow to Get a Job at UNESCO: Careers at the UN’s Education, Science and Culture Agency
What UNESCO hires for across education, the sciences, culture and communication, and the realistic ways into the Paris-headquartered agency.
Read the guide6 minHow to Get a Job at the ITU: Careers at the International Telecommunication Union
What the ITU hires for across telecoms and ICT, how its public-private membership shapes the work, and the realistic ways in.
Read the guide6 minEntry-Level UN Jobs: How People With Little Experience Actually Get Into the United Nations
The honest map of how people with little experience break into the UN system, and which doors are realistic at each stage.
Read the guide7 minNetworking Into the UN: How Connections Help You Find and Win United Nations Jobs
How to build real relationships across the UN system so you hear about roles early and understand them deeply, while your application still wins on merit.
Read the guide7 minHow to Read a UN Vacancy Announcement (And Decide Whether to Apply)
Decode every section of a UN job posting and make an honest call on whether you actually qualify.
Read the guide7 minRemote and Home-Based UN Jobs: How Common They Really Are
A realistic guide to remote and home-based work across the UN system, what is actually possible, and how to find it.
Read the guide7 minThe UN Common System Explained: How the United Nations Family Hires
A plain-English map of the UN common system and what its shared rules and separate hiring portals mean for your application strategy.
Read the guide7 minUN Jobs from the Private Sector: How to Switch Careers into the United Nations
How to move into the UN system from the private sector: the functions that hire outsiders, translating your CV into UN language, and the routes that actually work.
Read the guide7 minUN Jobs in Africa: Duty Stations, Agencies, and Field Realities Explained
How UN field and humanitarian work concentrates in Africa, who hires, and the difference between national and international posts.
Read the guide7 minHow to Write the Motivation Statement on a UN Job Application
What the UN motivation statement field really wants, and how to write one that maps your experience to the vacancy and its competencies.
Read the guide7 minThe UN Personal History Profile (P-11 / PHP): How to Complete It So You Pass Screening
What the UN Personal History Profile is, how it differs from a CV, and how to complete every section so you survive the first screening.
Read the guide7 minUN Written Tests and Assessment Exercises: What to Expect and How to Prepare
What UN written tests and assessment exercises actually involve, where they fall in hiring, and how to prepare for each format.
Read the guide7 minUN Salary Levels by Grade and Region: What Each UN Job Grade Typically Pays
Ballpark pay for each UN grade, and why the same grade is worth very different amounts in Geneva, Nairobi or a hardship duty station.
Read the guide8 minUN HR Jobs: How to Become a Human Resources Assistant or Officer at the United Nations
What UN HR Assistant and HR Officer roles involve, the grades and pay, and how to actually land one.
Read the guide8 minUN Jobs for French Speakers: Applying to Francophone Postings (Recrutement ONU)
Where French opens doors in the UN system, and how to apply to francophone postings and recrutement processes.
Read the guide7 minUN Climate and Environment Jobs: Agencies, Roles and How to Break In
The UN agencies hiring on climate and environment, the roles they offer, and how to position yourself.
Read the guide7 minUN Job Grades Compared: P-1 to D-2, NO, G and FS Side by Side
Every UN grade in one comparison table, plus the exact P-3 vs P-4 vs P-5 differences.
Read the guide6 minUN Contract Types Compared: Temporary vs Fixed-Term vs Continuing vs Consultancy
Temporary vs fixed-term vs continuing vs consultancy, every UN contract type in one table.
Read the guide6 minHow to Get into the UN: Internship vs UN Volunteer vs JPO vs YPP vs Consultancy Compared
Internship vs UNV vs JPO vs YPP vs consultancy, the entry routes into the UN compared.
Read the guide6 minPaid UN Internships: Which Organizations Pay Interns, and How Much
Which UN organizations pay their interns and roughly how much, in one comparison table.
Read the guide7 min