What is it like to intern at the United Nations?

“International vision, Chinese feelings” has always been the motivation for international students to study abroad. Although returnees are not as popular as in previous years, they are not as bad as everyone thinks. The following nine categories share with you what it is like to intern at the United Nations. Let’s take a look.

Sharing internship stories

Author introduction

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Hou Zishuang

(pen name)

< p>　/Master of International Political Economy, London School of Economics/

About to work at the United Nations Headquarters in New York

/Currently working at the United Nations and the World Bank Representative Office in China/

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From March to May 2017, I interned at the United Nations Headquarters in New York for two months. After the internship period, I received a short-term work contract.

Although the salary is nothing compared to the brutally high prices in Manhattan, New York, it can be self-sufficient. When the contract expires, there is the possibility of renewal and becoming a full-time employee if the budget allows.

You can apply for internship opportunities at the United Nations on UN Inspira. There are more opportunities at the New York headquarters and a higher hit rate. There are many Chinese students interning here, but very few of them stay after the internship. As a lucky person I will talk about my efforts and experiences during the internship to provide reference for students who are interested in interning at the United Nations or even looking forward to staying and working.

“How to get an internship and complete the internship tasks efficiently”

The United Nations Headquarters is located on the east side of Manhattan, New York City, USA. This 39-story glass-paneled building, known as the "Matchbox" because of its boxy cuboid shape, was designed by 10 architects around the world, including Liang Qichao's son, architect Liang Sicheng. Discuss design.

Looking out from the large floor-to-ceiling windows of the cafeteria on the fourth floor of the United Nations, you can have a panoramic view of the East River in Manhattan. There is an endless stream of ships coming and going, which is beautiful in the afternoon sun. An oil painting. Although the food at the United Nations is not very delicious, it is a relief to have such beautiful scenery.

So how can I get in here?

The internship selection at the United Nations Headquarters in New York is mainly based on professional fit, previous internships and interview performance. The interview is not very difficult. It is recommended to apply to several departments when applying to increase the probability of success. If you choose a job related to China or development topics, you have a greater chance of being selected. For example, UNDESA, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs where I work, recruits quite a few Chinese people, so students can give it more consideration.

At that time, I applied for nearly 10 positions and got two interviews. Then at around 10 o'clock in the evening, I endured the sleepiness of my eyelids and talked across the ocean in New York. I interviewed for 30 minutes and finally hired one.

The two departments I got interviews with were related to the content and major of my previous internship. When I was studying at the London School of Economics and Political Science in the UK, I received a master's degree in international political economics, and the department I was hired into was the Development Cooperation Forum under the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

So what do my internship tasks include?

Carry out research on various fields of international cooperation such as South-South cooperation, public-private partnerships, mixed financing, climate change, technology transfer and other branches. Research on trends and processes;

Update and improve the Development Cooperation Forum’s webpage, relevant policies and publications;

In-depth participation in organizing high-level meetings for 2017 and 2018 in Argentina Discuss topics and write written materials for high-level forums and United Nations partner forums held with Tajikistan, such as background research, promotional slogans, high-level speeches, guest profiles, invitations, etc. Find and contact meeting stakeholders such as government agencies and international organizations , private enterprises, think tanks, etc.

Cumbersome

As can be seen from the above work content, the work content of the United Nations is very trivial. Even regular employees may need to deal with issues such as issuing invitation letters and adjusting publications. For example, my boss, the Senior Economic Affairs Officer, came to me for "technical assistance" on minor issues such as incorrect formatting of Word documents, so this job is more suitable for those who are careful and like desk work.

Accumulation

But even reviewing information, writing and revising manuscripts requires a wealth of knowledge accumulation and professional skills in related fields. For example, in the field of development cooperation, I need to understand various forms of development cooperation such as official development assistance (ODA), foreign investment (FDI), multilateral financial institutions, and public-private partnerships (PPP), as well as the development trends in these fields and related hot topics.

Research

Only in this way can we achieve precision, power and effectiveness when participating in organizing high-level meetings and writing publications. These need to be summarized through extensive reading and analysis of publications from the United Nations and other international organizations such as the World Bank, OECD, IMF, etc. At that time, in order to make myself meet the standards of the United Nations as soon as possible, I read all the previous publications of the departments and took some home for study.

In fact, the United Nations does not have high requirements for measurement capabilities, so many statistics and trend charts require reference to the OECD. However, the United Nations has very high requirements for language. It needs to be concise, appropriate and solemn, and this all depends on laying a solid foundation in daily life.

At present, the number of Chinese people in the United Nations is expanding rapidly, and Chinese people can be seen from grassroots interns to officials at the Secretary-General level. As one of the five permanent members of the Security Council and the third largest contributor of membership dues, China has the right to send officials at the level of deputy secretary-general to the United Nations. Currently, the officials sent by China serve as deputy secretary-general of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

As the United States withdraws from the TPP and China’s Belt and Road Initiative is in full swing, China’s voice in the United Nations has become louder and louder. Currently, a major project that my department is about to launch is the policy research and capacity building project of the Belt and Road Initiative. This means that the United Nations needs more and more Chinese staff to contribute to its development, which is good news for those who intend to work for the United Nations.

In addition to internships, interns can also participate in various high-level United Nations meetings. For example, I attended the meeting on the North Korean nuclear issue involving US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and United Nations Secretary-General Guterres. A multi-party forum on issues with great benefits.

Interns can also selectively attend meetings in some professional fields. For example, during my tenure, I also attended lectures on the role of science and technology in social and economic development. The speakers included the director of Google’s Operations. Thus, I learned about a series of Google projects such as Google Balloon, which provides free WIFI to backward areas, thereby strengthening the economic and social ties between these areas and the outside world, and improving the level of development.

Sharing activities and dinner parties organized by regular employees are often held at the United Nations Headquarters. Everyone usually makes an appointment at a restaurant next to the United Nations. Students who are interested in continuing to develop in the United Nations can actively participate and seek experience from those who have experienced it. . For example, there is a very popular Turkish restaurant called "Alibaba" near the United Nations. Everyone often gathers here. At first, I thought it was opened by Jack Ma, but later I found out that it was just a coincidence.

The pressure of the United Nations work should be lower than that of private enterprises. It will be relatively busy when holding particularly important events. The rest of the time is basically 9 to 5, and there are many holidays. There are some exclusive to the United Nations Holidays, such as Happy Friday. I once went to work on Happy Friday and found the door closed. I thought there was a terrorist attack and was shocked. Later I learned that this is an exclusive holiday for the United Nations.

Disadvantages of United Nations Internships