Internship at UN Operations and Crisis Center (UNOCC)

Job Posting Organization:
The United Nations Secretariat, established in 1945, is the principal administrative body of the UN, responsible for carrying out the day-to-day work of the organization. It operates in multiple countries worldwide, with a mission to promote peace, security" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #007bff !important;">security, and cooperation among nations. The Secretariat employs thousands of staff members from diverse backgrounds, contributing to various global initiatives and programs.

Job Overview:
This internship is situated within the UN Operations and Crisis Center (UNOCC) in the UN Secretariat in New York. The UNOCC plays a crucial role in providing global situational awareness, crisis and risk management, and peacekeeping support. It facilitates decision-making through crisis analysis and is strategically positioned under the Director for Coordination and Shared Services (ODCSS), bridging the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA) and the Department of Peace Operations (DPO). The intern will support the development and maintenance of a crisis data warehouse, which is essential for standardizing and systematizing data access to enhance analysis capabilities. The role is designed to be flexible, allowing for in-person, remote, or hybrid work arrangements, with a commitment of 35 hours per week for full-time or 20 hours per week for part-time work. The internship is expected to last between 3 to 6 months, starting on June 1, 2026, with the possibility of adjusting the duration and modality based on the successful candidate's needs.

Duties and Responsibilities:
The intern will be involved in various tasks related to the UNOCC pipeline and data warehouse workstream. Key responsibilities include: - Building, testing, troubleshooting, and maintaining Python data pipelines. - Writing Python scripts to gather data from UN internal and external sources, including web scraping, APIs, and database connections, and harmonizing disparate datasets into a unified schema using tools like Pandas, Numpy, and SQLalchemy. - Cleaning and transforming raw data formats such as JSON, CSV, EXCEL, and PDF into tabular, aggregated formats. - Setting up automatic synchronization between data sources and the UNOCC data warehouse utilizing Azure Containers and Azure Functions. - Ensuring that quality-checked and reliable data is readily available for UNOCC analysis processes, including creating PowerBI dashboards or think-cell data templates in Excel and PowerPoint connected to the data warehouse. - Collaborating with analysts to understand data needs and improving existing pipelines. - Investigating and identifying novel data sources that can enhance crisis analytics and decision-making processes.

Required Qualifications:
Applicants must meet one of the following criteria: (a) be enrolled in or have recently completed (within the last year) a graduate school program (second university degree or equivalent, or higher); (b) be enrolled in or have completed (within the last year) the final academic year of a first university degree program (minimum bachelor’s degree or equivalent). The field of study must be closely related to the internship, including Computer Science, Data Science, Software Engineering, Information Management, Statistics, or Economics. While professional work experience is not required, a relevant field of study is essential. Candidates must be students in their final year of a bachelor’s, master’s, or Ph.D. program or have completed such a program within the last year.

Educational Background:
Candidates should possess a degree in a relevant field such as Computer Science, Data Science, Software Engineering, Information Management, Statistics, or Mathematics. The educational background should align closely with the internship's focus on data management and analysis, ensuring that the intern has the necessary theoretical knowledge and practical skills to contribute effectively to the UNOCC's objectives.

Experience:
While prior professional work experience is not mandatory for this internship, candidates should demonstrate familiarity with programming languages, database technologies, and data pipeline development. Experience with business intelligence tools and cloud services will be considered advantageous, as it indicates a candidate's preparedness for the technical aspects of the role.

Languages:
Fluency in spoken and written English is required for this internship, as English is one of the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Knowledge of an additional official UN language, such as French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, or Spanish, is considered an advantage and may enhance a candidate's application.

Additional Notes:
The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving gender balance and geographical diversity within its workforce, encouraging female candidates to apply. It is important to note that the UN does not provide financial remuneration for internships; therefore, candidates must be prepared to cover their own costs related to travel, visas, accommodation, and living expenses. Interns who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents will need to obtain a G-4 visa to undertake the internship in the United States. Additionally, all applicants must ensure they have the necessary work authorization for the country where the internship will be conducted, whether it is remote, hybrid, or on-site. The UN emphasizes that there are no fees associated with the recruitment process, and applicants should be cautious of any requests for personal financial information.