Population Affairs Intern

Work Location

This internship is designed to be full-time and in person but can be adjusted based on the needs of the successful candidate.

Expected duration

Starting date is flexible based on intern availability. Internships have a duration of at least two months and may be extended up to a total of six months.

Duties and Responsibilities

Internships are located in the Population Estimates and Projections Section of the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs at United Nations Headquarters in New York. The Population Estimates and Projections Section analyzes past and future national demographic levels and trends, and prepares population estimates and projections for all countries and areas of the world, depicting trends in the global population from 1950 to 2100, and is responsible for the preparation of the World Population Prospects 2024. The Section also prepares estimates and projections of urban, rural and city populations, and is planning to integrate the new Degree of Urbanization concept and analytical data products from the Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL) in the 2025 revision of the World Urbanization Prospects. Under the general guidance of the team manager within the respective section or unit, the intern may provide support in the following areas: 1. Assist in preparing urban population estimates, and demographic components of population change (fertility, mortality) disaggregated by the degree of urbanization or national definitions, analyzing international population urbanization trends and researching the impact of population urbanization trends on sustainable development; 2. Assist with data compilation, analysis and desk research on demographic data from developing and developed countries both from aggregated summary tabulations and microdata upon data availability; 3. Prepare datasets related to population urbanization trends, contribute to publications related to urbanization, population and sustainable development, draft fact sheets and prepare talking points; 4. Participate in the substantive servicing of intergovernmental and expert meetings on urbanization and population and development; 5. Contribute to activities related to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and to the monitoring of progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals; 6. Participate in relevant meetings and collaborate with experts within and outside the Organization. The specific research topics and assignments will be defined based on discussion between the intern and the responsible officer and should be mutually beneficial for both the intern and UN. The intern may also be asked to assist in the day-to-day work of the Division if required. The intern is expected to familiarize him/herself, to a limited extent, with administrative work of the division and other tasks that are typical of UN organizations. Intern learning opportunities: Interns will have opportunities to broaden their experience and knowledge about international population issues; gain exposure to the work of the Population Division and related work in other UN agencies; broaden their understanding of current demographic issues globally; and be introduced to the functioning of United Nations bodies. Interns are integrated in the respective substantive team. They participate and contribute to staff meetings and discussions, research population issues, draft papers and reports, develop and maintain information databases, and provide support to other activities. Interns work under the supervision of the respective team staff. In addition, interns have an opportunity to attend lectures and other events related to social and economic development and other UN-related issues held in New York or virtually.

Qualifications/special skills

(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). No working experience is required to apply for the United Nations Internship Programme. Your training, education, advance course work or skills should benefit the United Nations during your internship. 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. Programme. Do you meet any of the above criteria? If yes, please indicate which one and attach proof to the application. Please note that you will have to provide an official certificate at a later stage. Proficiency with standard office software applications, particularly MS Excel, is required. Proficiency in R statistical software programming is required. Familiarity with population and vital statistics data and with demographic estimation methods are desirable. Experience in managing large geospatial databases and/or scientific computing/statistical modelling are desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Fluency in English (both oral and written) is required for the Internship Programme. Knowledge of an additional official UN language is an asset. Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish are the official languages of the United Nations Secretariat.

Additional Information

Not available.

Intern Specific text

Interns are not financially remunerated by the United Nations. Costs and arrangements for travel, visas, accommodation and living expenses are the responsibility of interns or their sponsoring institutions. Interns who are not citizens or permanent residents of the country where the internship is undertaken, may be required to obtain the appropriate visa and work/employment authorization. Successful candidates should discuss their specific visa requirements before accepting the internship offer.