Intern - Humanitarian Affairs

Work Location This internship is based in New York on a full-time or part-time basis.

For all positions, the preferred internship modality is in person.

Remote or hybrid (partly in-person and partly remote) modalities may be discussed and mutually agreed upon by the managers and the selected candidate(s). Expected duration * January - June 2026 • The planned start date is 12 January 2026, but is flexible.

The minimum internship period is 2 months full time, the maximum period is 6 months.

A part-time set-up may be considered as long as it fulfills the needs of the office and equates to the full-time minimum and maximum periods (for example, a 50% part-time internship of 4 months equates to the minimum period of 2 months full-time). Duties and Responsibilities The United Nations (UN) Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is the part of the United Nations Secretariat responsible for bringing together humanitarian actors to ensure a coherent response to emergencies.

OCHA also ensures there is a framework within which each actor can contribute to the overall response efforts.

OCHA's mission is to mobilize and coordinate effective and principled humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors in order to alleviate human suffering in disasters and emergencies; advocate the rights of people in need; promote preparedness and prevention and facilitate sustainable solutions.

All internships are within the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) secretariat, which provides timely, flexible aid where it's needed most, supporting humanitarian reform efforts and coordination led by Humanitarian and Resident Coordinators.

The CERF team values diversity, empathy, and collaboration, encouraging open communication and the sharing of knowledge.

Members lead their areas of work independently while contributing to team decisions, voicing opinions, and focusing on continuous improvement.

Interns will monitor humanitarian developments, support anticipatory action frameworks, and draft funding application responses.

Responsibilities include preparing guidance, conducting training, and coordinating with Resident and Humanitarian Coordinators.

Interns will manage data on localization, gender, and funding trends, maintain information resources, and assist in partnerships with Member States and UN agencies.

They will help organize high-level events, analyze complex data, and create dashboards to improve efficiency and transparency in funding allocations.

Interns will participate in all aspects of the programmatic and partnerships work at CERF, and will be under the general guidance and direct supervision of a supervisor within CERF.

Within the delegated authority, the incumbents will be responsible for performing the following duties, or a combination thereof, as determined by CERF: 1.

Monitor, analyze, and research humanitarian developments: collaborate with OCHA desk officers on disaster-affected countries, using quantitative and qualitative research to support funding decisions for underfunded emergencies and anticipatory action frameworks.

2.

Support anticipatory action frameworks: assist in setting up Anticipatory Action (AA) frameworks through research, analysis, document development, and work plan implementation, while coordinating with AA teams.

3.

Review funding applications: work with Programme Officers to review and draft responses for funding applications, ensuring accountability with other OCHA branches and UN agencies.

4.

Contribute to CERF's work on climate-smart humanitarian action, including conducting analysis, reviewing project proposals and strategies, developing guidance and other work.

5.

Prepare guidance and conduct trainings: support the preparation and revision of internal and public guidance, participate in training, and provide support to Resident and Humanitarian Coordinators for pooled funding processes.

6.

Document preparation: prepare or contribute to drafting documents like presentations, briefings, guidance notes, and talking points for senior staff.

7.

Data collection and management: assist in collecting and organizing data on themes such as localization, gender, and funding trends, and prepare updates and dashboards for management and external audiences.

8.

Maintain information resources: develop and maintain reference information on humanitarian topics, respond to inquiries, and provide updates on latest developments.

9.

Coordinate lessons learned and good practices: Liaise with field offices to gather lessons learned, share good practices, and identify story hooks to raise visibility for pooled fund efforts.

10.

Support partnerships with key stakeholders: assist in CERF partnerships processes with Member States, UN agencies, and humanitarian partners, including key working groups and advisory bodies.

11.

Support the organization of high-level events: assist in planning high-level events such as General Assembly-related side events and the CERF Annual High-Level Pledging Event.

12.

Conduct research and draft advocacy materials: support research and data analysis on CERF-related topics, contributing to advocacy and information products, including thematic areas and fund allocations.

13.

Analyze complex data sets: analyze and interpret complex data to drive informed decision-making in humanitarian projects and pooled fund allocations.

14.

Perform other duties as required.

Qualifications/special skills * Be a student in the final year of a first university degree (bachelor or equivalent), a Master's or a Ph.D.

Programme or equivalent, or have completed a first university degree (bachelor or equivalent), Master's or Ph.D.

Programme (with completion date not more than one year before the start-date of the internship). Please note that an official certificate will have to be provided at a later stage.

• Applicants to the UN Internship Programme are not required to have professional work experience.

However, a field of study that is closely related to the type of internship that you are applying for is required.

• All applicants must have excellent knowledge of standard software applications, especially MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel and MS Teams.

• Knowledge of Statistics, Python, and data visualization tools is desirable.

Languages * English and French are the official working languages of the United Nations Secretariat.

For this position, fluency in spoken and written English is required for all internship positions.

• Fluency in French is desirable.

• Knowledge of any other UN official languages is desirable.

Additional Information * OCHA encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

• The United Nations will assist with arrangements for a G-4 visa for interns who are serving in the United States of America and require such a visa.

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.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS' BANK ACCOUNTS.