Expected duration
3-6 months. Desired start date is 5 January 2026.
Duties and Responsibilities
This internship is located in the Communications Team of the Office of the Under-Secretary-General (OUSG), Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA), at United Nations Headquarters in New York. The OUSG Communications Team leads and coordinates the Department’s internal and external communications, ensuring coherence and visibility of DPPA’s work in preventive diplomacy, conflict prevention, peacemaking, peacebuilding and political analysis. The team manages DPPA’s digital platforms, including its website, social media channels, newsletters and multimedia content, and supports senior leadership communications and public outreach. It also collaborates closely with other UN departments, field missions and partners to strengthen messaging, develop communication strategies and promote the United Nations’ political and peacebuilding work globally. The intern will work under the supervision of the Communications Officer and in close collaboration with other members of the team. This internship requires strong social and digital media management skills, including content creation, copywriting, and multimedia production with a particular emphasis on short-form video editing and basic animation. The intern should be familiar with common video and image editing software, such as Adobe Premiere Pro, After Effects, Photoshop, Canva, or equivalent tools, and have an eye for design and storytelling. The ability to work in a fast-paced environment, meet tight deadlines, and pay close attention to detail is essential. The intern will: • Support the development and implementation of digital communication strategies to enhance DPPA’s visibility across platforms; • Identify and develop UN-related storytelling opportunities highlighting DPPA’s preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peacebuilding; • Assist in creating and editing multimedia content — including videos, animations, graphics, and social media cards — for platforms such as X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Threads; • Help cover events, meetings, and campaigns through live posting, photography, and video production; • Perform other tasks as required to support the communications team’s daily functioning and special initiatives. The duration of the internship is for three (3) months with a possibility of extension. This internship is UNPAID in person and full-time (35 hours per week), on the United Nations premise working arrangement from (New York, USA). This internship is designed to be full-time and in-person but can be adjusted based on the needs of the successful candidate.
Qualifications/special skills
To qualify for an internship with the United Nations Internship Programme, the following conditions must be met: (a) Be enrolled in, or have completed, a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher); or, (b) Be enrolled in, or have completed, the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum bachelor's level 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. For this internship, studies in Communication and Advertising are preferred. Relevant training or practical experience in Adobe After Effects and/or other video and photo editing software, as well as experience in making animations is required.
Languages
English or French are the working languages of the United Nations. For the internship advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official language of the United Nations (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) is desirable.
Additional Information
The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance and geographical diversity in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position. The United Nations does not financially remunerate interns. Costs and arrangements for travel, visas, accommodation, and living expenses are the responsibility of interns or their sponsoring institutions. For internships in the United States of America, interns who are not United States citizens, permanent residents, or not currently in the United States on a nonimmigrant visa status will be required to obtain a G-4 visa. If already in the United States of America on another non-immigrant visa status other than G-4, interns will be responsible for ensuring that they have a valid visa and, if required, employment authorization, allowing them to undertake the internship. For internships outside the United States, interns who are not citizens of the country, permanent residents, or not currently in the country's nonimmigrant visa status will be required to obtain a valid visa and work permit, allowing them to undertake the internship. The United Nations must ensure all applicants for an internship, regardless of citizenship or national origin, are authorized to work from the country where the internship will be undertaken either remotely, hybrid or on the UN-premise duty station. Before resuming an internship, the applicant must submit proof of visa and/or work authorization. Applicants who have previously served six months, in total, as an intern in one or more UN Common Systems cannot be engaged as an intern. Applicants who are children, siblings, and sons or daughters-in-law (including stepchildren, half-siblings, or stepsiblings) of an active staff member in a UN Common System cannot be engaged as an intern. In your Motivational Statement, please indicate when you would like to start your internship. Please note that the start and end dates are flexible. A complete online application is required. reviewed. The Motivational Statement must also include: • Title of degree you are currently pursuing. • Graduation Date (When will you be graduating/have graduated from the programme?) • Explain why you are the best candidate for this specific internship • Explain your interest in the United Nations Internship Programme In your online Personal History Profile, be sure to include all past work experiences, IT skills, and three references.
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.
