Internship: Intern (Advocacy and Communication) – Education Cannot Wait (ECW), New York/Geneva – Req #537014

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, hope.

Education Cannot Wait (ECW) is the first global multilateral fund dedicated to supporting education for children and youth in countries affected by wars, disasters and crises. It was launched at the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016 by a broad coalition of international aid agencies and public and private donors to usher in faster and more sustainable education responses in crises settings. ECW inspires political commitment to financing education in humanitarian contexts, catalyzes financial resources, facilitates joint programming between humanitarian and development actors, empowers local partners and seeks to strengthen quality and accountability. 

ECW is hosted by UNICEF. The Fund is administered under UNICEF’s financial, human resources and administrative rules and regulations, while operations are run by the Fund’s own independent governance structure that provides strategic guidance and oversight to its investments. ECW’s day-to-day activities are carried out by a Secretariat under the direction of the ECW Director.

ECW is establishing a roster of interns. The ECW Internship Programme offers qualified and eligible students/graduates the opportunity to acquire direct practical experience in international development work in education under the direct supervision of experienced ECW staff.

How can you make a difference?

Under the guidance of the Chief, Advocacy/Communication Section, interns will support ECW’s external outreach as relevant, including in the areas of: international and national media outreach, social media (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok); digital story-telling (Exposure platform); human interest stories from partners in crisis-countries; graphic and info-graphic design; as well as providing other advocacy and communication support to the Advocacy/Communication section, while also learning about organizational processes to support the implementation of the ECW 2021 workplan.

Functional Area:

1. Advocacy and Communication

Applicants will have an interest in and experience with media relations, utilizing various social media platforms to communicate ECW’s vision and mission, as well as written communications skills to support ECW advocacy efforts, including publications, infographics and press releases, including support to ECW’s commitment to inspiring political support and mobilizing funds for education in emergencies and protracted crises.

 Main duties:

• International and national media outreach, contacts, press release development, Q&As preparation, media-coverage scanning
• Social media: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok
• Digital story-telling: for ECW’s Exposure and website platform
• Human interest story preparation and editing based on materials provided by partners in crisis-countries
• Graphic and info-graphic design
• Preparation of reports, talking points, advocacy and communication material; ensuring accuracy, timeliness and relevance of information
• Support data visualization and preparation of infographics;
• Carry out any other relevant advocacy/communication tasks to support the deliverables described in the ECW annual workplan.

Benefits to Intern:

The objective of the internship is to give the intern a first-hand impression of the day-to-day working environment of the United Nations. The intern will be given a real chance to work with our people. As part of our team, working directly with outstanding and inspiring career professionals and senior management, the intern will be exposed to high-profile conferences, participate in meetings, and contribute to analytical work as well as organizational policy of UNICEF, especially in the field of COVID-19 vaccine introduction and digital health. Initially the intern will take on the amount of responsibility the intern can shoulder; the potential for growth, however, is theirs to develop.

Duration:

January 2021 – March 2021; ideally in mid-February 2021. Preferred duration: at least 4 months (maximum of 6 months). The internship will require a commitment of about 30 hours per week.

Salary/Payment:

In accordance to UNICEF’s guidelines, interns will be paid a stipend of US $1,700 per month. There is no expectancy of employment at the end of the internship.

Insurance:

UNICEF will not be responsible for costs arising from accidents and/or illness incurred during the intern’s service, whether on or off UNICEF premises. Therefore, the selected candidate must provide proof of enrolment in a health/accident plan prior to start the internship with the Health Section.

Living Conditions and Working Environment:

Interns can be based at the ECW Secretariat office in New York, or at the ECW Secretariat Office in Geneva. Arrangements to carry out the internship remotely are also possible given the global COVID pandemic. Note that applicants who are based in the New York area (with a valid OPT/CPT if international student) or Geneva will be given priority. The internship may be conducted remotely, depending on the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic at the time of application.   

Qualifications:

• Be enrolled in an undergraduate, Masters or Ph.D. degree programme or have graduated within the past two years.
• Have an academic background in any of the following:
  Media Relations
  Communication
  Graphic Design
  Journalism
  Marketing
• Be at least 18 years old at the time of application.
• Be proficient in English. Other UN official languages an asset (SP.FR.AR.RU.CH)
• Have excellent academic performance as demonstrated by university records.
• Have no immediate relatives working with UNICEF or in the ECW Secretariat.

ECW is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization.

Deadline for applications: Thursday 10^th of January 2021 at midnight NY time.

IMPORTANT VISA NOTE. Interns are personally responsible for arranging any visa or immigration requirements, covering the entire period of their internship. If necessary, ECW will support the process by providing relevant documents such as proof of internship. ECW follows UNICEF’s rules and regulations in human resources management. Applicants are encouraged to read the FAQs on the UNICEF Internship program – which apply also to ECW – available at this link: https://www.unicef.org/about/employ/index_faq.html

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

View our competency framework at

http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, race, sexual orientation, nationality, culture, appearance, socio-economic status, ability, age, religious and ethnic backgrounds to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.