UN Young Professionals Programme (YPP)

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YPP Exam: Global Communications (for external applicants), P2

• Job Opening ID: 265848
• Job Network : Public Information and Conference Management
• Job Family : –
• Category and Level : Professional and Higher Categories, P-2
• Duty Station : OTHER VIENNA SANTIAGO ADDIS ABABA NAIROBI BEIRUT BANGKOK NEW YORK GENEVA
• Department/Office : Department of Operational Support
• Date Posted : Oct 28, 2025
• Deadline : Dec 14, 2025

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Org. Setting and Reporting

Those who are successful in the Young Professionals Programme (YPP) examination process will be placed on a roster used to fill appropriate vacancies. Candidates may be selected from the roster as relevant vacancies become available across the UN Secretariat. The roster is valid and used to fill positions, for a period of three years. It is important to understand that placement on the roster does not guarantee an offer of employment. Candidates selected from the roster will be offered a two-year fixed term contract at the start of their Professional career with the UN. After two years, and subject to satisfactory performance, they may be granted a continuing contract. YPP placements are at either a P-1/P-2 level (entry level professional). Positions may become available at various UN Secretariat offices, including, but not limited to: Addis Ababa, Bangkok, Beirut, Geneva, Nairobi, New York, Santiago, Vienna. Successful candidates must be willing to be placed in a position at any UN duty station or field operation.

These positions are located primarily in the Department of Global Communications (DGC) and its worldwide network of information centres, as well as in the UN field offices. In addition, a number of other departments such as the Department of Peace Operations, the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs have need for Global Communications expertise. Global Communications Associate Officers typically report to a senior officer, i.e., a unit chief, section chief, or service chief.

Please be sure to carefully read the Special Notice section below and visit careers.un.org/ypp for more information.

Responsibilities

The Young Professionals Programme examination in Global Communications covers a wide range of topics in the areas of public information and communication (public relations, campaign management, marketing and strategic communications, media monitoring and analysis), information and knowledge management, and multimedia production (audio-visual, print, photo, social media).

What are some key activities that an Associate Officer in Global Communications may work on? An Associate Communications Officer will contribute to:

• • Gathering insights and analysis from traditional, social, and digital media monitoring, including public narratives and areas of reputational risk to inform communications strategy.
• The implementation of communications strategies that raise awareness, drive engagement, build support, and have a measurable impact with target audiences.
• Drafting narratives and messaging on the work of the UN that engages target audiences across different channels and platforms.
• Producing audiovisual content: promo video clips, live and on-demand video coverage, studio recording
• Conducting media mapping and fostering relationships with media outlets.
• Planning and coordination of press conferences, briefings, and media events.
• The creation of compelling content that is optimized to reach target audiences across a range of platforms and channels.
• Drafting and production of communications products, such as press releases, press statements, web stories, reports, and infographics.
• The development and implementation of communications campaigns that engage and have a measurable impact with target audiences through appropriate channels and platforms.
• Developing and coordination of strategic communications partnerships with internal and external stakeholders to reach target audiences and maximize impact.
• Delivering in-person outreach and advocacy strategies and campaigns to engage target audiences and advance UN priorities.
• The creation of content, interviews, news and programming for UN and/or community radio channels and podcasts.
• The preparation of inputs for strategic communications in the context of regular reporting to governmental bodies.
• The collection and analysis of data as well as identification of trends or patterns and provides draft insights through graphs, charts, tables and reports using data visualization methods for data-driven planning, decision-making, presentation and reporting.
• It is important that Associate Communications Officer will also:
  • Keep abreast of the latest trends in communications and maintain expertise in relevant and emerging technologies.
  • Follow current events and seek an in-depth understanding of the United Nations’ position, response and limitations as they relate to said events.
  • Maintain confidentiality, integrity, and discreet handling of sensitive information in compliance with the UN data privacy, security requirements, and standards.

Competencies

Professionalism:

• Shows pride in work and in achievements
• Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter
• Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results
• Is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns
• Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges
• Remains calm in stressful situations
• Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work

Creativity:

• Actively seeks to improve programmes or services
• Offers new and different options to solve problems or meet client needs
• Promotes and persuades others to consider new ideas
• Takes calculated risks on new and unusual ideas; thinks “outside the box”
• Takes an interest in new ideas and new ways of doing things
• Is not bound by current thinking or traditional approaches

Client Orientation :

• Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view
• Establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect
• Identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions
• Monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems
• Keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects
• Meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client

Education

• At least a first-level university degree (i.e., Bachelor’s degree or an equivalent degree of at least three years) in one of the following areas relevant to Communications (to be selected from the “Main Course of Study” dropdown menu): – Arts – Business & Administration – Computing – Journalism & Information – Humanities – Social & Behavioral Science Important: when preparing your application in Inspira, if you do not see your exact degree listed, please choose the field of study that is closest to your degree, from the “Field of Study” and “Main Course of Study” dropdown menus; then type the exact title in original language as well as its translation in English or French in the additional comment boxes.
• Do NOT select “other” for main course of study or field of study (or you will be automatically disqualified).

Work Experience

• No work experience is required.
• Relevant work experience may be taken into consideration as an additional screening criteria when more than 90 candidates from the same country apply to the same exam area.

Languages

• English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this job opening, either English or French is required.
• The table below shows the minimum required level for each skill in these languages, according to the UN Language Framework (please consult https://languages.un.org for details).

Required Languages

Language	Reading	Writing	Listening	Speaking
English	UN Level II	UN Level II	UN Level II	UN Level II
French	UN Level II	UN Level II	UN Level II	UN Level II

Assessment

The assessment process is divided into 3 stages:

• 1. Screening of applications
• 2. Written examination taken online
• 3. Oral examination / Interviews Knowledge of UN languages may be tested at any of these stages.

Applications will be screened on the basis of the eligibility criteria in this Job Opening.

The written examination will be conducted via an online testing platform. Candidates convoked for the written examination will be responsible for identifying and securing a location suitable for them to complete the examination (i.e., a computer with a reliable internet connection). Further information regarding the online testing platform and exam preparation guidance will be provided to those convoked for the examination.

The written examination is planned to be offered in two parts, with the following tentative timeframe (exact dates to be announced):

• Part I (likely in February 2026) consists of 1) the General Paper, which assesses competencies and abilities critical to success in working in an international affairs context, and 2) first part of the Specialized Paper, multiple choice questions which assess knowledge and attributes relevant to the exam area.
• Part II (1-2 months after stage 1) consists of the second part of the Specialized Paper, constructed response items (i.e., open-ended questions) which assess knowledge and attributes relevant to the exam area. Only examinees successful in part one of the online exam will be invited to participate in the second part.

Only examinees who are successful in the overall written examination will be invited to the oral examination. The oral examination will be conducted via online video conference. The oral examination will assess the key competencies for the job family, as described in the Job Opening. Part of the final assessment stage, either before, during or after the oral examination may include an element to verify the candidate’s answers given in the Specialized Paper as well as the information in the Candidate Profile submitted. The anticipated timeframe for the oral examinations is June 2026.

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