A UN internship at the Secretariat is open to students in a master’s or PhD programme, in the final year of a bachelor’s, or within one year of graduating, and runs for two to six months. Whether it pays depends on the organisation: the Secretariat’s guidance says its interns are not paid, while UNICEF, WFP and UNFPA pay a stipend.
A UN internship is a short placement for students and recent graduates in an office of a UN organisation, and it is not a job. At WHO, for example, interns do not have the status of staff members. Each organisation in the UN system runs its own programme, so the rules below differ from one to the next, and the internship notice is the final word.
Who can apply for a UN internship?
The Secretariat’s internship fact sheet asks four questions. Are you enrolled in a master’s or PhD programme, or in the final year of a bachelor’s? Or are you within one year of graduating from one? Do you have excellent English or French? And are you neither a child nor a sibling of a Secretariat staff member?
One official page words it differently. The UN Vienna internships page says applicants must be enrolled graduate students. If the two differ for the office you want, follow the notice for that internship.
The funds, programmes and agencies set their own conditions:
| Organisation | Who may apply | Languages |
|---|---|---|
| UNICEF | At least 18, enrolled in an undergraduate, graduate or PhD programme, or graduated within the past two years | English, French or Spanish, and possibly the language of the office |
| WFP | Enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate programme, or graduated at most six months ago, with classes attended in the past 12 months and at least two years of undergraduate study completed | Fluent English |
| WHO | At least 20, enrolled in a course leading to a formal qualification, or applying within 18 months of completing one, with three years of full-time university study done before the start | Fluent in a working language of the office |
| UNFPA | Enrolled in a first degree with one full academic year completed, or in a postgraduate programme, or graduated and starting within one year | English or French, and the official language of the office |
WHO adds two more rules: you must hold a valid passport of a WHO Member State, and you cannot have taken part in its internship programme before. UNICEF, WFP and UNFPA all exclude close relatives of their own staff.
A worked example of the graduation windows
Suppose you graduate on 30 June 2026. The windows differ a great deal:
| Organisation | The rule | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| UN Secretariat | Begin the internship within one year of graduation | Start by 30 June 2027 |
| WFP | A recent graduate of at most six months | Apply by 31 December 2026 |
| WHO | Apply within 18 months of completing the qualification | Apply by 31 December 2027 |
| UNICEF | Graduated within the past two years | Apply by 30 June 2028 |
Note which rule counts the start date and which counts the application date.
How long does a UN internship last?
The Secretariat’s internships last at least two months and at most six, full-time. The agencies vary:
- UNICEF: normally six to 26 weeks, full-time or part-time, and some internships can be remote.
- WFP: two to eight months, at country offices, regional bureaux and headquarters.
- WHO: six to 24 weeks, full-time and consecutive.
- UNFPA: one New York posting we read gave 24 weeks, and its 2026 roster does not state a length.
Are UN internships paid?
It depends on the organisation, and this is the question to settle before you apply.
The Secretariat. The fact sheet says UN interns are not paid, and that travel, insurance, accommodation and living expenses are borne by the intern or a sponsoring institution. The Secretariat’s applicant guide, republished in August 2024, also says interns are not paid. You arrange and pay for your own visa and travel, and you must show proof of valid major global medical insurance. Some universities give academic credit for the internship.
The agencies that pay:
- UNICEF says it provides a monthly stipend to interns, and may grant a one-time lump sum towards travel and visa costs when funding is available.
- WFP pays a stipend linked to the city and country of assignment, of at most US$1,000/month, provides medical and accident insurance, and pays a round trip for nationals of developing economies who study in their home country.
- WHO has paid a living allowance since January 2020 to eligible interns who need financial support, assessed from a declaration you complete. The amount is in each vacancy notice. WHO insures all interns during the internship, and may cover travel for some interns from least developed and middle-income countries, but visas are at the intern’s cost.
- UNFPA says interns without financial support from an outside party, such as a university or a government, can receive a stipend, normally paid in local currency at the end of each month. One UNFPA posting we read said it does not provide medical insurance and asks for proof of your own.
The UN Vienna page also notes that the IAEA, a separate organisation in Vienna, offers its interns a stipend for basic subsistence costs.
Can a UN internship lead to a job?
Not straight away at the Secretariat. Its guideline on the eligibility of affiliated personnel, revised in October 2024, applies a General Assembly rule that bars former interns from applying for or being appointed to posts for six months after the internship ends. The bar covers positions at the Professional level and above with international recruitment status, whatever their funding or length, and no exceptions are granted.
It does not apply to someone whose internship was with a separately funded fund, programme or agency, such as UNICEF or UNHCR, when they apply to the Secretariat. UNICEF itself says there should be no expectation of employment at the end of an internship.
An internship still gives you experience you can describe, the names of people who saw your work, and a profile on the portal you will use again. The Secretariat fact sheet says the profile you create becomes your resume for every later internship or job application at the UN.
How do you find and apply for a UN internship?
Each organisation posts its own internships:
- The Secretariat. Go to the UN Careers portal and choose Internship from the category menu. You can apply to more than one. You need an account in Inspira, the Secretariat’s application system. The Vienna page says Secretariat internships in Vienna are advertised on the same portal.
- UNICEF. Internships are offered throughout the year on its vacancies page.
- WFP. Open positions are listed from its internship page.
- WHO. Apply only through the internship vacancy notices in its online recruitment system. WHO says there is no other way to apply.
- UNFPA. It runs a global internship roster, and its 2026 roster closes on 31 December 2026.
For the Secretariat, the fact sheet gives one practical instruction: match the competencies in the notice in your cover letter, and include the Job ID number. Read the notice line by line first, with how to read a job posting, and keep one master CV to adapt, as one resume for many countries describes.
Watch for fraud. The fact sheet says the UN does not charge a fee at any stage of recruitment.
Questions people ask
Do UN internships pay?
Some do. The Secretariat’s guidance says its interns are not paid. UNICEF and WFP pay a stipend, UNFPA pays one to interns without outside funding, and WHO pays an allowance to eligible interns who need financial support.
Can I apply for a UN internship after I graduate?
Yes, within a window. The Secretariat asks you to begin within one year of graduation, WFP takes graduates of at most six months, WHO takes applications within 18 months, and UNICEF takes graduates of the past two years.
Do I need to speak French?
Not for every internship. The Secretariat asks for excellent English or French. UNICEF accepts English, French or Spanish, and WHO asks for a working language of the office.
Is UNDP’s internship programme covered here?
No. The UNDP pages turned our requests away, so its rules are not described. Read them on UNDP’s own site.
What we know and what we do not
The rules above were read on each organisation’s own pages and documents when this post was written. The newest Secretariat text we could read on pay is the applicant guide republished in August 2024, which says interns are not paid. We could not read later General Assembly documents on the internship programme, so check the pay line in the notice you apply to. UNDP’s and UNHCR’s internship pages were not read.
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