Spanning 193 countries with myriad different agencies and agendas, all with the remit of solving the world’s most complex global problems, the United Nations is an employer unlike any other.
But it’s likely that those who are new to development and are considering a career with the U.N. haven’t thought through — or are not aware of in the first place — all that working for such a prestigious global entity entails, meaning they may go into the system unprepared, former and current U.N. staffers told Devex.
“Things come out that you don't expect,” said a former UN Refugee Agency, or UNHCR, worker who was based in Burundi, Ethiopia, and the Philippines but asked to remain anonymous. “We idealize working for the U.N. so I think it meets the expectations in a positive sense, but then … the downsides of working with the U.N. probably come more as a surprise.”