Summary: As the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR provides advice to the Australian Government in protecting and assisting refugees with resettlement
What it does: UNHCR Australia supports the government in developing national refugee legislation, protecting forcibly displaced people, and providing life-saving assistance such as food, shelter, and water to ensure their fundamental rights, safety, and dignity.
Mission: To safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees
Size and presence: UNHCR now has more than 18,879 personnel working in 137 countries.
Best known for: Their efforts to protect and assist millions of displaced and stateless people around the world
The good bits: Working on humanitarian projects is a rewarding experience, both professionally and personally
The not-so-good bits: You might have to move to a different place every few years if you are in field service
The office of UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) was established in 1950. The UN Refugee Agency, its first task was to help millions of Europeans who had lost their homes during World War Two.
Since then, UNHCR has led international actions to protect people forced to flee persecution and wars around the world, delivering life-saving aid and ensuring their safety and dignity. Working in 137 countries, UNHCR’s staff help make a difference in the lives of 89.3 million forcibly displaced people worldwide.
UNHCR Australia also provides advice to the Australian Government and plays a role in referring refugees to Australia for resettlement. Its goals align closely with Australia's aid priorities as outlined in An Effective Aid Program for Australia.
UNHCR Australia also supports developing national refugee legislation, increasing refugee status determination capacity, and introducing protection safeguards in immigration procedures. Its dedicated staff work around the clock in roles including community services, legal protection, health, public affairs, and many more to create a positive impact.
UNHCR provides a competitive and challenging environment for a good cause. It is a rewarding experience in which many skills can be developed, such as communications, sales and business skills. They have good management, and the environment is encouraging and supportive with great learning opportunities.
However, only a few of UNHCR’s staff work in administrative functions at the offices or service centres and provide support for the rest of UNHCR. These staff include protection workers, drivers, supply officers, and other professionals in various areas. Other staff (around 87%) are working in the field, assisting the most vulnerable people uprooted by persecution and war.
You will learn a lot that there are so many refugees in the world who need help. You need to be passionate about saving the refugees, otherwise, the job can be quite difficult. Among the staff working in the field, there are also those who work at high-risk duty stations (the countries in conflict). They are more likely to face challenges in their work as humanitarians since they see so much injustice and discrimination, even physical threats.
Almost all vacancies at UNHCR are listed on their online recruitment platform. New opportunities are added regularly. Other roles, such as UN Volunteers and Junior Professional Officers, have a different application procedure, outside of this system.
To apply, you need to register and complete an online profile on the recruitment platform. You can then select a specific open position where you can upload a resume and provide the required information.
You need to highlight your motivation, skills, and experience, and tailor your letter of interest accordingly. A system-generated notification will be sent after you submit an application. If you are shortlisted, the recruitment team will contact you to undergo a screening process to assess your education history, qualifications, and relevant work experience.
If you pass, you will be requested to complete language and functional assessments, as well as competency-based interviews to assess your talents, skills, abilities, knowledge and actual experience in handling a variety of situations. Finally, when you pass these assessments, you will be contacted to receive an official offer from UNHCR.
To support your career development, the Organization provides a diverse range of programmes that include development workshops and career planning. These opportunities and career support services are extended across all UN’s established job networks: Political, Peace and Security; Management and Operations Support; Economic and Social Development; Information Systems and Communication Technology; Legal; Public Information and External Relations; Conference Management; Safety and Security.
This covers both substantive and technical skills as well as key competencies. Through Career Resource Centres or Training Centres, the following services are available:
UNHCR staff may be entitled to allowances and benefits including:
UNHCR works in a humanitarian mission to help refugees, internally displaced people, and stateless people in different ways:
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