For UNDP Junior Professional Officers

The overall goal of the UNDP JPO Career Development Programme is to assist the UNDP JPOs in defining their career objectives and to support them in pursuing career opportunities with the UN following the completion of their JPO assignment.

The JPO Service Centre offers a wide range of services and tools which can be combined into a customized career support package to suit the needs of JPOs.

UNDP JPOs can benefit from the following services:   

• Assistance to sharpen your outlook towards career goals, to prepare a career development plan and to think about challenges and opportunities when pursuing a career with UNDP. 
• Guidance on approaches to take when pursuing job opportunities with UNDP.
• Practical tips and hints when applying to UN positions.

Managing your Career

Checkout the Career catalyst website for the latest career trends and career development tools that young professionals can use to manage their careers. Start planning your career now. 

If you are interested to get more information about Career Services, please contact your Human Resource Associate (HRA) at the UNDP JPO Service Centre. Get your HRA contact details.

Career conversation

The HR practitioners in the JPO Service Centre have been trained in career coaching and offer individual career conversations during your assignment. The purpose of the session is to help you clearly define your motivation, career aspirations and opportunities.

Feedback on CV and Cover Letter

At the start of your search for new positions, we can provide feedback and advice on how to formulate your CV and cover letter. For more details, please contact your HRA.

Online career development

We regularly organize virtual career development sessions to provide you with the opportunity to learn and share career experiences.

JPO Alumni Association

The JPO Alumni Association (JAA) promotes a lifelong connection to the United Nations and is intended to strengthen knowledge-sharing amongst its members. It connects more than 2,800 former JPOs.

Individual induction reflections

We offer individual induction reflections 4-5 months into the JPO assignment. The aim is to reflect on your JPO experience, challenges and learning experience.

Interview preparation

We can assist you with interview preparation by explaining the principles of compentecy-based interviews and how to prepare for them. It is possible to have a mock interview and receive feedback to use in an actual interview. For more details, please contact your HRA.

Useful links

• JPO Alumni Association Directory

Mentoring

UNDP offers a mentoring service for UNDP JPOs and SDPs, as well as other Young Talent programmes. The Mentoring service allows current JPOs and SDPs to be matched with former JPOs who are still working in the UN system. The goals of the Mentoring Programme are to support JPOs and SDPs with their assignments and contribute to a meaningful learning experience that will empower JPOs to make decisions and act in their assignment and on their career choices. UNDP Young Talents will have the opportunity to share skills and expertise with one another and receive and/or provide guidance to boost professional development.

JPOs from partner UN agencies

We advise you to get in touch with the JPO Programme Focal Point in your UN agency.