UN Competitive Examination
Encyclopedia
The United Nations Competitive Recruitment Examination is a part of three step selection process for a permanent position with the United Nations
consisting of:
a general paper which tests drafting skills (forty-five minutes); and
a specialized paper (three hours and forty-five minutes) which tests the substantive knowledge of the particular occupation that the candidate is applying for.
In cases where the number of candidates sitting the written examination is high, the essay section of the specialized paper will be eliminatory.
The written examination questions are given in English
and French
, the two working languages of the Secretariat
. Candidates must write their answers for the general paper in English or French. However, they may write their answers for the specialized paper in English, French or any of the other four official language
s of the Secretariat, i.e., Arabic
, Chinese
, Russian
or Spanish
.
The interview will be conducted in English or French, the two working languages of the Secretariat.
A modest percentage of those who take the written exam will be convoked to take the interview. For example, of the 395 people were sat for the 2008
IT exam, 39 were convoked to the interview. Of those, 26 were added to the roster of qualified candidates.
Successful after the examination:
Following the completion of the interviews, the Board of Examiners will recommend the most suitable candidates to the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management
of the United Nations.
These candidates will be placed on a reserve roster of qualified candidates. This roster will be circulated among heads of duty stations for selection, further interview, and placement of candidates. The typical time spent on the roster prior to placement in a job with the UN is from 6 months to 3 years.
The decisions of the Board of Examiners regarding the results will be final and are not subject to appeal. The Board does not release individual results.
Successful candidates may be called upon to serve at the U.N. Headquarters in New York
or at other duty stations in Africa
, Asia
, Europe
or Latin America
.
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
consisting of:
- a written examination
- interview
- two year probationary post.
Written examinations
The written examination consists of the following two parts:a general paper which tests drafting skills (forty-five minutes); and
a specialized paper (three hours and forty-five minutes) which tests the substantive knowledge of the particular occupation that the candidate is applying for.
In cases where the number of candidates sitting the written examination is high, the essay section of the specialized paper will be eliminatory.
The written examination questions are given in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, the two working languages of the Secretariat
United Nations Secretariat
The United Nations Secretariat is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and it is headed by the United Nations Secretary-General, assisted by a staff of international civil servants worldwide. It provides studies, information, and facilities needed by United Nations bodies for...
. Candidates must write their answers for the general paper in English or French. However, they may write their answers for the specialized paper in English, French or any of the other four official language
Official language
An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
s of the Secretariat, i.e., Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
or Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
.
Subjects
Not all the subjects are offered every year, but some are offered more often than others. Here a table of subjects given in recent years, together with the number of persons invited to take the written exam in that subject.| Topic | 2008 Written Exam | 2009 Written Exam |
|---|---|---|
| Finance Finance "Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created... |
463 | 364 |
| Information Technology Information technology Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications... |
395 | 322 |
| Political Affairs | 844 | 0 |
| Environment Natural environment The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species.... |
375 | 0 |
| Statistics Statistics Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments.... |
196 | 172 |
| Human Rights Human rights Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national... |
329 | 0 |
| Programme Evaluation | 353 | 0 |
| Economics Economics Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"... |
0 | 422 |
| Administration Administration The administration of a business consists of the performance or management of business operations and thus the making or implementing of a major decision... |
0 | 420 |
| Public Information | 0 | 305 |
| Security | 0 | 58 |
| Social Affairs | 0 | 554 |
| Total | 2955 | 2617 |
The interview
On the basis of performance in the written examination, the Board of Examiners will invite selected candidates to the interview, which will normally take place from 6 to 12 months after the exam.The interview will be conducted in English or French, the two working languages of the Secretariat.
A modest percentage of those who take the written exam will be convoked to take the interview. For example, of the 395 people were sat for the 2008
IT exam, 39 were convoked to the interview. Of those, 26 were added to the roster of qualified candidates.
Successful after the examination:
Following the completion of the interviews, the Board of Examiners will recommend the most suitable candidates to the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management
Human resource management
Human Resource Management is the management of an organization's employees. While human resource management is sometimes referred to as a "soft" management skill, effective practice within an organization requires a strategic focus to ensure that people resources can facilitate the achievement of...
of the United Nations.
These candidates will be placed on a reserve roster of qualified candidates. This roster will be circulated among heads of duty stations for selection, further interview, and placement of candidates. The typical time spent on the roster prior to placement in a job with the UN is from 6 months to 3 years.
The decisions of the Board of Examiners regarding the results will be final and are not subject to appeal. The Board does not release individual results.
Successful candidates may be called upon to serve at the U.N. Headquarters in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
or at other duty stations in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
or Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
.