I came to work for the United Nations in 1991 during a tumultuous time in my life. Before joining the United Nations, I attended the Music Academy of Belgrade and following my graduation I became a musical director and one of the principal conductors. Following a successful musical season, I was visiting New York City when war broke out back home in the former Yugoslavia. Under the circumstances, I decided to apply for a job with the United Nations since I speak seven different languages and have strong computer skills. I undertook a test and ultimately joined as a clerk in the Department of Public Information (DPI).

Although I began my career at the United Nations as a result of a war, I fell in love with its uniqueness of its mission, the connectivity between nations and the ability to make a difference in people’s lives. I work with hard-working, dedicated individuals committed to serving a greater purpose. My general field of work is Information Technology, but I have a creative streak from my first career as a musician. The United Nations gave me the opportunity to incorporate my artistic talents into my current career through web-site designs, on-line course development, and platform creation. While working at the United Nations I had the opportunity to improve on my career; I pursued an on-line Master’s degree in computer science through Kennedy Western University in California.

I spent most of my United Nations career working in support functions for the United Nations Pension Fund. After every project I have always felt a sense of real accomplishment, making a positive impact for my department. My most memorable project took place in 1997 when I designed and developed the Pension Fund’s first website. It was very gratifying to hear positive comments and feedback about the site. Those responses motivated me to work with that same kind of passion on subsequent projects.

A typical day requires that I work on several different projects; I develop courses on-line, design new and improved functional areas on the website and collect relevant training materials which I then transform into interactive online learning programmes.

The United Nations provides a culturally diverse and rich working environment. After 18 years of service with the organization I am constantly fascinated by those who I work with. It’s a system that allows for efficient and effective work despite transnational differences. In fact, our different backgrounds often serve as a tool for understanding problems from different perspectives and applying that new knowledge to everyday situations.

Although I work hard in my career with the United Nations, I also take time to enjoy the sights and sounds of my duty station, New York. I am still very passionate about music and I play for a Serbian band. Our group toured several cities across the United States and we produced several popular CDs. I also love to fly planes, which I don’t do as much anymore as I enjoy spending time with my family the most.

If you have interest in applying to the United Nations, I recommend taking a look at yourself and identifying the things you can provide to this organization. Fortunately, there are a multitude of different jobs in the United Nations and it just becomes a matter of finding the job that works for you. You must also realize that you will ultimately be serving a greater purpose, regardless of the career path you choose. In every field you will be making a difference in people’s lives.