The United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) was established in 1948 to encourage economic cooperation among its member states. It is one of five regional commissions under the administrative direction of United Nations headquarters. ECLAC has 44 member States and eight non-independent territories in the Caribbean, and reports to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). ECLAC maintains subregional offices in Mexico City and in Port-of-Spain, country offices in Buenos Aires, Brasilia, Montevideo and Bogotá, and a liaison office in Washington, D.C.
The Subregional Headquarters of ECLAC in Mexico was founded in 1951. It provides technical advice to governments of the countries of the subregion (Mexico, Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Haiti and Panama) in various socio-economic, technical and financial fields, as well as on development matters and integration issues. The subregional office in Mexico is comprised of five substantive units on Economic Development, Social Development, Agricultural Development, International Trade and Industry, and Energy and Natural Resources, in addition to the Office of the Director, the Administration Section, the Editorial, Documents and Conference Services Unit, and the Information Resource Centre and Publications Distribution Unit (Visit http://www.eclac.cl/mexico/).
The candidate, under general guidance of the Library Assistant of the Information Resource Centre and Publications Distribution Unit of ECLAC-Mexico City, is expected to work on an important project involving the historical archive of the ECLAC in Mexico. The project would include the creation of the metadata (descriptive and subject details) for ECLAC historical documents, the documents’ digitization, the OCR processing, linking to the corresponding records in the ECLAC Institutional Repository (a full-text searchable, open access database, http://repositorio.cepal.org). The project manager will work closely with the intern to ensure adherence to agreed quality control standards of practice. This project will dramatically increase the visibility of the ECLAC documents on the World Wide Web and in academic portals.
The intern will gain experience in work related to the design, development, operation and management of general and specialized information, research and publication services, systems and networks to support ECLAC programs and to raise awareness of ECLAC research and data.
Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; Solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; Places team agenda before personal agenda; Supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; Shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.
Creativity: Actively seeks to improve programmes or services; Offers new and different options to solve problems or meet client needs; Promotes and persuades others to consider new ideas; Takes calculated risks on new and unusual ideas; thinks "outside the box"; Takes an interest in new ideas and new ways of doing things; Is not bound by current thinking or traditional approaches.
Technological Awareness: Keeps abreast of available technology; Understands applicability and limitations of technology to the work of the office; Actively seeks to apply technology to appropriate tasks; Shows willingness to learn new technology.
The following criteria are used to determine eligibility for the ECLAC Internship Programme:
a) Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher, i.e. Master’s or equivalent, Ph.D. or post-graduate degree) in library science, information science, or related field;
b) Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor’s level or equivalent); or
c) Have graduated with a university degree (Bachelor’s, Master’s, Ph.D. or equivalent) and, if selected, must commence the internship within a one year period of graduation.
Applicants are not required to have professional work experience for participation in the programme.
Fluency in Spanish (both oral and written) is required for this Internship Programme. Knowledge of English or another official UN language is an asset.
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat.
Potential candidates will be contacted by hiring manager directly for further consideration.
The internship is for a minimum of two months with the possibility of extension up to a maximum of six months, depending on the needs of the department and availability of the intern.
Interns are not paid and are responsible for all expenses related to the internship.
ECLAC accepts no responsibility for costs arising from accidents and/or illness incurred during an internship. Therefore, upon awarding an internship, candidates will be required to sign a statement confirming their understanding and acceptance of the conditions of service.
Interns normally work five days per week (35 hours) under the supervision of a staff member in the department or office to which they are assigned.
Interns must keep confidential any and all unpublished information obtained during the course of the internship and not publish any reports or papers based on such information except with the explicit authorization of ECLAC.
Applicants must :
Be computer literate in standard office software applications;
Have a demonstrated keen interest in the work of the United Nations and have a personal commitment to the ideals of the UN Charter; and
Have demonstrated ability to successfully interact with individuals of different cultural backgrounds and beliefs, which include willingness to try and understand and be tolerant of differing opinions and views.
A complete online application (Cover Note and Personal History Profile) is required. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.
The Cover Note must include:
- Title of degree you are currently pursuing
- Graduation Date (when will you be graduating from the programme)
- List the IT skills and programmes that you are proficient in
- List your top three areas of interest/department preferences
- Explain why you are the best candidate for that specific department(s).
- Explain your interest in the United Nations Internship Programme
In your Personal History Profile, be sure to include all past work experience, IT skills, and three references.
Due to a high volume of applications received, ONLY successful candidates will be contacted.
According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity, including but not limited to, respect for international human rights and humanitarian law. Candidates may be subject to screening against these standards, including but not limited to, whether they have committed or are alleged to have committed criminal offences or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.
Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.
Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the At-a-Glance on "The Application Process" and the Instructional Manual for the Applicants, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.
The screening and evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications, including but not limited to, their education, work experience, and language skills, according to the instructions provided on inspira. Applicants will be disqualified from consideration if they do not demonstrate in their application that they meet the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations. Applicants are solely responsible for providing complete and accurate information at the time of application: no amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to a reference-checking process to verify the information provided in the application.
Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at midnight (New York time) on the deadline date.
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.