One of the most common and no doubt frustrating parts of the application process is knowing what is happening during your application? Unfortunately unless you are short listed and invited for an interview you are not likely to hear anything from the UN. This is because of the high number of applications being processed by a limited amount of UN HR professionals. This is also one of the reasons why the recruitment processes of the UN is widely automated. In most cases, applicants will only get contacted and are handled in a more individual manner if they pass the first stage of shortlisting. The end to end process of applying to securing a job can take up to 4 months but the first stage notification for an interview is fairly quick.

Please be informed that the above outlines what can happen in cases when we are talking about a standard recruitment. The process may differ from organization to organization. 

The key thing is to not give up hope, keep focussed on your application, just pause and take a moment to ask are you applying for the right role? Do your skills fit the role at this stage? Have you highlighted your key strengths? Are you using UN specific language in your CV? How do you stand out from other candidates?

Apply to join the next UCC Future Leader Challenge to secure your place to meet UN insiders.