JUNIOR PROFESSIONAL OFFICER PROGRAMME (JPO) 2019/2020

The Italian Junior Professional Officer Programme (JPO) is a multilateral technical cooperation
initiative sponsored by the Government of Italy and implemented by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN/DESA). It enables Italian citizens and citizens of eligible developing countries holding an advanced university degree to gain work experience with international organizations for a period of two years.
The purpose of the Programme is two-fold: on the one hand, it assists international organizations in carrying out their activities by providing them with skilled personnel for a period of two years; on the other, it allows young qualified professionals seeking an international career the opportunity of two years’ work experience that will broaden their chances of finding a suitable job in international organizations or in the international field.
Candidates must meet all the following requirements to be considered eligible for the 2019/2020
edition:
▪ born on or after 1 January 1989 (1 January 1988 for graduates in Medicine; 1 January 1986 for graduates in Medicine who have already been awarded a post-graduate medical specialization degree)
▪ Italian nationality
▪ fluency in English and Italian
▪ advanced university degree awarded before the application deadline, such as:
✓ Laurea Magistrale/Specialistica
✓ Laurea Magistrale a ciclo unico
✓ Laurea/Laurea Triennale plus university Master’s degree
✓ Bachelor’s degree plus university Master’s degree.
For the 2019/2020 edition, a limited number of positions will be assigned to candidates from
developing countries (Least Developed Countries and priority countries for the Italian
Development Cooperation). The list of the eligible countries is available from the website
www.undesa.it.
Candidates from developing countries must meet all the following requirements to be considered
eligible:
• born on or after 1 January 1989 (1 January 1988 for graduates in Medicine; 1 January 1986
for graduates in Medicine who have already been awarded a post-graduate medical
specialization degree)
• fluency in English (knowledge of Italian will be considered an asset)
• advanced university degree awarded before the application deadline, such as:
✓ Laurea Magistrale/Specialistica
✓ Laurea Magistrale a ciclo unico
✓ Laurea/LaureaTriennale plus university Master’s degree
✓ Bachelor’s degree plus university Master’s degree.
Given the highly competitive nature of the Italian JPO Programme, as well as the increasingly
demanding skill-sets and levels of experience sought by International Organizations, the following
are frequently considered important assets:
➢ Knowledge of other UN official languages/languages spoken in developing countries
➢ Additional academic qualifications and/or training courses
➢ Solid professional work experience (minimum one year)
➢ Key competencies such as client orientation, teamwork, communication, accountability,
planning and organization.
Candidates are expected to be motivated, flexible and willing to adapt to different environments.
At all times they must demonstrate commitment to the core values of the United Nations, i.e.
integrity, professionalism and respect for diversity.
For practical advice on preparing an application to the Italian JPO Programme, candidates are
invited to attend a Webinar on one of the following dates (N.B. prior online enrolment is
mandatory via www.undesa.it):
o 23 October 2019 (10 a.m.)
o 30 October 2019 (5 p.m.)
o 05 November 2019 (10 a.m.)
o 12 November 2019 (5 p.m.)
o 20 November 2019 (10 a.m.)
o 28 November 2019 (1 p.m.)
o 03 December 2019 (5 p.m.)
The deadline for submitting applications to the 2019-2020 round of the Italian JPO Programme
is 10 December 2019 at 3 p.m. (Italian local time).
Before starting the application process, please read carefully the How to Apply webpage.
Applications to the Programme can only be submitted online through the Online Web Application tool (OWA) of the UN/DESA Office in Rome. It is no longer possible to submit applications via
alternative channels.
Only short-listed applicants will be informed by UN/DESA about the positive outcome of the preselection process.
For additional information, please consult the relevant webpages on http://www.undesa.it or
email the UN/DESA Office in Rome at JPOinfo@undesa.it.