Infrastructure and Project Management Intern

The Infrastructure and Project Management Group (IPMG) provides policy, standards guidance and support in three UNOPS service lines of Project Management, Infrastructure and Financial Management Services (Grant Support and Fund Management). IPMG leads the design and implementation of a project, programme and portfolio management (P3M) system centered around the needs of UNOPS partners, beneficiaries and frontline personnel. IPMG also drives UNOPS efforts to leverage sustainable, resilient and inclusive infrastructure and maximize local capacity through grant support management to achieve sustainable development. Through thought leadership, we aim to position UNOPS with its partners, foster innovative solutions for sustainable and inclusive development, and accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This includes speeding up the implementation of urgent infrastructure and scaling up infrastructure service delivery, particularly in relation to climate action and energy. Our delivery approach to project management, infrastructure and grant support management prioritizes development needs, empowers institutions and communities, builds partners’ capacity, champions gender equality and social inclusion and reduces environmental impact. IPMG translates policy into practice by providing strategic direction, standards and oversight, while facilitating knowledge sharing and capacity-building for UNOPS teams globally.

The Portfolio Delivery Support (PDS)  team, as part of IPMG, provides an organizational oversight function and considers the application of standards, guidance and best practice throughout the execution of programmes and associated projects.

PDS provides practice-specific support to offices and project teams throughout the project cycle. Infrastructure Design Review, Technical Support and Grant Support teams support the implementation of standards, guidance and best practices to enable effective management of UNOPS projects and grants.

IPMG’s Design Review team has the role of assuring the quality of all infrastructure designs developed and delivered within UNOPS. The primary aims are to ensure that minimum requirements for life safety and functionality of design is maintained and to achieve a consistent, effective and efficient approach in infrastructure activities for our donors and beneficiaries. This position is within the Design Review team.

Under the overall guidance and supervision of IPMG Design Review Coordinator, the successful candidate will be responsible for supporting a variety of tasks to support the design review team. We are seeking qualified applicants who may have a background in infrastructure and project management and who are extremely structured, organized, and detail-oriented. The main support areas will be data analysis as well as communication and administration tasks.

The successful candidate may be required to work on the following:

Support the administration of design review:

• Respond to or coordinate answers to requests related to design review. 

• Track the status of and coordinate responsibilities among task owners.

• Log and track the passage of designs through the review process and centrally store all relevant design documentation.

• Support the preparation and operation of weekly coordination meetings and risk meetings with regions.

• Contribute to drafting documents to support the progressive development of design review, such as guidance materials, data analysis, etc..  

Infrastructure & Project Management Support:

• Support a variety of tasks, work packages and projects as outlined and assigned in the annual work plan for the Portfolio Delivery Support team;

• Responsible for meeting goals, targets and performance standards as set out by the supervisor;

• Provide analysis and reporting as required

• Conduct research and collect data/information;

• Support compliance with all policies, guidelines and instructions set out by the practice and organization.

If qualified and interested, the candidate may also assist in the review of technical infrastructure project documentation for completeness and quality against the requirements of the relevant technical codes and standards, including the verification of low-risk reviews carried out by peer-reviewers, for low-risk infrastructure works.

Required:

• The applicant should have completed a Minimum First level university degree (Bachelor’s or equivalent), or be enrolled in a postgraduate program or have graduated from such studies within three (3) years prior to the start date of the intern assignment.

Desired:

• Area of study should preferably be in Engineering, Architecture, or Planning.
• A university degree in a relevant field such as International Development or International Relations in combination with some experience preferably in the areas of engineering, architecture and planning may be accepted

  
  

Desired:

• While no prior work experience is required, some experience working with the Google suite, particularly Google Sheets is highly desirable. 
• The ideal candidate will have experience in one or several of the following areas:

-Academic research

-Engineering

-International development or humanitarian response

-Data analysis

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes. 
• Please note that UNOPS will at no stage of the recruitment process request candidates to make payments of any kind.
• Applications to vacancies must be received before midnight Copenhagen time (CET) on the closing date of the announcement. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered. 
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments. 
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities. 
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post. 
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here. 
• For more details about the contract types, please click here.
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda. 
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.