OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME
The Ethics team within the science division is the focal point for the examination of ethical issues raised by activities throughout the Organization and develops global norms in the area of health ethics. The team also supports Member States in building health ethics capacities and addressing ethical issues that arise in their public health programs and policies. These issues cover a range of global bioethics topics from public health surveillance to developments in genomics, and from research with human beings to fair access to health services. This team’s work is particularly important in the context of contemporary global health challenges which present difficult questions in areas such as global governance of emerging technologies, health inequalities, resource allocation and priority setting, emergency preparedness and responses, research and multi-country studies, and climate change and health.
DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES
Under the supervision of the Senior Ethics Specialist, the intern will assist the Ethics team at WHO in technical work as assigned in the agreed terms of reference:
• Participate in on-going ethics technical projects and meetings, and FLS unit and SFH departmental projects and meetings, as requested.
• Working closely with the ethics team, support the preparation of technical outputs, including briefs, evidence summaries, meeting notes, draft reports and presentations on a diverse range of ethical issues to help research and develop normative guidance on public health and research ethics.
• Review and synthesize academic and grey literature on specific topics in line with the objectives of the ethics team.
• Support the development, piloting and implementation of TArGET: the WHO-OECD Tool for the. Anticipatory Governance of Emerging Technologies in Public Health.
• Support the development of a programme of work with the health emergencies team to implement the findings of a review of ethical issues related to advances in public health surveillance.
• Support the organization and documentation of consultations, workshops and expert meetings, including agendas, background notes, presentations, participant lists, summaries of discussions and follow-up actions.
• Supporting the teams’ major outreach activities, namely the Global Summit of National Ethics committees and regional meetings, the Global Forum on Bioethics in Research and the Ethics2Policy Platform.
Learning objectives
The purpose of the WHO Internship Programme is to provide an enriching learning experience for students and recent graduates. The Learning Objectives outlined within each internship vacancy are a key component of the programme.
Within this internship, the intern will:
• Understand the objectives of WHOs work in ethics, particularly as it relates to the ethics and governance of emerging technologies, climate change and health action, emergency preparedness and response and uptake of ethics in policy and decision making in global health.
• Understand how WHO engages Member States, expert groups, regional and country offices and external partners in the development and implementation of ethics-related guidance.
• Acquire knowledge about the process of developing international guidelines at WHO.
• Contribute state of the art ethics research to pressing global health issues.
• Working in a multi-cultural, pluri-disciplinary environment.
• Gain practical experience in managing complex projects in global health ethics.
DURATION OF INTERNSHIP
1 February to 16 July 2027: 24 weeks
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Education
The intern is expected to be enrolled in a postgraduate qualification (or apply within eighteen months of completion), in bioethics, public health, medicine, philosophy, law or related disciplines.
Skills
Core competencies
• Team work
• Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
• Communication
All interns should be able to demonstrate the following skills in line with the WHO core competencies:
• Communicating effectively orally and in writing
• Showing willingness to learn from mistakes
• Producing and delivering quality results
• Working collaboratively with team members
In addition, interns need to be familiar with commonly used computer programmes, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and know how to use AI responsibly for research purposes.
Experience
An interest in applied ethics and a familiarity with key ethical concepts, with an emphasis on those that relate to public health, climate change and emerging technologies.
Languages
Essential: Expert knowledge of English (Read, Write and Speak)
Desirable: Intermediate knowledge of French. Intermediate knowledge of other UN language.
FINANCIAL SUPPORT
Interns do not receive a salary. They do however receive a living allowance. The amount of living allowance is different in each duty station. The amount also depends on any other external financial support received by the intern (grant, scholarships, etc.) and whether their permanent residence is in the duty station of the internship. In Geneva, for interns with permanent residence in the duty station, the maximum amount of the allowance provided by WHO is 739 CHF per month. For interns whose permanent residence is outside of the duty station, the maximum amount is 1680 CHF per month. The exact amount of the living allowance will be calculated for each intern, after selection, based on a legal financial disclosure form that the individual will complete. In addition, all interns in Geneva will receive daily lunch vouchers for meal expenses (20 CHF per working day). WHO also provides all interns with accident and medical insurance coverage.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
• Please note that internships at WHO are very competitive and only a small number of applicants will be accepted every year. Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• Living abroad is expensive and finding accommodation can be challenging. All intern candidates should be aware of these factors before they consider applying for a WHO Internship.
• If selected for a WHO Internship, candidates will be required to provide certified copies of proof of enrolment in an eligible course of studies, a completed WHO medical certificate of fitness for work, and the contact details for reference checks.
• WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.
• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.
• The WHO is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The WHO recruits and employs staff regardless of disability status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, race, marital status, religious, cultural, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, or any other personal characteristics.
• The WHO is committed to achieving gender parity and geographical diversity in its workforce. Women, persons with disabilities, and nationals of unrepresented and underrepresented Member States (https://www.who.int/careers/diversity-equity-and-inclusion) are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Persons with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations to enable participation in the recruitment process. Requests for reasonable accommodation should be sent through an email to reasonableaccommodation@who.int
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• Please note that WHO’s contracts are conditional on members of the workforce confirming that they are vaccinated as required by WHO before undertaking a WHO assignment, except where a medical condition does not allow such vaccination, as certified by the WHO Department of Staff Health and Wellbeing (SHW). The successful candidate will be asked to provide relevant evidence related to this condition. A copy of the updated vaccination card must be shared with WHO medical service in the medical clearance process. Please note that certain countries require proof of specific vaccinations for entry or exit. For example, official proof /certification of yellow fever vaccination is required to enter many countries. Country-specific vaccine recommendations can be found on the WHO international travel and Staff Health and Wellbeing website. For vaccination-related queries please contact SHW directly at shws@who.int.
• In case the website does not display properly, please retry by: (i) checking that you have the latest version of the browser installed (Chrome, Edge or Firefox); (ii) clearing your browser history and opening the site in a new browser (not a new tab within the same browser); or (iii) retry accessing the website using Mozilla Firefox browser or using another device. Click this link for detailed guidance on completing job applications: Instructions for candidates