How to pass the United Nations Competency Based Interview Questions

How to pass the United Nations Competency Based Interview Questions
You have sent in a strong killer CV, an outstanding motivational letter, your application is on point and the human resource manager/hiring unit has shortlisted you for an interview, (most of the United Nations interviews are competency based) the question rolling in your mind is, what is a competency-based interview and how can l prepare myself? Look no further this article has got some answers for you.
United Nations competency-based interviews also known as behavioural interviews hinges on how past experiences, performances or actions are the best indicator of future performance. You have probably come across a UN job description highlighting UN core competencies:
- Teamwork / team player
- Strong communication skills
- Planning and organising
- Accountability
- Client orientation
- Accountability
- Continuous learning
- Technological learning
- Creativity
Core values of the United Nations – respect for diversity, professionalism, and integrity
To nail an interview, you need to demonstrate how your past experiences, actions you took led to the success of a project/ programme.
Here are examples of UN competency-based interview questions:
1.Describe a situation in which you worked in a team to complete a task
2.How would you communicate climate adaptation and mitigation strategies to communities in remote areas?
3.The position advertised requires you as a human rights advisor, to plan and organise a series of human rights consultations, workshops and conferences, demonstrate how you have planned events previously and how you intend to use your skills for our upcoming events.
The approach is to utilise:
S-situation, you need to describe a situation or a task that you were given
A-action, what steps, actions, strategies did you utilise to achieve the action
R-results- demonstrate the outcomes of your actions, performances
L-lessons, what did you learn, if you had done things differently what could have been the outcome, how do you intend to utilise the experience on the job you are applying?
N.B remember to link your example on how you intend to fulfil the needs of the UN job you are being interviewed for
Answer for question 3
Situation – I was tasked to organise a high-level human rights awareness meeting with NGOs and community stakeholders
Action: I researched and asked my supervisor for any documents, meeting minutes/ reports of how previous human rights meetings were held at UN country office or other UN offices. I sat down and wrote down all names of stakeholders that l thought were essential for the meeting. I reached out to fellow UN colleagues to identify stakeholders that will be key for the meeting. I reviewed the list with my supervisor, drafted an agenda. I wrote letters for review by my supervisor and UN Country Office Resident Coordinator. The invitations were emailed to the stakeholders highlighting the venue and meeting agenda, I followed up with phone calls to confirm attendance.
Results: The meeting was a great success as we were able to document inputs from stakeholders from various groups, there was great attendance (300 participants) and policy briefs (three policy briefs) came from the meeting. Inputs were made by youth groups, NGOs, Government ministries, councilors. The meeting was a success given the evaluation forms we collected which highlighted the impressions of the stakeholders
Lessons learnt cooperation, strategizing, consultation is important and most importantly teamwork led to the success of the meeting. I am convinced that my experience organising high level meetings as highlighted above and many others, I will be able to utilise my experience to achieve the needs of the human rights advisor position advertised.
From the above example, what is clear is that an interviewer can follow through what the candidate did. The candidate demonstrates the actions he/she took as an individual and those of workmates. The results came positive, and the candidate organised a high-level meeting, he or she is capable of transforming the skills, experiences for the position advertised.
N.B With UN competency-based interviews, you need to go with already prepared examples for every competency advertised in the position.
It is important to highlight general tips on interview preparations:
- Assess the UN job post against your experiences and qualifications.
- Revisit your cover letter and resume, in fact all your application documents.
- Find strong points and note them down that highlight your successes.
- Thorough preparation that will help you articulate how your qualifications, experiences and skills set align to the positions.
- Demonstrate to the hiring manager you are a befitting candidate.
- Support your qualifications with relevant examples of your accomplishments.
To receive quick updates
Subscribe to our websites: https://unitednationscareers.com/