IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING APPLICATION DEADLINE\: please note that the deadline for applications is indicated in local time as per the time zone of the applicant’s location.
This post is a limited-term fixed-term post.
1. Organizational Context
a. Organizational Setting
The post is in the French Translation Section, PCT Translation Division of the Patents and Technology Sector. The PCT Translation Division is responsible for delivering high-quality publication-ready translation in relation to patent applications filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). In particular, the PCT Translation Division is responsible for the translation of scientific, technical and legal documents, mainly the abstracts of international patent applications and scientific, technical and legal reports relating to the patentability of inventions.
b. Purpose Statement
As part of the French Translation Section, the incumbent is required to assess translation quality of human or machine-generated texts, respond to linguistic queries and translate and self-revise specialized scientific and technical texts from English and at least one other PCT publication language into French, provide training to translators, participate in terminology compilation, select and assess translation tests, and be familiar with a wide variety of translation and terminology-related technology.
c. Reporting Lines
The incumbent works under the supervision of the Head of the French Translation Section.
2. Duties and Responsibilities
The incumbent will perform the following principal duties\:
a. Assess the quality of translations provided by the Division’s translation suppliers (internal and outsourced) or automatically generated in a wide range of subjects predominantly in the patent, scientific and technical subject fields from English and at least one other language of the PCT into French, to ensure accuracy of meaning and terminology as well as the application of established guidelines; provide feedback to suppliers. Revise texts translated by internal translators to ensure the accuracy of meaning and terminology, as well as the application of established guidelines.
b. Translate, post-edit and self-revise texts in a wide range of subjects as per point (a) from English and at least one other language of the PCT into French, meeting the standards of quality, quantity and timeliness of the Division without further review.
c. Work closely with the technical support teams to optimize the performance of AI translation systems by adapting prompts or taking other technical measures and then evaluating the effect on translation performance.
d. Provide authoritative and comprehensive answers to queries from translation suppliers, including agencies, freelancers and internal translators on a variety of complex translation issues.
e. Train, mentor and provide feedback to translators, novice revisers and translation trainees (fellows) and contracted agencies on translation of a wide field of subjects and on the specifics of the Division; contribute to the development of re-useable training materials; prepare guidelines and reference materials for the improvement of quality; and provide input for the development of the quality assurance measures of the Division.
f. Participate in the terminology work of the Division by creating, adding and validating terms in the Division term base; identify potential subject fields requiring terminological research and conduct such research as requested.
g. Use, evaluate and make proposals for the improvement of computer-assisted translation, terminology, machine translation tools and AI translation tools and keep abreast of technical developments in these areas.
h. Participate in the selection and assessment of translation tests to identify suitable candidates for employment and selection of external translation suppliers.
i. Perform other related duties as required.
3. Requirements
Education (Essential)
Advanced university degree in translation or modern languages, in a technical or scientific field, or in a related field.
A first-level university degree in one of the aforementioned subjects plus an additional two years of relevant professional experience in addition to the essential experience mentioned below may be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree.
Experience (Essential)
At least seven years of relevant professional experience, mainly in technical or scientific translation.
Experience (Desirable)
Translation experience in the field of intellectual property.
Language (Essential)
Mother tongue level of French and excellent knowledge of English and at least one other publication language of the PCT.
Language (Desirable)
Knowledge of other PCT publication languages (Arabic, Chinese, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian or Spanish).
Job Related Competencies (Essential)
Advanced translation, revision, editing, and quality assessment skills, with an ability to produce accurate and idiomatically correct translations in line with established translation guidelines.
Ability to give authoritative and meaningful feedback to others on translation.
Ability to grasp scientific, technical and legal issues in a wide variety of fields.
Ability to train and provide guidance to translators.
Ability to work effectively with AI-based translation systems.
Good knowledge of translation technology and software tools that aid the translation process.
Ability to work accurately and respect strict deadlines.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills and an ability to maintain effective partnerships and working relations in a multi-cultural environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity.
Job Related Competencies (Desirable)
Knowledge of the subject matter dealt with by WIPO.
Ability to analyze business intelligence data relating to translation activities.
4. Organizational Competencies
1. Communicating effectively.
2. Showing team spirit.
3. Demonstrating integrity.
4. Valuing diversity.
5. Producing results.
6. Showing service orientation.
7. Seeing the big picture.
8. Seeking change and innovation.
9. Developing yourself and others.
5. Information
Mobility\: WIPO staff members are international civil servants subject to the authority of the Director General and may be assigned to any activities, office or duty station of the Organization. Accordingly, the selected candidate may be required to move from time to time to new functions and/or to another duty station.
Annual salary\:
Total annual salary consists of a net annual salary (net of taxes and before medical insurance and pension fund deductions) in US dollars and a post adjustment. Please note that this estimate is for information only. The post adjustment multiplier (cost of living allowance) is variable and subject to change (increase or decrease) without notice. The figures quoted below are based on the April 2026 rate of 89.4%
P4 |
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Annual salary |
$77,326 |
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Post adjustment |
$69,129 |
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Total Salary |
$146,455 |
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Currency USD |
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Salaries and allowances are paid in Swiss francs at the official rate of exchange of the United Nations.
Please refer to WIPO’s Staff Regulation and Rules for detailed information concerning salaries, benefits and allowances.
Additional Information
Initial fixed-term appointment of two years, renewable subject to satisfactory performance and other applicable conditions. The selected candidate’s appointment will be subject to an overall term of five years in this position, with normally no possibility of renewal beyond that term. S/he may, however, apply and be considered for other positions at WIPO.
This is not applicable to WIPO staff members on fixed-term, continuing or permanent appointments, who were recruited following a competition under Staff Regulation 4.10 (“Appointment Boards”).
This vacancy announcement may be used to fill other posts at the same grade with similar functions in accordance with Staff Rule 4.9.5.
Applications from qualified women as well as from qualified nationals of unrepresented Member States of WIPO and underrepresented geographical regions are encouraged. Please click on the following links for the list of unrepresented Member States and the list of underrepresented regions and the WIPO Member States in these regions.
The Organization reserves the right to make an appointment at a grade lower than that advertised.
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By completing an application, candidates understand that any willful misrepresentation made on this web site, or on any other documents submitted to WIPO during the application, may result in disqualification from the recruitment process, or termination of employment with WIPO at a later date, if that employment resulted from such willful misrepresentations.
In the event that your candidature is shortlisted, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of your identification and the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WIPO recognizes higher educational qualifications obtained from institutions accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list maintained by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed here\: http\://www.whed.net/. Some higher educational qualifications may not be listed in WHED, and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Additional testing/interviewing may be used as a form of screening. Initial appointment is subject to satisfactory professional references.
Additional background checks may be required.