Legal Intern

Candidates must meet the following eligibility criteria:
¿ Be a recent graduate* or current student in a graduate/undergraduate school programme from a university or higher education facility accredited by UNESCO; and
¿ Have completed at least two years of undergraduate studies in a field relevant or of interest to the work of the Organization.
*Recent graduates are to be considered those persons who completed their studies within one year of applying for an internship with UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a humanitarian and non-political organization mandated by the United Nations to protect refugees, asylum-seekers and stateless persons and help them find lasting solutions to their problems.  UNHCR¿s activities are based on a framework of international refugee law and standards that includes the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, as well as an array of international and regional treaties on human rights and humanitarian law.  UNHCR works with States, civil society organizations, the legal community, the media and other actors to ensure the protection of refugees and promote their participation and integration in the economic, social, cultural and political life of their host society.
The protection unit serves asylum-seekers, refugees, and stateless persons in Cyprus, promoting protection in law and policy in the field of reception, refugee status determination and integration. The protection unit advises the authorities, NGOs and lawyers about international standards of refugee protection, provides comments on proposed legislation and regulations, monitors compliance with international standards, and conducts training and public presentations to a range of audiences.
The legal intern will support the work undertaken by the Protection Unit while acquiring experience on interaction and teamwork.  The intern will support the protection unit of the UNHCR Cyprus Office in all relevant activities with a particular focus on data collection and analysis, drafting of legal notes, routine correspondence, documents and reports.
Duties and Responsibilities
¿ Consistently applies International and National Law and applicable UN/UNHCR and IASC policy, standards and codes of conduct
¿ Observes and respects protection related Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
¿ Provides functional and administrative support in implementing participatory approaches, needs assessments, monitoring, reporting and case management
¿ Provides functional and administrative support in all protection related activities with implementing and operational partners
¿ Assists in drafting reports, routine correspondence, updating relevant databases and compiling statistics for the protection unit
¿ Maintains up-to-date filing systems
¿ Performs other relevant duties Excellent oral & written communication skills
Have good inter-personal skills and be a keen team-player
Respect of diversity and capacity to work in stressful contexts. Fluency in English and Greek is essential, knowledge of French and/or Arabic will be considered an asset. The intern will be supervised by the Protection Officer who will give regular guidance and advice to the incumbent.
Interested external applicants are invited to apply online and complete the mandatory motivation letter. For help with technical issues with online applications, please contact the Global Service Desk (hqussd@unhcr.org) well before the deadline to allow sufficient time for any technical problems to be resolved. External vacancies are posted on the external UNHCR website and applicants must apply through the external UNHCR website, https://www.unhcr.org/careers.html > Careers > Career opportunities > Other Opportunities > Vacancies, sort by Location or search by Job Opening number.
Not signed, incomplete and late applications will not be accepted. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.  UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing or any other fees).
The evaluation of applicants will be conducted based on the information submitted during the application. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application. Please note that his is a local position for which a valid working permit in Cyprus is required. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.
Internships do not carry any expectation or entitlement to employment with UNHCR at the conclusion of the internship or any time thereafter. Interns are not considered in any respect as a member of UNHCR. Interns shall not be eligible to apply for, or be appointed to, positions in UNHCR during the period of internship and for a period of six months following the end of their internship.  Interns may be hired as individual contractors without a break in service, provided they have the required qualifications and professional experience. Internships are not remunerated but are entitled to receive food and local transportation allowance. UNHCR is not responsible for the costs of travel, visas, accommodation, vaccines or living expenses associated to the internship.
Candidates must have the right to work in Cyprus. The closing date of this opening is 22 May 2022