United Nations Reviews
Updated May 29, 2023
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Top Review Highlights by Sentiment
- "The internship is unpaid and probably with rooms of improvement regarding the plan for career guidance" (in 81 reviews)
- "poor management, frequent abuse of authority, bureaucratic hurdles can be difficult to overcome, lots of internal red tape and lengthly clearance procedures in many departments" (in 33 reviews)
- "Too much bureaucracy and almost impossible to get promoted.It is hard to do things differently due to the bureaucratic nature of the organization." (in 19 reviews)
Ratings by Demographics
This rating reflects the overall rating of United Nations and is not affected by filters.
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- Current Employee★★★★★
Pros
Reliable, stable, constant, fair, and equal
Cons
Inefficient, bureaucratic, big, slow, and hard to change
- Current Employee★★★★★
So disappointed in the UN which actually contributes to global problems
May 15, 2023 - Anonymous EmployeeRecommendCEO ApprovalBusiness OutlookPros
Benefits - rental subsidy, nontaxable salary, children's education, medical insurance, etc. You will be surprised by how many staff members are actually in for these benefits.
Cons
It's an absolute hell if you're driven by goals and want to deliver results. There are so many pointless tasks that do not serve anyone and are motivated by political reasons. Employment morale is a serious issue (people not showing up to work, not doing their assigned work), a toxic culture mainly due to staff high ego. You will experience lack of management (there's no management at all). Senior management does nothing to fix employees' issues - lack of decisions, unwillingness to take responsibilities, etc. People backstab each other all the time because there are no quantifiable measures to evaluate staff performance, so that only way to get yourself promoted is through nepotism and favoritism which are prevalent in all levels of the UN. There is no training at all for junior staff. The UN has on value to add to many of the problems they are tasked to deal with - all the reports done at HQ are copy and pasted from Google. The UN is a complete joke, and should be ashamed that it operates on precious donations from Member States. No wonder so many global problems exist, and the UN is losing its ground in international relations!
- Current Employee★★★★★
Pros
You get six weeks of vacation to try to manage the burnout from your job.
Cons
I'm embarrassed to work at the United Nations. As an employee, I don't see a work environment that corresponds to any of its purported values. The organization frequently chooses failure. Projects that should take months stretch on to years. Work that should be done by staff is handed to consultants. Outputs are often of low quality. There is zero will to change or improve. I've seen a deep lack of integrity in hiring. Managers refuse to consider highly qualified people. Unqualified people are allowed to pass interviews, even if they fail the assessment. People who lack intelligence, social skills or any work ethic get promoted. There is zero career development or training. I regret joining the organization and feel stuck there.
Continue reading - Current Employee★★★★★
Pros
Working at the UN is good
Cons
Can't think of one for now
- Former Employee, more than 1 year★★★★★
excellent job
May 22, 2023 - Senior Political Affairs Officer in Midtown New YorkRecommendCEO ApprovalBusiness OutlookPros
Opportunity to excel, use creativity, advance peace.
Cons
A lot of staffer do not pull their weight, very contingented
Continue reading - Current Employee★★★★★
Pros
Meaningful work that has global impact
Cons
At times can be overly bureaucratic
- Former Employee, less than 1 year★★★★★
Best Internship (though unpaid)
May 15, 2023 - Internship in New York, NYRecommendCEO ApprovalBusiness OutlookPros
Very engaging and provides room for juniors to learn and be involved
Cons
Very rigorous application process that often doesn't bear fruit
- Current Employee★★★★★
Pros
Make a difference in the global community
Cons
It is hard to get things done, a lot of burnout
- Current Employee★★★★★
Pros
great organization to work with and for
Cons
sometimes the hours can be long hours
- Current Employee★★★★★
Pros
Nice experience and nice people
Cons
Lack of Opportunity to continue employment
United Nations Reviews FAQs
United Nations has an overall rating of 4.0 out of 5, based on over 3,062 reviews left anonymously by employees. 78% of employees would recommend working at United Nations to a friend and 66% have a positive outlook for the business. This rating has decreased by -1% over the last 12 months.
78% of United Nations employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews. Employees also rated United Nations 3.7 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.9 for culture and values and 3.3 for career opportunities.
According to reviews on Glassdoor, employees commonly mention the pros of working at United Nations to be career development, coworkers, benefits and the cons to be management, culture.
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