Job opportunities in the
“world of development”
Lecture 7
Working in international
development
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International organizations
Companies/ consultancy
NGOs
Research
International organizations
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World Bank (Washington DC)
European Union Institutions
OECD (Paris)
United Nations Agencies:
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Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (Rome)
International Labour Organization (Geneva)
United Nations Development Program (New York)
World Trade Organization (Geneva)
What opportunities?
• Internships/ traineeships:
– Headquarters or regional offices: with large
multilateral organisations, always check the possibility
of work at regional or country offices that may have
less competitive entry requirements than central
institutions
– If possible, contact directly the head of
departments/units of your interest
– Normally 6 months duration
– In some organizations interns get paid (FAO, ILO,
WB)
– Fixed periods for applications (e.g. from 1 Dec to 31
Jan for summer internship at WB)
What opportunities?
• Junior/young Professional Programs:
Eligibility (e.g. WB)
• Be 28 years of age or younger
• Hold the equivalent of a Bachelor's degree (with some relevant
experience), a Master's, or be a PhD candidate with a superior
academic record.
• Be fluent in English
• Be fully proficient in one or more of the Bank’s working languages:
Arabic, Chinese, French, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish is a
plus
Companies
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Oversee Development Institute (UK)
Young Lives (UK)
Oxford Policy Management (UK)
Consultancy:
– BGG, McKinsey, Deloitte, …
– Fondazione Punto.Sud, Economisti Associati,
Lama Development and Cooperation
Impact evaluation
• Possibility to work on the field, managing project
implementation, data processing and cleaning
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Innovation for Poverty Action
J-PAL (Poverty Action Lab)
Agricultural Technology Adoption Initiative
3ie International Initiative for Impact Evaluation
http://www.poverty-action.org/getinvolved/jobs
• Tip: be pro-active and contact directly the project
coordinators
• In Italy:
– Associazione per lo Sviluppo della
Valutazione e l'Analisi delle Politiche
Pubbliche (ASVAPP)
– Istituto per la Ricerca Valutativa delle
Politiche Pubbliche
NGOs
• Many NGOs do not have a specific entry
point for interns or researchers. Try to
contact members of the organisation to
enquire about whether they could use
assistance and potentially suggest ways in
which you might be useful to the
organisation: be pro-active!
• Start with some volunteering and get
involved in the HQ
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Oxfam (UK)
Save the children
Coopi
Focsiv
Ciai
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http://www.cooperazioneallosviluppo.esteri.it/pd
gcs/italiano/Partner/Ong/ONG.asp
• http://www.lavorarenelmondo.it/vacancy.html
• http://www.cooperazioneallosviluppo.esteri.it/pd
gcs/italiano/Lavoro/Lavoro.asp
Newsletter of positions in
development and economics:
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http://www.eadi.org/devcareers.html
http://unjobs.org/
http://www.econ-jobs.com/
http://www.eurobrussels.com/jobs/internsh
ip
• http://unjobs.org/themes/technicalcooperation
• Development careers (FB)
Research
Working in Research: a story
• Esther Duflo (1972):
– undergraduate studies at Ecole Normale
Superieure in Paris
– Master degree in Paris from DELTA (now
PSE)
– PhD in Economics at MIT
– 2010 John Bates Clark Medal for economists
under the age of forty
– She is currently a co-director of the Abdul
Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab and full
professor at MIT
Why?
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….
Perspectives
Pros
Cons
The research path
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Master
PhD
Post-doc fellowship
Researcher (staff)
Master Programs
• Master of Science
• Economics vs Development Economics
• Development Economics vs Development
Studies
PhD Program
• Advanced courses
• 3 vs 4 vs 5 years
• The choice of the field of interest and of
the supervisor
• Good ideas and skill acquisition
• Writing papers…
Where?
• UK:
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Oxford
Cambridge
LSE
UCL
SOAS, London
Institute of Development Studies (Brighton)
Sussex University
Manchester
• Europe:
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Paris School of Economics
Toulouse School of Economics
Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Stocholm University
• Italy:
– Bocconi University
– Istituto Carlo Alberto
– European University Institute
How? (for MA and PhD)
• Timing of applications!!
• Requirements:
– TOEFL or IELTS
– GRE
– CV and Cover Letter
– Reference letters
What you absolutely need to have
for a good application?
• Shiny CV
• Fantastic Cover Letter
…NO TYPOS!!!
Tips for a good CV
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If possible, avoid European format
Max 2 pages
Take care of layout and page format
Highlight in bold relevant and key
information
• Take care of the correct translation of
accademic degrees and exams
cover letter
• Introducing themselves to potential employers and explaining their
suitability for the desired position
• Structure:
– Header. sender's address and other information; the recipient's contact
information; the date optional reference section (e.g. "RE: Internship Opportunity
at Global Corporation") and an optional transmission note salutation (e.g., "Dear
Hiring Managers").
– Introduction briefly states the specific position desired, and should be designed
to catch the employer's immediate interest.
– Body. The body highlights or amplifies on material in the resume or job
application, and explains why the job seeker is interested in the job and would be
of value to the employer. Also, include skills, qualifications, and past experience.
If there are any special things to note such as availability date, they may be
included as well.
– Closing. A closing sums up the letter and indicates the next step the applicant
expects to take, simply saying that the applicant will look forward to hearing from
or speaking with the employer. After the closing is a valediction (e.g. "Sincerely"),
and then a signature line.
Tips for a good cover letter
• support any assertions that you make about your
skills, qualifications, or abilities with concrete
examples from your experiences
• Not a repetition of the CV
• Max 1 page
• connect the candidate's experiences and
qualifications with the goals and needs of the
institution
Some examples…
Job market assignment
• Individually, write your CV and select one
position you may want to apply to (from the list
of employers listed in the lecture). Write an
hypothetical cover letter to apply to an existent
or hypothetical position. Submit by 25 May.
• By presentation group, review and correct
another group’s CVs and cover letters, filling the
evaluation form
• Submit evaluation forms, CVs and cover letters
to the lecturer by 31 may