Volunteer for the COVID-19 pandemic response

If you have qualifications and experience in any of the following areas, we encourage you to register (or update your profile) on UNV’s web application system and enter COVID-19 as a keyword in your ‘Motivation Statement’:

1) Health professionals

Medical

• Intensivists
• Respiratory Physicians
• Pathologists
• Radiologists
• ICU/Anesthetic Nurses
• Infection Control Nurses
• Psychologists (with experience in trauma/stress counselling)
• Biomedical/Medical Laboratory Technicians
• Physiotherapists

Public Health

• Epidemiologists
• Public Health Specialists (other)
• Health Statisticians
• Health Surveillance Specialists

2) Non-health professionals

Emergency & Crisis management

• Health Emergency Managers
• Child Protection Specialists

Programme Management

• Monitoring & evaluation Specialists (related to health and/or emergencies), and Reporting
• Gender-based Violence Project/Programme Specialists

Health systems

• Logisticians
• Health Procurement Specialists
• Health Supply Chain Specialists (pharmacist, equipment, cold chain)

Sanitation & Hygiene

• WASH (with a focus on hygiene) Specialists
• Medical Waste Management Specialists

Communications & Data management

• Communications for Development Specialists
• Information Management Specialist (with experience in health emergencies)
• Data Collection & Management Specialists (related to health)

Statistics & others

• Socio-economic & Health Assessment Specialists
• Economic Development Specialists
• Livelihoods Specialists
• Anthropologists
• Sociologists

Requirements 

Candidates need to

• have at least two years of professional experience,
• be at least 22 years old for national UN Volunteer assignments, and at least 25 years old for international UN Volunteer assignments.

Additional requirements will be described in the Descriptions of Assignment (equivalent to terms of reference). Make sure to check them.

Your profile should highlight any prior experience in health-related emergencies.

Assignment information

• Duration: from 3-12 months (with possibility of extension)
• Starting date: many will require candidates to be available at short notice (1-2 weeks)
• Conditions of service: monthly living allowance to cover housing, basic needs and utilities; settling-in-grant; life, health and permanent disability insurance; return airfares (if applicable).
• More details will be included in the specific descriptions of assignments and may vary depending on the volunteer category (national or international UN Volunteer; Specialist or Youth assignment). Check your entitlements here: https://www.unv.org/become-volunteer.

Important notice:

• Only complete profiles can be considered. Please make sure that you click on ‘Submit UNV Profile’ once you have created your UNV account and completed all mandatory information. As confirmation of your successful registration, you will receive an email with your UNV roster number.
• Including the COVID-19 keyword in your motivation statement will ensure your profile is reviewed with priority for related assignments.

You can also check advertised volunteer assignments regularly using COVID-19 as a keyword to filter.

This is a time for prudence, not panic. Science, not stigma.  Facts, not fear.  Even though the situation has been classified as a pandemic, it is one we can control. We can slow down transmissions, prevent infections and save lives.  But that will take unprecedented personal, national and international action. COVID-19 is our common enemy.  We must declare war on this virus.  That means countries have a responsibility to gear up, step up and scale up... All of us have a responsibility, too – to follow medical advice and take simple, practical steps recommended by health authorities. --UN Secretary-General António Guterres