UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to Education

How can you make a difference?

Join our team and make a difference by leading and strengthening coordinated education responses in humanitarian settings. In this role, you will drive a strategic, coherent, and accountable approach within the Cluster, ensuring that partners work effectively together to meet the needs of affected populations. By building strong relationships with stakeholders, fostering inter-sectoral collaboration, and guiding collective action, you will help deliver timely, inclusive, and impactful education interventions that respond to emergencies with efficiency and purpose.

As the Education Manager Cluster Coordinator, you will provide strategic leadership and representation to ensure a timely, coherent, and effective response in complex humanitarian settings. You will bring together diverse stakeholders, guiding them to work collectively toward shared, evidence-based goals while overseeing coordination mechanisms, needs assessments, and response planning. Through building strong partnerships, mobilizing resources, and monitoring performance, you will drive an inclusive and accountable response. In doing so, you will strengthen national and local capacities and ensure that education interventions are aligned with humanitarian standards and effectively meet the evolving needs of affected populations.

The main duties and responsibilities of this role include, but are not limited to:

Coordination, Representation & Leadership

Needs Assessment & Analysis

Strategic Response Planning

Resource Mobilization & Advocacy

Implementation & Monitoring

Operational Review & Evaluation

Accountability to Affected Populations

Strengthening National & Local Capacity

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: Download File JD - Education Manager Cluster Coordinator Level 4.docx

To qualify as a champion for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

Education: An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: education, economics, pedagogy, psychology, sociology, international development, management, social sciences or another relevant technical field.
Work Experience: A minimum of 8 years of professional experience, preferably at the international level, in education programme planning, coordination and management and/ or research is required.
Skills: Coordination, Coordination and Management, Emergency Response, International Development, Management, Programme Planning, Research,
Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

Relevant experience in programme management in education within a UN system agency or organization is considered an asset.
Knowledge of other UN official languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is considered an asset.
A minimum of two years of experience of Education Cluster/ Sector/ Working Group coordination is desirable.
Experience of working in a senior management role or in cluster coordination within a complex country programme in an emergency response or protracted crisis, including experience in first phase emergency response, is strongly desirable.
Experience in effective leadership and management of teams to deliver results in high stress/risk environments is desirable.
Knowledge of IASC cluster coordination, knowledge of Sphere standards, knowledge of Core Humanitarian Standard, knowledge of INEE minimum standards, experience in high-risk environments.
Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, complex, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and Maintains Partnerships
(2) Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness
(3) Drives to achieve impactful results
(4) Innovates and Embraces Change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and Acts Strategically
(7) Works Collaboratively with others

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels

Coordination Competencies:

Applies Humanitarian Principles, Standards and Guidelines (2)
Applies Key EiE Concepts and Tools (2)
Manages Education Programmes (2)
Operates Safely and Securely (2)
Demonstrates Commitment to a Coordinated Response (2)
Promotes Cooperation and Collaboration (2)
Demonstrates Accountability (2)
Promotes Inclusion (2)
Provides Influential and Strategic Leadership (2)
Analyses and Communicates Information (2)
Supports Resource Mobilization (2)
Advocates for Improved Educational Outcomes (2)
Monitors the Response (2)
Strengthens National Capacity to Respond and Lead (2)

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable [Insert candidates from targeted underrepresented groups] are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

Education Manager Cluster Coordinator, P-4, Fixed Term Position, East Jerusalem, State of Palestine, MENAR