UN Pathways

Contribute to international projects tackling global challenges in peace, sustainability, and human rights.

Gain hands-on experience as a junior analyst at a leading venture capital firm by assessing AI startups and providing strategic investment recommendations.

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Program Duration

4 Weeks

Application Deadline

Nov 21, 2025

Dates

Nov 29, 2025 - Jan 11, 2026

Time Commitment

10 hrs/wk

Completion Awards

Referral Letter signed by the UN, Certificate of Completion

Program Duration

4 Weeks

Application Deadline

Nov 21, 2025

Dates

Nov 29, 2025 - Jan 11, 2026

Time Commitment

10 hrs/wk

Completion Awards

Referral Letter signed by the UN, Certificate of Completion

SKILLS LEARNED

Discover Your Toolkit

Key topics and competencies students will acquire and develop during their learning journey.

Understanding Global Institutions & UN Career Pathways

You will discover how international organizations like the United Nations operate. Through readings, mentorship, and discussions, you will explore roles from policy analysis and humanitarian coordination to legal advisory and public information, while learning the skills and mindsets needed to pursue them. The focus is on real career pathways, decision-making, and the realities of working in international development and diplomacy.

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Understanding Global Institutions & UN Career Pathways

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Understanding Global Institutions & UN Career Pathways

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Build Policy Thinking and Analytical Communication

You will create a structured policy brief similar to those produced by UN analysts. You will learn to frame a real-world issue, evaluate policy options, and present actionable recommendations. This will help you turn research into clear, persuasive communication — a core skill in the international policy world.

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Build Policy Thinking and Analytical Communication

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Build Policy Thinking and Analytical Communication

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Policy Writing & Presentation for International Affairs

In the final week, you will present your policy recommendations to a panel of professionals with high-level global governance experience, such as the Office of the UN Secretary-General. You will practice structured debate, receive constructive feedback, and strengthen your public speaking skills for future leadership.

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Policy Writing & Presentation for International Affairs

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Policy Writing & Presentation for International Affairs

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PROGRAM OUTLINE

Discover Your Weekly Program Journey

Discover Your Weekly

Program Journey

4-week roadmap to define each stage of a virtual work-experience program.

4-week roadmap to define each stage of a

virtual work-experience program.

Week 1

Orientation Week

Get introduced to the program, your mentors, and the company. You will learn how it operates and begin preliminary research on the program project.

Week 2

Competence Week

You will obtain all the required skills to complete the project. Through a series of skills lectures you will get a fully immersive learning experience and all the adequate skills.

Week 3

Development Week

You are now equipped with the adequate skill set to complete the program. Applying your knowledge onto the project in the context of the UN and working as a team is the focus.

Week 4

Pitch Week

In your final week you will submit your project for mentor feedback. In the final night you will pitch your project and findings to the representatives and upon completion, receive a referral letter.

Week 1

Orientation Week

Get introduced to the program, your mentors, and the company. You will learn how it operates and begin preliminary research on the program project.

Week 2

Competence Week

You will obtain all the required skills to complete the project. Through a series of skills lectures you will get a fully immersive learning experience and all the adequate skills.

Week 3

Development Week

You are now equipped with the adequate skill set to complete the program. Applying your knowledge onto the project in the context of the UN and working as a team is the focus.

Week 4

Pitch Week

In your final week you will submit your project for mentor feedback. In the final night you will pitch your project and findings to the representatives and upon completion, receive a referral letter.

Week 1

Orientation Week

Get introduced to the program, your mentors, and the company. You will learn how it operates and begin preliminary research on the program project.

Week 2

Competence Week

You will obtain all the required skills to complete the project. Through a series of skills lectures you will get a fully immersive learning experience and all the adequate skills.

Week 3

Development Week

You are now equipped with the adequate skill set to complete the program. Applying your knowledge onto the project in the context of the UN and working as a team is the focus.

Week 4

Pitch Week

In your final week you will submit your project for mentor feedback. In the final night you will pitch your project and findings to the representatives and upon completion, receive a referral letter.

WHAT OUR STUDENTS SAY

Our Students Success Stories

Discover the inspiring stories of our students who have gained invaluable industry experience.

Dane G.
Uber Program Alumni
This program opened my eyes to what life would be like when I enter the workforce - it was an amazing experience.
Jimmy Z.
Big 4 Program Alumni
It was such an exciting program and I felt that I gained skills I would never have got in school. I do think that by doing this I have a much clearer understanding of what I want to do in the future.
Vanik C.
Uber Program Alumni
It’s a great opportunity to take a step into the career path, specifically business. This can really help you when you are applying for college.
Matteo G.
Dentons Program Alumni
I would do this (work experience program) whether I was sure of law or not..I genuinely had so much fun, and the case study was just so interesting! Analyzing a hypothetical, real-like case was so interesting. I would recommend it.
Audrey P.
Ferrari Program Alumni
I learned to learn in this process. I had to read and research, and I believe in the university there will be a lot more harder concepts so it definitely helps.
Jessie Z.
Big 4 Program Alumni
Overall it’s been very good, I learned a lot about consulting. It was really fun to work in a group to find different kinds of solutions and do research.
Evan Z.
Uber Program Alumni
My overall experience was really good. I met some really good teammates and the content delivered by the mentor was really good and eye-opening. It’s definitely going to help me in my future. It was really interesting and really helpful.
Afa
Dentons Program Alumni
It’s a starting guide or a starting point for people (students) who are interested in law. Because I recently chose law to pursue as my career, and this program helped me to understand it on a higher level.
Vincent H.
Ferrari Program Alumni
The seminars were well-ordered in their complexity and depth so everything is well sorted out until the end. It was a really interesting experience because we got to talk to higher executives from the company as high school students.
James L.
Big 4 Program Alumni
Final pitch was the part I really enjoyed the most. It taught me how to create a proper business proposal. It was a really good process of researching and thinking. It really adds value to my life.
Jason L.
Uber Program Alumni
The content for the cohort was quite interesting and solid.
William K.
Big 4 Program Alumni
It’s been very productive. All the module sessions were really helpful to learn what consulting is, it helped me in my pre-college program in Columbia and it shows a direct translation from the program to real-life university experience.
Caiden H.
Ferrari Program Alumni
This program gave me an introduction to engineering and gave me a good start to understand how it works. It exercises teamwork to complete a project which is quite similar to what it’d be like for an actual engineering job!
Sourish R.
Dentons Program Alumni
To someone who’s unsure if they want to pursue law, this program can provide them a good guidance of whether they can see themselves being a lawyer.
Tatiana K.
Ferrari Program Alumni
I gained theoretical knowledge and a chance to apply them to real-life situations like building a car. It’s very useful because we don’t experience that in high school.
Anuar B.
Big 4 Program Alumni
I was always interested in consulting and the Big 4 Consulting Firm program gave me an exceptional opportunity to kickstart my career in the field. Now consulting is a career that I definitely want to go down and I'm excited to continue pursuing it at Columbia!

Dane G.
Uber Program Alumni
This program opened my eyes to what life would be like when I enter the workforce - it was an amazing experience.
Jimmy Z.
Big 4 Program Alumni
It was such an exciting program and I felt that I gained skills I would never have got in school. I do think that by doing this I have a much clearer understanding of what I want to do in the future.
Vanik C.
Uber Program Alumni
It’s a great opportunity to take a step into the career path, specifically business. This can really help you when you are applying for college.
Matteo G.
Dentons Program Alumni
I would do this (work experience program) whether I was sure of law or not..I genuinely had so much fun, and the case study was just so interesting! Analyzing a hypothetical, real-like case was so interesting. I would recommend it.
Audrey P.
Ferrari Program Alumni
I learned to learn in this process. I had to read and research, and I believe in the university there will be a lot more harder concepts so it definitely helps.
Jessie Z.
Big 4 Program Alumni
Overall it’s been very good, I learned a lot about consulting. It was really fun to work in a group to find different kinds of solutions and do research.
Evan Z.
Uber Program Alumni
My overall experience was really good. I met some really good teammates and the content delivered by the mentor was really good and eye-opening. It’s definitely going to help me in my future. It was really interesting and really helpful.
Afa
Dentons Program Alumni
It’s a starting guide or a starting point for people (students) who are interested in law. Because I recently chose law to pursue as my career, and this program helped me to understand it on a higher level.
Vincent H.
Ferrari Program Alumni
The seminars were well-ordered in their complexity and depth so everything is well sorted out until the end. It was a really interesting experience because we got to talk to higher executives from the company as high school students.
James L.
Big 4 Program Alumni
Final pitch was the part I really enjoyed the most. It taught me how to create a proper business proposal. It was a really good process of researching and thinking. It really adds value to my life.
Jason L.
Uber Program Alumni
The content for the cohort was quite interesting and solid.
William K.
Big 4 Program Alumni
It’s been very productive. All the module sessions were really helpful to learn what consulting is, it helped me in my pre-college program in Columbia and it shows a direct translation from the program to real-life university experience.
Caiden H.
Ferrari Program Alumni
This program gave me an introduction to engineering and gave me a good start to understand how it works. It exercises teamwork to complete a project which is quite similar to what it’d be like for an actual engineering job!
Sourish R.
Dentons Program Alumni
To someone who’s unsure if they want to pursue law, this program can provide them a good guidance of whether they can see themselves being a lawyer.
Tatiana K.
Ferrari Program Alumni
I gained theoretical knowledge and a chance to apply them to real-life situations like building a car. It’s very useful because we don’t experience that in high school.
Anuar B.
Big 4 Program Alumni
I was always interested in consulting and the Big 4 Consulting Firm program gave me an exceptional opportunity to kickstart my career in the field. Now consulting is a career that I definitely want to go down and I'm excited to continue pursuing it at Columbia!

Dane G.
Uber Program Alumni
This program opened my eyes to what life would be like when I enter the workforce - it was an amazing experience.
Jimmy Z.
Big 4 Program Alumni
It was such an exciting program and I felt that I gained skills I would never have got in school. I do think that by doing this I have a much clearer understanding of what I want to do in the future.
Vanik C.
Uber Program Alumni
It’s a great opportunity to take a step into the career path, specifically business. This can really help you when you are applying for college.
Matteo G.
Dentons Program Alumni
I would do this (work experience program) whether I was sure of law or not..I genuinely had so much fun, and the case study was just so interesting! Analyzing a hypothetical, real-like case was so interesting. I would recommend it.
Audrey P.
Ferrari Program Alumni
I learned to learn in this process. I had to read and research, and I believe in the university there will be a lot more harder concepts so it definitely helps.
Jessie Z.
Big 4 Program Alumni
Overall it’s been very good, I learned a lot about consulting. It was really fun to work in a group to find different kinds of solutions and do research.
Evan Z.
Uber Program Alumni
My overall experience was really good. I met some really good teammates and the content delivered by the mentor was really good and eye-opening. It’s definitely going to help me in my future. It was really interesting and really helpful.
Afa
Dentons Program Alumni
It’s a starting guide or a starting point for people (students) who are interested in law. Because I recently chose law to pursue as my career, and this program helped me to understand it on a higher level.
Vincent H.
Ferrari Program Alumni
The seminars were well-ordered in their complexity and depth so everything is well sorted out until the end. It was a really interesting experience because we got to talk to higher executives from the company as high school students.
James L.
Big 4 Program Alumni
Final pitch was the part I really enjoyed the most. It taught me how to create a proper business proposal. It was a really good process of researching and thinking. It really adds value to my life.
Jason L.
Uber Program Alumni
The content for the cohort was quite interesting and solid.
William K.
Big 4 Program Alumni
It’s been very productive. All the module sessions were really helpful to learn what consulting is, it helped me in my pre-college program in Columbia and it shows a direct translation from the program to real-life university experience.
Caiden H.
Ferrari Program Alumni
This program gave me an introduction to engineering and gave me a good start to understand how it works. It exercises teamwork to complete a project which is quite similar to what it’d be like for an actual engineering job!
Sourish R.
Dentons Program Alumni
To someone who’s unsure if they want to pursue law, this program can provide them a good guidance of whether they can see themselves being a lawyer.
Tatiana K.
Ferrari Program Alumni
I gained theoretical knowledge and a chance to apply them to real-life situations like building a car. It’s very useful because we don’t experience that in high school.
Anuar B.
Big 4 Program Alumni
I was always interested in consulting and the Big 4 Consulting Firm program gave me an exceptional opportunity to kickstart my career in the field. Now consulting is a career that I definitely want to go down and I'm excited to continue pursuing it at Columbia!