Associate RSD Officer

About the role

The Associate RSD Officer provides legal, operational and strategic support on mandate or national Refugee Status Determination (RSD) at global, regional or country level. The position may be based at Headquarters (Division of International Protection), a Regional Bureau or a Country Office, and reports to the RSD Officer or Protection Officer. It is a Junior Professional Officer (PR2) regular assignment with a target start date of 10 August 2026.

Key responsibilities

• Provide legal and procedural advice on RSD adjudication and support staff engaged in RSD, while monitoring trends in RSD decision-making
• Conduct interviews and draft RSD assessments, including for complex and sensitive cases, and support quality reviews of RSD assessments
• Deliver training on inclusion criteria, exclusion, cancellation/revocation, international and human rights law, interviewing techniques and credibility assessment
• Support the development of an RSD strategy and regional and global RSD standards and policies
• Design and implement operation-specific standard operating procedures for RSD, and monitor case-processing statistics and quality indicators
• Assist in projecting RSD staffing and financial needs and help prevent fraud in RSD
• In a country office, advocate with government authorities and partners to strengthen national asylum/RSD systems; in Headquarters or a Regional Bureau, run support missions and coordinate training needs

Required profile

• 3 years of relevant experience with an undergraduate degree, or 2 years with a graduate degree, or 1 year with a doctorate
• Field of study: International Refugee Law, International Human Rights Law, International Humanitarian Law, International Criminal Law, Social Sciences or another relevant field
• Completion of the RSD Learning Programme and Management Learning Programme
• Desirable: experience as a decision-maker in UNHCR or government RSD procedures, legal representation of asylum seekers, and team supervision

Required skills

• Thorough knowledge of the Procedural Standards for RSD under UNHCR's mandate and other UNHCR guidelines
• Ability to apply international refugee, human rights and humanitarian law principles, including in exclusion decisions
• Experience in counselling asylum-seekers and individual case management, and refugee law training