How to get started with inspira

Last updated on 10 April 2018 by the Unite Service Desk

1. Register as an external user

Please note that:

 UN Secretariat staff members, including field staff members, should not register: to find out
your internal user account access codes, kindly refer to chapter 1.2.1 of the Instructional
Manual for the Applicant.
 UN Volunteers, associate experts, consultants, individual contractors, military/police
personnel and interns are invited to register as external users using the steps below.
 If you have already registered but do not remember your inspira User ID or your password,
click on the “Forgot User ID” or “Forgot Password” link located on the inspira login page
and follow the instructions on the screen. Make sure you check the spam/junk folder of
your email account.
 For Galaxy users, kindly note that you cannot use your Galaxy access codes to log into
inspira and that it is not possible to transfer your information from Galaxy to inspira.

i. On the UN Careers website homepage (https://careers.un.org) click on “Login” or go

directly to https://inspira.un.org

ii. Click on “Register now”.

iii. Fill out the registration form, make sure your date of birth is correct and follows the
dd/mm/yyyy format.

iv. Click on “Register”.

2. Update your profile

To update your profile, please follow the steps below:

i. Log into inspira (https://inspira.un.org).

ii. On the inspira “Home” page, click on the “My Profile” icon.

iii. Fill out the three sections namely:

 Personal Details
 Family Details
 Nationality & Residence

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 iv. Click on “Save” → A warning message will appear if any required items have not been
filled in. A warning message “The applicant is already registered in the system” will also
appear if the primary email address indicated in your profile is already assigned to
another inspira account registered under the same name and same date of birth.
When all required fields of your profile have been completed, the status of your profile
becomes “100% Complete”.

3. Create your first application

To create your first online application, please follow the steps below:

i. Log into inspira (https://inspira.un.org).

ii. On the inspira “Home” page, click on the “My Applications” icon.

iii. Click on the “Create Draft Application” button. iv. Answer the question by selecting the
relevant value in the dropdown menu and then click on the “Next” button.

v. Select one of the following 3 options to start your new online application:
OPTION #1: “Replicate from an existing or previous application” → Use this option to
create a new online application based on the content of an existing online application.
By default, the “Source Application Information” table will display the last application
created. You can select a different application by clicking on the lookup icon . This
option is disabled if you do not have any online application saved yet.
OPTION #2: “Build a new application” → Use this option to create a new online application
from scratch.
OPTION #3: “Load from file” → Use this option to create a new online application based
on the content of a fully completed Offline Application Template. (The Offline
Application Template can be downloaded from the inspira “Home” page by clicking on
the link “Download Offline Application Template”).

vi. Click on the “Next” button.

The online application is divided into 6 main sections (plus 1 Review/Submit page):
 Screening and fitness questions (populated only when you apply to a specific job
opening)
 Education
 Work Experience
 Languages
 Skills & Training
 Cover Letter (itself subdivided into “Cover Letter & Attachments”, “References”, “Last
questions” and “Review My Profile”)

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vii. Click on the “Next” button to move from one section/subsection to the next. Complete
each section and subsection to the best of your ability.
Recommendation: Click on “Save” regularly. The inspira system times out every 20
minutes so clicking on “Save” regularly reduces the risk of losing unsaved data. When
doing so, the text “Your in-progress application has been saved” should appear in a
popup window. If a warning message appears in relation to an invalid value in a field
followed by a lookup icon , clear this field and then click on the lookup icon to pick
one of the predefined entries. Such a field may also be left blank if not marked as
required.

viii. Click on the “Exit” button to return to the “My Applications” page: your new draft
application is now listed in the “My Applications” table. From this table, you have access
to:

 The “Creation Date” which indicates the date the application was created;
 The “Application Date” which indicates the date you submitted your application;

 The “View/Print PHP*” printer icon to access the PDF version of your application;
*The PHP or Personal History Profile is the PDF file resulting from the combination of
your “profile” and one of your “applications”.
 The Status of each application (e.g. Draft, Applied, Under Consideration, etc.)
→ Only Draft applications can be updated.

Note: At this stage you have not applied to any job opening yet. However, by preparing your
online application early and regularly updating it, you will be able to apply to a suitable job
opening in just minutes.

4. Search and apply for a job

To search and apply for a job in inspira, please follow the steps below:

i. Log into inspira (https://inspira.un.org).

ii. On the inspira “Home” page, click on the “Job Search” icon. iii. Enter

your search criteria and then click on the “Search” button.

iv. Click on the relevant search result, read its full description and click on “Apply Now” if
you wish to apply.

v. Answer the question by selecting the relevant value in the dropdown menu and then
click on the “Next” button.

vi. Select one of the following 3 options to start your new online application:
OPTION #1: “Replicate from an existing or previous application” → Use this option to
create a new online application based on the content of an existing online application.

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 By default, the “Source Application Information” table will display the last application
created but you can pick a different one by clicking on the lookup icon . This option is
disabled if you do not have any online application saved yet.
OPTION #2: “Build a new application” →Use this option to create a new online application
from scratch.
OPTION #3: “Load from file” → Use this option to create a new online application based
on the content of a fully completed Offline Application Template (the Offline Application
Template can be downloaded from the inspira “Home” page by clicking on the link
“Download Offline Application Template”) and then click on “Next”.

vii. Answer the “Screening Questions”, then click on “Save”, “OK” (in the popup window)
and “Next”.

viii. Complete/update each section and subsection of the application. Click on the “Next”
button or the “Previous” button to move between sections/subsections.
Recommendation: Click on “Save” regularly. The inspira system times out every 20
minutes so clicking on “Save” regularly reduces the risk of losing unsaved data. When
doing so, the text “Your in-progress application has been saved” should appear in a
popup window. If a warning message appears in relation to an invalid value in a field
followed by a lookup icon , clear this field and then click on the lookup icon to pick
one of the predefined entries. Such a field may also be left blank if not marked as
required.

ix. When you are ready to submit your application, click on the “Next” button until you
reach the “Review/Submit” step.: This step gives you an opportunity to review all the
sections of your application before submitting your application. Once an application has
been submitted, it cannot be updated.
If a subsection needs to be updated, click on the pen icon associated to it, update
the information, click on “Save”, “OK” and then click on the “Review/Submit” link in the
upper section of your screen.
When your application does not need any additional update(s) and is ready for
submission, click on the “Submit Application” button.
Carefully read the Terms and Agreements, then select “I agree to these terms” and finally
click on the button “Certify and Submit Application”. Immediately after submitting your
application, the message “Your job application has been successfully submitted.” should
appear on your screen.
When you click on the “Return to Job Search” link and then on the “My Applications” link
(in the upper part of the screen): In the “My Applications” table, the status of the
application that you have just submitted should appear as “Applied”.

Important notes:

 You can submit only one application per job opening. You cannot update it after
submission.
 Withdrawing your application will not allow you to submit a new application for the
same job opening. Do not withdraw an application unless you are no longer
interested in this job opening.
 It is recommended to always apply well in advance of the application deadline date.

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 → For more details and guidance on how to apply for a job in inspira, please refer to the
Instructional Manual for the Applicant accessible by clicking on the “Manuals” link when
logged in inspira.

5. Activate Job alerts [optional]

i. Log into inspira (https://inspira.un.org).

ii. On the inspira “Home” page, click on the “Job Search” icon.

iii. Enter your search criteria.

Note: The first time you perform this job search, you may consider running it with the field
“Find Jobs Posted Within” set to “Anytime” so that you can find all current job openings
matching your other search criteria.

iv. Click on the “Save Search Criteria” button.

v. Name your search.

vi. Tick the checkbox [x] Use as Job Alert vii. Type an email address in the “Send Job Alerts

notification to” field. viii. Click on the “Save Search” button.

Please note that:

 Saved searches and job alerts remain valid for 6
months;  The maximum number of active saved
searches is 5.

6. FAQ

i. Why can’t I submit my application online?

The “Submit Application” button is available only at the “Review/Submit” step of the online
application process (step 8 of 8). This button is only active when your application is linked to a
job opening.
If the “Submit Application” button is disabled/greyed out and the top of the page says
“Applying for: You have not selected a job”, click on “Exit” and then “Job Search” to find a
suitable job opening. Once you have found such a job opening, click on the “Apply Now”
button in the considered job posting.
Please note that to be able to submit an application, all the required fields must be filled, and
the considered job opening should not be closed, cancelled or filled with roster candidates.

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ii. Why is the list of screening questions empty?
Screening questions appear only when you apply to a job opening. They do not appear if you
create an application that is not linked to any job opening when using the “Create Draft
Application” button (as explained in section 3 of this document). Screening questions are
specific to the job opening and must be answered before submitting your application.

iii. What is a "Recruit from Roster" job opening? How can I become a roster applicant?
"Recruit from Roster" job openings are only open to roster applicants who have been placed
on pre-approved rosters, following a review by a United Nations Central Review Body. Only
roster applicants who were placed on rosters with similar functions at the same level are
considered to be eligible candidates.

For more information about rosters and roster management, please refer to the:

• UN Careers website (under “Application process” > “7. Selection

notification”); • Instructional Manual for the Applicant, Chapter 14; •
HR Portal (https://hr.un.org).

iv. I have just submitted my application, but I did not receive an email confirmation, How
do I know if my application has been received?
To check if your application has been received, you may check its status online.
To do so, log into inspira and click on the “My Applications” icon:
All your applications along with the ID numbers of the job openings you applied to are listed
under the “My Applications” table. If the status of your application is “Applied” or “Under
Consideration”, then your application has been received. If you cannot find your application,
select “All Applications” in the “Display applications from” dropdown menu and click on
“Refresh”.

You may also want to check that the email address recorded in your profile is correct and that
the spam/junk filter of your email account is configured to allow emails sent from the un.org
domain.

v. When I click on the “View/Print PHP” printer icon , nothing happens. What should I
do?
To use this feature, make sure you check all the items listed below:
You access inspira using a compatible browser (Firefox or Internet Explorer for PC users,
Firefox or Safari for MAC users)

A PDF reader is installed on your computer/device

Internet browsers configured with a pop-up blocker is turned off when browsing the
un.org domain

For users of Internet Explorer,

 Go to “Tools” > “Internet Options”

 In the “Security” tab, click on “Custom Level”

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  Scroll down and select <Enable> for the option “Downloads” > “Automatic
prompting for file downloads”  Click on “OK” to confirm

vi. What should I do when the system logs me out immediately after I authenticate?
You may need to configure your browser so that the un.org domain is always allowed to use
cookies.

For Internet Explorer users,

 Go to “Tools” > “Internet Options”

 In the “Privacy” tab, click on “Sites”
 In the “Address of website” field, enter un.org and then click on “Allow”
 Click on “OK” to confirm

Note: The session times out automatically every 20 minutes so make sure you click on “Save”
regularly. It is also recommended that you prepare offline your cover letter, list of duties and
list of achievements for each employment record so that you can copy-and-paste this
information into your inspira application.

vii. I am unable to upload my files in inspira., What should I do?

To be able to upload files, please make sure that you check all the items listed below:
File size is less than 1 Mb (if your file is larger, please scan it in a lower resolution)
File name is short and without any special characters (for instance,
Initials_Bachelordegree.pdf)

viii. Can I withdraw an application in inspira?

Yes, you can withdraw an application from the “My Applications” table of your inspira
account. Please note that an application is withdrawn, the system will not allow you to submit
a new application for the same job opening.

ix. Can I update an application that has already been submitted?

As indicated in the Terms and Agreements, no changes can be made after the application
has been submitted.

x. What should I do if I cannot find my university when adding my education details?

For post-secondary education, a database of degrees from 16,000 university-level institutions
compiled by UNESCO and the International Association of Universities (IAU) is used to
streamline the validation of degrees through inspira.
If you cannot find your university or school when adding your education details to your
application, we recommend the following steps:

a) Click on the look-up icon at the end of the “Name of Institution” field.
b) Click on the “Advanced Lookup” link.
c) Select “contains” in the “Long Description” dropdown menu and then enter part of the
name of your institution (for example Chicago if you are looking for University of Chicago).
d) If no result is found, search for “Other/I cannot find my school”.

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 Please note that should your degree not be part of the UNESCO and IAU’s database, it will not
prejudice your application. Under such circumstances, HR practitioners will conduct further
checks during the background verification stage.

7. Need Help?

For technical support in relation to inspira or the UN Careers website, contact the United Nations
Unite Service Desk by clicking on the “Contact us” link found in inspira and on the UN Careers
website.

To help us identify your concern, make sure your online enquiry always includes:
a) Your full name and User ID (do not disclose your password);
b) The ID number of the job opening you are trying to apply to (please do not attach your
CV);
c) In the event that you are reporting a technical problem, the steps leading to this problem,
one or more screenshots of the error/warning message and of the page on which it
appeared.

Please note that the United Nations Unite Service Desk provides technical support only. It does
not process applications and therefore cannot consider CV/resumes or provide updates on
application status.

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