Education Specialist-Gender Equity (UNGEI)

The Education Specialist (Gender Equity) leads strategic initiatives and provides high-quality technical assistance to advance gender equality in and through education across UNICEF programmes and partnerships. The role drives key global initiatives, supports governments and partners in strengthening gender-responsive education systems, and contributes to research, advocacy, and partnership-building to influence policy and scale impact globally.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic initiatives and provide high-quality technical assistance to UNICEF regional and country offices, governments, and global partners to advance gender equality in and through education.
• Strengthen national education systems to achieve gender equality, supporting Gender-Responsive Education Sector Planning (GRESP), fostering gender-transformative leadership, and addressing harmful gender norms and school-related gender-based violence.
• Contribute to advancing gender equality in education in emergencies and protracted crises, while supporting capacity-strengthening initiatives across UNGEI’s global network.
• Provide strategic leadership and coordination for global initiatives such as the Gender at the Centre Initiative (GCI) and the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Gender Technical Assistance Initiative.
• Generate and apply evidence to inform policy and programming, lead research and learning agendas, and support the development and dissemination of global standards and analytical tools for gender-responsive education systems.
• Engage in high-level advocacy, partnerships, and global platforms to influence policy and mobilize action for girls’ education and gender equality.
• Strengthen partnerships with governments, civil society, and youth movements, contributing to a coordinated and results-driven effort to remove gender-related barriers across the education lifecycle.
• Embed gender-transformative approaches into education systems, policies, and programmes, contributing to improved access, learning outcomes, and skills for girls and marginalized learners globally.

Requirements

• Master or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in Education, International Business Relations, Political Science, Economics, Sociology, Psychology, Gender development, women's studies and any other related fields.
• At least 8 years of progressively responsible professional experience leading policy, programme, advocacy, or research initiatives that advance gender equality in and through education.
• Skills in gender-responsive education sector planning, policy advisory and systems strengthening, partnership and stakeholder coordination, research and evidence generation, advocacy and global coalition building, programme management and delivery.
• Proficiency in both English and French is required.
• Desirable: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish) or a local language.
• Desirable: Experience with complex, multi-country, multi-donor interventions with strong research and learning agendas.
• Desirable: Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

Skills

• Gender-responsive education planning
• Policy Advisory
• Education Systems Strengthening
• Partnership Coordination
• Stakeholder Coordination
• Research and evidence generation
• Advocacy
• Global coalition building
• Programme Management
• Programme Delivery
• Multi-country Programme Management
• Multi-donor programme management
• Research agenda development
• Learning Agenda Development
• Technical Assistance in Education
• Gender Equality Policy Advocacy
• Education sector policy
• Fragile Settings Experience
• Humanitarian Experience

Languages

English, French