Insights into applying to and working at the OECD

We have met Nadav SHENTAL, Deputy Head of the Talent Management and Analytics Group, one of the divisions of the Human Resources Management (HRM) service at the OECD. He kindly shared his experience to offer some tips and general advice for applicants. His work includes the OECD’s learning and development initiatives, diversity and inclusion, people analytics, corporate recruitment programs, such as internships, as well as strategic HR projects.

Hello Nadav, could you descript a typical career path at the OECD?

- There are multiple career pathways at the OECD, but we can see that many of our staff members actually started as interns and then applied and advanced to more senior roles. This could be for example, students who join our internship program towards the end of their Master’s. After several months as interns they apply to temporary positions, working within the same team for 1-2 years and then acquire transferable skills, such as strong writing and analytical skills. Then they can apply for work in the same or another team and become OECD official staff, typically as Junior policy analysts or Junior economists.

What stands out as the most important skills to have for a job at the OECD?

- At the OECD we have identified two groups of skills or competencies that applicants should display. The first group of skills are technical skills, which tend to be more granular, descriptive and applicable across jobs. Examples of technical skills are excellent written and oral communication, as well as quantitative and proven analytical abilities, mostly for policy related roles that require data analysis.

- The second group is what we refer to as “Core Competencies”. These are a combination of six behavioral characteristics, attitudes and attributes that lead to effective and successful performance at the OECD. They include, for example “Vision and Strategy” and “Achieve Results” abilities. You can read more about these competencies Core Competency Framework.(Linkki toiselle web-sivustolle.)

- And of course the work you have done in previous jobs is important if it closely aligns with the work of the hiring team and can demonstrate you have worked on similar topics or had acquired skills and knowledge that is needed at the OECD.

Could you give to our readers some advice for the OECD’s recruitment process?

- Before applying to positions at the OECD, please check that you meet the following criteria: You should be a national of an OECD country and fluent at least in one of the two OECD official languages (English and French) with a knowledge or willingness to learn the other. Our recruitment process consist of an online application, written test, self-recorded video interview, and eventually an interview with the hiring directorate or service. Following this final interview assessment, candidates who haven’t been selected may be contacted and considered within the next two years for comparable job openings.

- For the biography, I would give a tip that you should definitely tailor your CV to the job you apply for. This means you need to customize your CV and cover letter for each job application by emphasizing relevant skills and experiences based to the job’s specific requirements as listed in the job description and avoid using one generic CV for all jobs. In this case, one-size does not fit all!

- The aim of our written assessment is to test your knowledge and drafting skills, the assessment is taken remotely and is reviewed anonymously. Typically, you will receive two to three questions related to the role and policy area. For preparing you could familiarize yourself with the work of the team and read relevant publications. You can think of potential questions beforehand and draft possible responses taking into account that most written tests take between 1 to 2 hours.

- To show your interest and motivation for the job, genuine interest would be a good start. Take time to research about the organization for example by reading the recent publications of the OECD on the relevant topic. For that I would recommend you check-out the OECD’s iLibrary(Linkki toiselle web-sivustolle.). In addition, think about what elements of the job could inspire you. This could be for example research and analysis tasks, or engagement with delegates from different countries in order to collect best practices and domestic experiences. On the other side, I would avoid mentioning salary, leave days or other entitlements as your main motivation although they are part of your considerations.

- For the interview we strongly suggest using the STAR model (Situation-Task-Action-Result). It’s a widely used and well‑known model to support you in preparing structured, logical and cohesive responses to competency‑based interview questions. It permits you to explain clearly and effectively examples and helps maintain conciseness and focus. I would also suggest you think about potential questions you might be asked, reflecting on possible examples you can give from your own experience, which you can then fit into the STAR model.

- We have prepared a practical interview guide for candidates(Linkki toiselle web-sivustolle.) that I encourage you to read before the interview.  The guide outlines the interview process and provides practical advice to support candidates in their preparation, so they can get the most out of the interview process.