UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.
At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.
UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture., coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.
Visit UNICEF Ukraine website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.
Welcome to UNICEF Ukraine
For every child, the right to hope
BACKGROUND / RATIONALE
UNICEF Ukraine operates in a prolonged emergency context, where ongoing hostilities, infrastructure disruptions, displacement, security risks and continued uncertainty place significant psychological strain on staff members and their families. Staff may be exposed to critical incidents, chronic stress, workload pressure and acute security-related events, all of which require timely, professional and confidential psychosocial support.
To ensure continuity of care and strengthen staff wellbeing support systems, UNICEF Ukraine requires additional surge capacity through external Stress Counsellor consultants. This support will complement the role of the National Staff Counsellor by providing flexible, demand-based individual counselling, crisis response and preventive wellbeing interventions during periods of increased need. The consultancy will also strengthen perceived confidentiality and ensure culturally responsive support to a diverse workforce.
How can you make a difference?
PURPOSE OF ASSIGNMENT
The purpose of the assignment is to provide confidential, demand-based psychosocial support services to UNICEF personnel, including short-term individual counselling, crisis support following critical incidents or acute stress events, and structured wellbeing workshop. The consultant will contribute to strengthening staff resilience, supporting psychological stabilization during emergencies, promoting adaptive coping strategies, and ensuring timely referral to specialized or long-term care where needed. The assignment will be carried out in coordination with the National Staff Counsellor and aligned with emerging staff wellbeing needs and organizational priorities.
If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here: TOR Stress consellor.pdf
OBJECTIVE(S)
The main objectives of the assignment are to:
- Provide timely, confidential and professional short-term counselling support to UNICEF personnel upon direct request.
- Ensure crisis support and psychological first response following critical incidents, acute stress events or other emergency-related situations.
- Conduct brief psychosocial assessments, provide stabilization support and identify cases requiring specialized or long-term care.
- Deliver preventive wellbeing workshops that respond to emerging staff needs and organizational priorities.
- Strengthen staff resilience, adaptive coping and psychological recovery in a high-stress humanitarian operating environment.
- Support continuity of care and additional surge capacity for the staff wellbeing function, in coordination with the National Staff Counsellor.
MAJOR TASKS TO BE ACCOMPLISHED
The consultant will be expected to accomplish the following major tasks:
Individual counselling and crisis support
Provide short-term, confidential individual counselling sessions to UNICEF personnel upon direct request. Deliver crisis support and psychological first response following critical incidents, acute stress events or other situations requiring immediate psychosocial stabilization. Conduct brief psychosocial assessments and provide appropriate support within the limits of short-term counselling.
Referral and continuity of care
Identify cases that require specialized, psychiatric, medical or long-term psychological care and provide appropriate referrals in coordination with the Staff Counsellor. Ensure that support remains ethical, professionally bounded and aligned with recognized counselling standards.
Workshops and preventive interventions
Develop and deliver at least four remote wellbeing workshops per year, each lasting approximately 60–90 minutes. Workshop topics will be agreed in consultation with the National Staff Counsellor and based on emerging needs and organizational priorities. Topics may include psychosocial wellbeing, coping in high-stress environments, crisis recovery, resilience-building and adaptive stress management.
Coordination and reporting
Participate in regular coordination meetings with the National Staff Counsellor. Submit monthly aggregated, non-identifiable reports, including the number of sessions delivered, type of support provided, referrals, workshops delivered, participation/satisfaction data where applicable, and emerging non-identifiable themes and trends. Maintain strict confidentiality at all times; no personal data or identifying information will be shared.
Responsibilities of the Consultant:
The consultant will be responsible for:
- Providing short-term, confidential counselling and crisis support to UNICEF personnel upon direct request.
- Delivering psychological first response and stabilization support following critical incidents or acute stress events.
- Conducting brief psychosocial assessments and identifying cases requiring specialized or longer-term care.
- Providing appropriate referrals while respecting confidentiality, informed consent and professional boundaries.
- Designing and delivering remote wellbeing workshops in consultation with the National Staff Counsellor.
- Participating in regular coordination meetings with the National Staff Counsellor.
- Submitting monthly aggregated reports with non-identifiable data only.
- Maintaining strict confidentiality and ensuring that no personal or identifying information is disclosed.
- Working independently while remaining aligned with UNICEF’s organizational framework, ethical standards and staff wellbeing priorities.
- Applying strong clinical judgement, cultural sensitivity and trauma-informed practice in the Ukrainian humanitarian context.
DELIVERABLES
S.No.
Category
Deliverable
1.
Individual counselling and crisis support
Provision of demand-based short-term counselling and crisis support services to UNICEF personnel, including brief psychosocial assessment, stabilization support and psychological first response, as required.
2.
Referrals
Appropriate referrals provided for cases requiring specialized or longer-term care, with number of referrals reflected in the monthly aggregated report.
3.
Wellbeing workshops
Minimum four remote wellbeing workshops delivered per year, 60–90 minutes each, with workshop participation and satisfaction data incorporated into monthly reporting where applicable.
4.
Reporting and coordination
Monthly aggregated report submitted during the first week of the following month, including non-identifiable service data, type of support provided and emerging themes/trends; regular coordination maintained with the National Staff Counsellor.
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…
Minimum requirements:
- Education:
- Advanced university degree in Psychology or a related field.
- Certification in at least one recognized psychotherapy or counselling approach.
- Formal training or certification in crisis response, Psychological First Aid, Critical Incident Stress Response, trauma-informed approaches, or other evidence-based emergency mental health interventions is strongly preferred.
- Work Experience:
- At least three years of demonstrated experience providing individual counselling and crisis intervention services.
- At least three years of experience working in emergency, humanitarian or other high-stress environments.
- At least three years of experience delivering psychosocial workshops or group interventions.
- Ongoing professional supervision practice is required.
- Skills: Desirables: For every Child, you demonstrate... UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values The UNICEF competencies required for this post are… (1) Builds and maintains partnerships (2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (3) Drive to achieve results for impact (4) Innovates and embraces change (5) Manages ambiguity and complexity (6) Thinks and acts strategically (7) Works collaboratively with others Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels. UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status. UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance. UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially. Qualified candidates are invited to submit the following documents via the online recruitment portal, TMS (Talent Management System): *The consultant is expected to submit an all-inclusive financial proposal indicating the proposed rate for each category of service. The rates shall remain fixed for the duration of the Long-Term Agreement. UNICEF does not warrant that any quantity of services will be purchased during the term of the LTA, as services will be requested based on forthcoming needs. Without all the above 4 documents your application will be considered incomplete and invalid and will not be considered further. Remarks: As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates with disability are encouraged to apply. Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information. Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities. All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates. Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.
- Strong clinical judgement and ethical practice.
- Ability to provide crisis stabilization and short-term counselling.
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
- Ability to work independently while coordinating within an organizational framework.
- Cultural sensitivity and understanding of the Ukrainian humanitarian context.
- Strong organizational and time-management skills.
- Ability to maintain strict confidentiality and professional boundaries.
- Experience supporting individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds.
- Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.
- Formal training or certification in crisis response, Psychological First Aid, Critical Incident Stress Response, trauma-informed approaches, or other evidence-based emergency mental health interventions is strongly preferred.
- Exrience working with UN agencies or international organizations is desirable.
- Familiarity with staff wellbeing systems in humanitarian settings is desirable.
- Knowledge of Ukrainian and/or other languages relevant to the Ukraine response context would be an asset, especially for the national consultant.
- Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.
- A Cover letter explaining the motivation for applying and explaining how the qualifications and skillset of the candidate (to be uploaded online).
- Curriculum Vitae (CV) (to be uploaded online).
- Qualifications, Diplomas and certificates. (to be uploaded online).
- Financial proposal indicating professional fee as per the template LTA Financial Proposal Template 1.doc. Please do not forget to specify your name in the file while saving. (To be uploaded under other supporting documents).*
- Any attempt to unduly influence UNICEF’s selection process will lead to automatic disqualification of the applicant.
- Joint applications of two or more individuals are not accepted.
- Please note, UNICEF does not charge any fee during any stage of the process.
- Female candidates meeting the requirements are strongly encouraged to apply.
- UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion and encourages qualified candidates from all backgrounds including persons living with disabilities to apply.
