Somewhere in Paris, decades of UNESCO’s institutional history sit in physical archives: documents, photographs and records that most of the world has never had access to. UNESCO now wants to change that and it is hiring a Digitization Project Coordinator to help make it happen.
If you work in archives records management or library science, this is a rare chance to work on a project with real global reach backed by serious international funding and a multi-year mandate.
At a Glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Position | Digitization Project Coordinator |
| Organization | UNESCO |
| Location | Paris France |
| Grade | P-2 |
| Contract | 2-year project appointment possible extension |
| Project | Global Histories Shared Memories 2025–2030 |
| Funding | Sharjah Book Authority UAE |
| Deadline | 7 October 2026 midnight Paris time |
| Language | Excellent English or French plus good working knowledge of the other |
| Approximate salary | US$87095 plus benefits |
What This Project Actually Is
The role sits inside a five-year initiative called Global Histories Shared Memories Advancing Universal Access through Digitized UNESCO Archives. The project runs from 2025 through 2030, funded by the Sharjah Book Authority in the United Arab Emirates.
The core goal is straightforward. Take selected pieces of UNESCO’s institutional archive, rehouse them, properly digitize them and make them publicly accessible. This is not a small pilot project. A five-year timeline and dedicated external funding suggest UNESCO is treating this as a genuine institutional priority not a side initiative squeezed in around other work.
The Coordinator role sits within UNESCO’s Bureau for Digital Business Solutions, working under the UNESCO Archives team.
What the Job Actually Involves Day to Day
This is not a purely archival role and it is not a purely technical one either. It sits at the intersection of project management digitization and stakeholder coordination.
Core responsibilities include:
- Managing project timelines and helping monitor the budget
- Coordinating administration and preparing reports for donors and management
- Planning and tracking tasks, schedules and deliverables
- Coordinating digitization activities with project teams and collection leads
- Writing technical specifications for how archival materials get digitized
- Liaising directly with external digitization service providers
- Checking the quality of digitized materials before they are finalized
- Supporting how digitized files get loaded into UNESCO’s preservation systems and databases
- Helping manage the logistics of UNESCO’s digitization laboratory
- Contributing to communications work including exhibitions, publications and social media
- Supporting partnership building and resource mobilization
- Coordinating evaluation and reporting across the project’s lifespan
That is a wide range of responsibilities packed into one position. Someone in this role needs to move comfortably between spreadsheet-level budget tracking and hands-on conversations about digitization quality standards, sometimes in the same afternoon.
Who UNESCO Is Actually Looking For
The formal requirements set a fairly specific bar.
Education
An advanced university degree, a master’s or equivalent in one of these fields:
- Archival Studies
- Records Management
- Information Management
- Library Studies
Experience
At least two years of relevant professional experience, ideally including at least one year at the international level specifically coordinating digitization projects or programmes within an institutional archive or library setting.
That international experience requirement is worth noting. UNESCO is not just looking for someone who has digitized a local collection. They want evidence that you have operated in an international multi-stakeholder environment before, since that is exactly what this role demands.
The Skills That Actually Matter Here
Beyond the formal qualifications, UNESCO lists a fairly detailed skill set that gives a clearer picture of what day-to-day success looks like:
- Coordinating multi-year projects while tracking budgets and schedules
- Understanding digitization standards used for archival and cultural heritage collections
- Writing clear professional reports and project documentation
- Working independently while still following the overall project direction
- Applying archival management and preservation principles in practice
- Solving problems as unexpected project challenges come up
- Using results-based management and budgeting approaches
- Working comfortably with archival databases and cataloguing systems
- Managing metadata and digital file ingestion
- Using standard Microsoft tools like Teams, Word and Excel
- Being open to working with or learning AI-powered tools
Language Requirements
You will need excellent knowledge of either English or French plus good working knowledge of the other. This is a hard requirement, not a nice-to-have. UNESCO operates across both languages internally and a coordinator role involving donor reporting, external partnerships and cross-team communication genuinely depends on this kind of bilingual fluency.
What the Position Pays
This role is classified at the P-2 level, UNESCO’s entry-to-mid tier for international professional staff. The approximate starting salary is US$87095 per year plus standard UNESCO staff benefits which typically include:
- 30 days of annual leave
- Family allowance where applicable
- Medical insurance
- A pension plan
- Other standard entitlements
It is a two-year project appointment with possible extension depending on continued funding and performance. Since the broader digitization project runs through 2030, there is a reasonable case that strong performance in the first two years could lead to renewed involvement, though that is never guaranteed with project-based funding.
The Application Process
Applications go through UNESCO’s official Careers platform and the deadline is 7 October 2026 at midnight Paris time.
A few practical details worth knowing before you apply:
- Once submitted, your application cannot be modified. Review everything carefully before hitting submit.
- The selection process may include pre-recorded video interviews, written assessments, panel interviews and reference checks.
- UNESCO may also ask for additional information about your qualifications during the process.
- Shortlisted candidates may be added to UNESCO’s talent pools for future openings if they consent to it.
- UNESCO explicitly states it never charges candidates any fee at any stage of recruitment. Treat any request for payment as a red flag.
One more detail matters for anyone with degrees from less commonly recognized institutions. UNESCO checks academic qualifications against the World Higher Education Database so it is worth confirming your degree-granting institution is properly listed there before applying.
Who Should Apply
UNESCO is actively encouraging applications from candidates in non- and under-represented Member States as well as from women with disabilities and minority and Indigenous groups. This is not just standard boilerplate. UNESCO’s staffing structure is built around geographic representation targets so candidates from less-represented countries may find their applications carry additional weight in the selection process.
Why This Role Stands Out
Archives and records management careers do not often come with this level of international visibility or funding stability. A five-year externally funded digitization project at an organization like UNESCO offers something genuinely rare in this field. The chance to shape how a major international institution’s history becomes publicly accessible is backed by real budget and a clear multi-year mandate.
If your background sits at the intersection of archival work, project coordination, and digitization and you are comfortable operating in a bilingual international environment, this is a strong role to pursue. Just make sure your application is fully polished before submission, since there is no going back to fix it once it is in.
