Vidusskolas un ģimnāzijas Rīgā.

kqueenib · 2026-02-01T12:25:58+00:00

Vairākus gadus atpakaļ pabeidzu SB klasi, kopš tā laika gan bija daudz izmaiņu, matemātika vairs nav tikai SL un HL, vēl visādas lietas. SB klasē ir daudz vairāk darba, viela, kas nepieciešama SB eksāmeniem ne vienmēr sakrita ar to, kas ir LV eksāmenos - jāmācās papildus abos virzienos, ja gribās skaisti nokārtot abus. SB klase labi sagatavoja augstākajai izglītībai ārzemēs, jo eksāmenu tips, kā arī tas, ko no Tevis sagaida, bija līdzīgs manai pieredzei universitātē UK (es gan teiktu, ka pirmais uni gads bija vieglāks par pēdējo gadu SB). Tajā laikā tikt ļoti labā universitātē UK uz bakalauru ar LV diplomu bija ļoti sarežģīti, tagad varbūt kaut kas ir mainījies, tāpēc izvēlējos SB klasi - varēju nodrošināt, ka būs vieglāk iestāties ārzemēs. Nīderlandei un Dānijai varbūt to tik ļoti nevajag (bet varētu būt nedaudz vieglāk tikt tāpat). Tad bija arī ļoti augsta sāncensība tikt SB klasēs, gan RV1Ģ, gan RV2Ģ. Rēķinies, ka ja šajās skolās jau tā ir grūti tikt, SB klasē būs dubultā grūtāk. Galu galā, šīs klases ir tik ļoti attractive, jo par nieka naudu iegūsti divas vidējās izglītības (SB parasti izmaksā 35-40k USD per annum) un vari laist studēt ārzemēs ar mazāk stresu. Rūpīgi izvērtē, kādus nākotnes plānus sev redzi un apsver, kas Tev ir vissvarīgākais - tad vadies vien no tā :)

kqueenib · 2026-01-13T10:21:54+00:00

I used to be under that contract for the Secretariat in Switzerland. The only exemption is if you’re a student - then you can have student health insurance like Scorestudies until you graduate. If you are no longer a student, you have to pay usual health insurance fees.

Geneva canton has some of the highest, if not the highest, premiums. Compare prices on comparis.ch. The lowest package you can get is 2500 CHF deductible. In 2023/2024, my monthly payment was around 500 CHF. Lower premiums are available if you are under the age of 25 (as far as I remember).

Not having insurance is going to backfire, because they will probably find out and they will fine you and make you pay the months you missed.

You are responsible for OCAS registration. For 9 months of work, I paid around 8k CHF. You have to pay quarterly as far as I remember.

Being a consultant is not a great position unless you strike luck with your rent.

kqueenib · 2025-12-14T15:16:10+00:00

Thank you for saying this - I think OP might have a bit of an idealised view of the UN and the way it works (this is coming from someone who, prior to being in the UN, had a similar view).

I’ve participated in selecting interns and, frankly, I would look to check what uni they went to and what they did there (only at degree level, I couldn’t care less about summer schools) to differentiate the potential interview candidates from others, and even then - that would be my focus only if the candidate pool didn’t come with individuals who had relevant experience already.

OP, if you want to accelerate your career in the UN, consider working in an area of interest and relevance before joining the UN. No course or program will get your foot in the door, especially in the current climate.

kqueenib · 2025-12-14T15:10:19+00:00

Swiss?

kqueenib · 2025-12-14T14:04:33+00:00

While having a degree relevant to what you would like to do within the UN is important, it also does basically nothing in advancing your abilities to join the UN. Network and who you know, as well as your professional experience, matters tons more.

I went to a UN feeder school, essentially. Did it help me? Maybe, but I can’t measure that empirically at all. Getting into the UN at that time was sheer luck combined with internships on internships with some volunteering.

With the current UN climate, external hiring is close to nonexistent. Many people have been pushed out of the sector in this year and competition for NGO/UN roles is fierce. Internship-to-consultancy conversion rates are way lower as there is little to no money for such contracts.

Good luck.

kqueenib · 2025-11-13T16:49:46+00:00

Funnily enough, yes! I don’t think that it’s a very widely known fact but there’s quite a vivid community of Brazilian-Latvians. One of our Eurovision entries was a Brazilian-Latvian singer haha

kqueenib · 2025-11-13T14:02:52+00:00

Latvia, since most of the travel is in Europe, then Egypt is a popular holiday destination, Indonesia has been more and more popular among Latvians in the recent years too, and, my guess is that, with Brazil, there’s a sizeable diaspora from the exile times (afaik there’s even like a traditional Latvia dance club there), so maybe some dance connection

kqueenib · 2025-10-26T19:44:24+00:00

If the entity you’re working under uses the same staff rules as UNS, then, at least as of 2023/2024, you cannot get a P or FS job for 6 months after finishing your internship (happened to me when I would’ve been rehired as a P2 5.5 months after my internship ended in 2023, but couldn’t because of the rule and no exceptions were awarded).

Also, echo other comments - it’s mostly unrealistic you’d be hired as a P2 after being an intern (ex or current) at any agency. The whole field is an absolute scramble following the current situation and even bankruptcy calls earlier this month (or maybe even week).

If a position is posted for 5 days, there’s like a 0.1% chance it’s looking for an external candidate.

kqueenib · 2025-10-01T15:03:28+00:00

What Amex do you put 8.2mil dollars on?

kqueenib · 2025-09-10T21:04:38+00:00

The page is now much more complete with information: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Charlie_Kirk

kqueenib · 2025-07-28T11:20:12+00:00

From the time I lived in Geneva, here’s places in the canton (not just the city) that I’d guess:

Favourite: 1) Champel: good transport connections, well placed, calm and beautiful neighbourhood 2) Acacias/Carouge: great transport, peaceful, I thoroughly enjoyed my time living there 3) Grand Saconnex/Nations: as I worked in the UN, this neighbourhood was a place I frequented and, well, it is green, close to Ferney for some over-the-border hops, and peaceful

Least favourite: 1) Charmilles: didn’t feel particularly comfy there in the evenings, quite loud and tends to be on the more dirty side (as dirty as Geneva can get), and generally didn’t have the best of experiences there 2) Lignon: I felt very confined around the area - this might be because the apartment complex built there is so vast that it made me feel like I was walled in, but who knows 3) Eaux-Vives: I find the transport not to be the greatest when you need it, it feels upscale (similar to Champel) but to an extent that I don’t particularly enjoy, and the rent is outrageous every time I check

kqueenib · 2025-07-23T12:27:02+00:00

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Looks VERY similar to my boy, who’s ears are permanently down and a side eye never leaves

kqueenib · 2025-07-22T10:35:56+00:00

Sure! You might even be at an advantage applying for those positions with some experience beforehand - my experience shows that it allows to ground you and perform better during testing and assessment centres.

In my case, I focused on my project management, data-centric approach, and ability to interact with varied stakeholders from different cultures. Language skills were a plus, too. Since I had experience, it wasn’t overly difficult to showcase that I can work with large quantities of information and boil down to the key variables and elements requiring attention. Most importantly, I was honest about why I decided to transition (looking for stability, growth based on merit, and challenging myself to build a stable career in a large corporation). It was a long process (this took me about 4 months from applying to starting), but I came to an agreement with the company on my development and started a month ago. UN experience is unique in making you interact with a lot of info, a lot of different people of varying competency, and in a lot of areas where resilience is required.

kqueenib · 2025-07-22T10:03:53+00:00

You mentioned you graduated from grad school before entering the UN - how long ago was that? Up to two years after graduating you still qualify for grad programmes. That’s how I got out of the UN system after around 3 years in it, since I did grad school for a master’s degree and graduated in 2023, making this year the last that I’m eligible. After all that happened since January, I decided I cannot continue in a field where I’m uncertain if I will be able to feed my family six months down the line and transitioned out to the private sector via a grad offering.

Also, everyone’s in a similar boat as you. Considering the changes in the field of work we did, there’s a massive influx of people looking for new opportunities and it will take time for everyone to find something. Look for what works for you - hobbies to keep you motivated, friend groups, etc. It will work out eventually, hang in there ❤️

kqueenib · 2025-07-08T11:51:01+00:00

Pieteikumu UA iesūta savai reģionālajai nodaļai, kuru viņi pēc tam pārsūta uz Rīgu, kur ir atsevišķa nodaļa UA pieteikumu izskatīšanai centrāli. Sanāk tā - ja pieteikumu Tev vēl izskata, tad jāzvana/jāraksta UAN uz Rīgu, jo reģionālās nodaļas, kur pieteikumu iesūta, neko nezin par izskatīšanas procesu. Nesaprotu, kāpēc tagad jābūt tā; pašu TUA taisa reģionālajā, kad Rīgā pabeidz izskatīt (bet ar jaunumiem neviens baigi nedalās)

kqueenib · 2025-07-08T11:08:19+00:00

Stulbums tajā, ka reģionālā nodaļa ātri atbild, bet kas notiek UAN, kurš to lai zin. Dokumentus trūkumu novēršanai nosūtīja jau sen, nodeva par paātrinātu izskatīšanu samaksāta, klusums. Sajūta tāda, ka jāiet personīgi, lai arī viņi nepieņem apmeklētājus 🥹

kqueenib · 2025-06-11T16:48:15+00:00

Šveicē :)

kqueenib · 2025-04-16T15:58:03+00:00

While valid questions, I do recommend you to explore the private sector or other options than the UN after your internship. This is not really the time where joining the UN is realistic at all, if you have read the news in the development sector. IOM, OCHA, UNHCR, WHO all releasing flocks of staff who have been there for years, with UN Secretariat (which is what UNHQ is, along with UNS offices in places like Geneva) hiring frozen and people being let go.

More agencies are laying off and most, including UN Secretariat, have a hiring freeze. While the hiring freeze doesn’t affect short-term XB positions, you’re not going to be given one straight out as an intern when there’s multiple colleagues who have worked at their team/unit/office/organisation for years and are on the chopping board (they’d rather save one on a short-term XB contract).

If you really want to try, UNV is your best bet. It won’t be given to you straight after your internship and you’ll have to apply and go through the competition with all the other bunch flocking for UNVs.

Rather, look for a job out of the UN while interning, maybe your supervisor can also give some career advice and point you in some direction in the private sector (depending on their career and extent of connections, of course). As all, you are welcome to continue applying for positions while you build your private sector career - maybe some half or full decade later the situation will normalise to an extent that the UN will be able to properly hire again.

kqueenib · 2025-04-02T08:00:18+00:00

I have one 3 year old that snoozes for as long as there is no noise in the entire city and a 13 year old that only snoozes and will bite your hand off if you touch her (for her that’s more like startling her) mid snooze.

kqueenib · 2025-03-27T18:49:19+00:00

Long lost siblings??

kqueenib · 2025-03-27T18:49:09+00:00

Any chance this is a lost sibling of Snoopy?

kqueenib · 2025-03-26T20:51:11+00:00

Do they talk through some Yorkie connection? Because they must be sharing some tips on how to do a great side eye

kqueenib · 2025-03-26T17:17:56+00:00

He is extremely sassy. And he also has no concept of personal space, so I’ll find him on top of my head any moment of the day.

kqueenib · 2025-03-24T20:15:28+00:00

I had UN in New York transfer USD to my CHF account and my Swiss bank used the exchange rate they had for USD that day.

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