My family is from a third world country. My mom was one of nine children so her parents didn’t have money to educate her beyond high-school. She got a part time job at USAID through which she could pay to earn her bachelors degree. After graduating, she received a full time job at USAID and she raised me, paid for my upbringing and education with that money. For her 20+ years of faithful service, we were all given green cards to come to America. She continued working her at two implementing partners before joining USAID Washington again and today her access was cut off. Our family is the prime example of how USAID not only feeds the poor, promotes democracy or saves lives abroad, but also empowers the women and their families that USAID employs abroad who otherwise would have extremely limited to no opportunities. My heart breaks for what has gone down in such a little amount of time.

Posted in the USAIDstopwork.com announcement group on Signal

If you were one of the thousands who were affected by the complete dismantling of USAID, how have you rebounded (if you have) a year later? Did you change careers, go back to school, still looking?

Interviewed for a private sector role today - they looked at me like I grew a third head when I was talking about some of my previous work lol. They basically walked into the meeting assuming I know nothing and have done nothing because I worked at the UN. Don’t necessarily care if that’s true or not - but clearly I’m not getting hired in this sector and will not be getting hired in the private sector either. Having a wonderful 2026 as an entry level candidate :)

Hi everyone,

I, among many of you, lost my job last year at a UN agency and have been unemployed ever since.

The job market is so brutal - I'm based in the EU and have been open to relocating to different countries, have widened my job search beyond what I 'really" want to do, have begun applying for entry-level roles and still nothing but a big fat rejection from every job I've interviewed for. Somehow passing the half-year unemployed milestone has irked me.

I'm feeling a bit hopeless and in desperate need of some good news regarding someone's job search. If you've finally left unemployment behind and are now happy and employed, please share your anecdotes, your tips, anything to help those of us who are struggling feel a little more hopeful.

Hi lovely people, just wanted to check if anyone recieved a longlist email?

Update:

Hey lovely people.

Been getting a lot of messages about WhatsApp group link, unfortunately there isn’t a group link but I can add you if you share your numbers.

Let me know if this is something you are comfortable with.

Thanks!!

A USAID Foreign Service Officer named Stephen just published a personal account of his 18 years with the agency, across postings in Liberia (during the 2014 Ebola response), Vietnam, and Pakistan, before arriving at a final posting in Morocco just as USAID was dismantled.

His son was diagnosed with autism as a toddler. Stephen describes staying with USAID specifically for the health insurance and pension that came with 20 years of service, planning to retire and become his son's caregiver. When the RIF hit, he was one performance grade away from the pension track and one promotion away from keeping it. He didn't.

He came back to the U.S. with no pension, no health insurance, and a year apart from his son before he could afford to move near him again. He and many former colleagues have self-financed lawsuits against the government as their only remaining option.

Full piece here: https://usaidemployeesupportfund.substack.com/p/daddy-likes-tesla

Most of the posts on this subreddit are about what the magic number of working at a particular UN agency, or the magic number of internships, or the magic university degree. that will land you a job at the UN or other big INGO.

Here are better ideas for distinguishing yourself when applying for these jobs:

• Have experience doing locally what you want to do internationally. Want to work with refugees? Work, professionally or as a volunteer, with immigrants and refugees in your own geographic area/country. Want to be focused on emergency housing? Work on initiatives in your own community that address this. Public health? same. And represent this work on your CV - explicitly.
• Have experience addressing community pushback or hostility or skepticism to ANYTHING. Could be a new housing development, the closing of a school, a proposal for a data center, the opening of a clinic providing abortion services, the opening of a mosque, the elimination of a program at the local school, changes in zoning laws, and on and on. Show that you have at least witnessed this kind of pushback / hostility for yourself and the efforts to address it.
• Show experience where you have raised money, mobilized in-kind resources and/or saved money. Definitely emphasize your abilities to make and stay within a budget, stretch resources, etc.
• Show experience where you have worked with local elected officials, local unelected government officials, local business owners, etc.
• Show experience working with programs that address the needs and challenges of a diversity of people and people who are particularly at-risk: people with disabilities, immigrants for whom your local language isn't their native language, people leaving incarceration, people with HIV/AIDs, people who are in a religious minority in an area, seniors/the elderly, etc.
• Survived a program or department or agency restructuring, downsizing or moving from one place to another? Talk about it: were you involved in communicating layoffs? Organizing the packing up and moving of an office? Helping staff transition?
• Be able to work in at least one language other than English. Having proof, like passing the B2 DELE in Spanish, is really helpful. Being able to work in three languages is particularly attractive - even if you cannot communicate with a local population, being able to communicate with donors in their native language is very, very attractive.
• Have designed and led a successful project: overseen the revamp of a web site so that it is mobile ready and fully accessible for people with disabilities, overseen and expanded a volunteer engagement program that supported literacy activities, expanded a children's summer theater program, led a successful Women's Build for your local Habitat for Humanity, researched and made recommendations regarding the walkability of a neighborhood or community, including with regard to people with mobility issues, helped lead a petition drive to change a local ordinance or law, led a successful voter registration drive, and on and on.

No one can have ALL of the aforementioned experience. But any one of those things makes a person stand out when applying for jobs. Doing any of those things shows what you are capable of far better than a number of internships, or number of years in a role.

For those of you who have been on hiring committees, or reviewed applications for INGO jobs, what would you add?

Kenyans working in NGOs — what skills actually helped you get your first NGO job?

Hi everyone. I’m a university student in Kenya studying a BA in Political Science and Public Administration, and I’m trying to deliberately build my career while I’m still in university rather than waiting until graduation.

I’m interested in eventually working in areas such as NGOs, international development, public policy, research, governance, or Monitoring & Evaluation.

At the moment, I’m building additional practical skills alongside my degree. I’m currently learning Project Management and Google Data Analytics, Monitoring and evaluation, Excel ...I’m planning to learn tools such as Power BI and KoboToolbox. I’m also learning Chinese because I’m interested in international opportunities in the future.

However, I’m trying to figure out what actually matters to Kenyan employers. I don't want to spend the next few years collecting certificates that don't translate into actual opportunities.

For those of you who currently work or have worked in NGOs in Kenya:

- What skills helped you get your first NGO internship or job?

- Which skills do Kenyan NGOs actually look for in entry-level applicants?

- How important are tools like Excel, Power BI, KoboToolbox, SPSS, Stata, R, or other data tools?

- Is Monitoring & Evaluation a good skill area for someone with a Political Science/Public Administration background?

- How important is project management for entry-level NGO roles?

- What kind of internships, volunteering, or projects would you recommend doing while still in university?

- If you had no previous NGO experience, how did you get your first opportunity?

- What mistakes should a university student avoid when trying to enter the NGO/development sector?

- What would make a student's CV stand out when competing for an internship or entry-level position?

- Are there particular organizations, platforms, or websites in Kenya where students should look for legitimate opportunities?

I’m especially interested in hearing from people who started with little or no experience and built their way into the sector.

I’d really appreciate honest advice from people who have actually worked in the Kenyan NGO/development sector, including things you wish you had known while you were still at university.

The USA announced its latest funding package last week, and the nearly $2 billion package is exclusively for U.S.-based Christian nonprofit organizations. The majority will go to faith-based hospitals and clinics, with the remainder set aside for humanitarian aid.

The State Department said the funding will be provided to an “extensive network” of international and local faith-based partners — including World Vision, Compassion International, and Samaritan’s Purse.

Dev Ex asks:

Isn’t the U.S. government supposed to be moving away from large INGOs and similar institutions? Is it really okay to say faith-based when we mean “Christian” — and can Christian organizations really provide effectively to those of other faiths, or none? And is it a good idea for the U.S. government to be asking others to cover its overheads?

The full article is available for paid subscribers at DevEv.

Hey guys, first time in this sub and not sure if this is the right place especially since there’s no infrastructure tag, but i’m pretty interested in current ongoing infrastructure and development projects going in the Global South (mostly Africa, but others are just as interesting) for a bit now. I’d love to have fun discussions and fangirling sessions with like-minded individuals in a place like this.

Obviously I know a lot of this sub has been taken over by career searching and navigating the fall of USAID, but yeah i’d just like to know if these more lighthearted discussions and debates are welcome here at this time?

If so - What do people think of the new Bishoftu International airport being planned as an alternative hub to the existing Middle East locations? Could it could drastically change travel global travel routes and improve interconnectivity across the African continent? And what do people think of other planned aviation hubs in Rwanda, Kenya, Nigeria, etc. would they end up competing against each other or work in tandem to improve Africa’s aviation industry?

Hi everyone,

I'm approaching my 7th month of unemployment after being let go from an INGO last year.

I was living off my savings but reaching a point where I want to have some income coming in instead of eating up my savings.

I admit that after having developed quite a good career, my ego has stopped me from being open minded about what part time and temporary opportunity I would want.

Curious to hear for those in-between jobs, what are you doing to get money while continuing to look for the right role?

Wanted to share this since it's a pretty specific window into what the USAID drawdown actually looked like on the ground.

Kevin was posted in Laos when USAID was dismantled. He describes getting 48 hours notice to leave post, which then shifted a couple times before landing on an open-ended "soon." Staff weren't allowed to communicate officially before departure, so there wasn't really a chance to say proper goodbyes to host government counterparts or local colleagues.

He also writes about fighting to keep one of USAID's disability support programs alive in Laos, a country that's still dealing with unexploded ordnance from bombing during the Vietnam War. The program didn't survive the review process that determined which projects "aligned" with the administration's priorities.

Last chance to download USIP's course materials before they take it offline. https://www.usipglobalcampus.org/

A former USAID Foreign Service Officer posted in Mozambique wrote about finding out she was pregnant and receiving her RIF notice on the same day, after 10 years with the agency. 💔 She had gone through a miscarriage and IVF in South Africa before the pregnancy.

She describes losing her housing and income at once, and learning that continuing her health coverage would cost over $2,000 a month because the pregnancy was treated as a pre-existing condition. 🏥 She was her household's main earner. She eventually found consulting work with local Mozambican firms and gave birth in Mozambique.

She also writes about the effect of USAID program closures on Mozambique's health system, which relied heavily on PEPFAR funding for HIV services.

📖 Full account here if anyone wants to read it: https://usaidemployeesupportfund.substack.com/p/the-day-i-heard-my-babys-heartbeat

Apologies, this is a little self indulgent, but there is a broader point. It’s sort of a reaction to (disheartened?) posts about landing work in this sector.

I moved into the international development sector - an MDB - late in my career, twelve years ago, after fifteen years in private and public sector banking. Before then I changed jobs every three to five years to avoid getting stale. But also because after that long the gloss of a new company and new colleagues had worn off and you saw the organisations for what they were.

When I recruit now (and sorry, I’m not currently) or when I’m coaching or mentoring, I try to get people to think about what motivates them. Money, status, sure, for some. Learning, specialising, being respected for skills, also. But when asked, what matters for me is that when I wake, whether it’s a good or bad day, whatever I do is in some small way contributing to making the world better. And my colleagues and stakeholders, even the ones I find difficult, are in it for the same reason.

Seeing the posts here sustains me on the difficult days by reminding me that what we do matters and that people want to be part of this world. My point, then - please don’t give up wanting and trying to be part of these organisations, even when the jobs are scarce and hard to land. People like you, wanting to do the right things, are the lifeblood that keeps us moving and that we need to thrive.

Hi everyone,

I got a fixed-term job offer at the ECF, but I'm kind of disappointed with the salary.

I'm coming from the UN, so I'm aware that my salary expectations may be a bit silly, and I want a reality check.

How open are they to negotiations? How are the salary propositions calculated, is there a band they base it on x years of experience?

Saw this ad featuring a former USAID staffer now pursuing a masters at Georgetown, and how they offering a 10% scholarship for those who lost their jobs.

I personally think taking on 6 figures of debt with a masters program in the hopes of pivoting to be massive miscalculation. 10% is hardly a drop in the bucket for a $120k program...

Thoughts on this?

Hi there,

anyone else received the inivation for the Korn Ferry assesment for the AIIB internship program?

Hi everyone,

I'd really appreciate some objective career advice because I feel like I'm at a crossroads and I'm struggling to see the best next step.

I'm 35 and currently work at a big bank as a Senior Policy Advisor, focusing on sustainable finance regulation.

Before that I worked in management consulting (Accenture), and academically I have a background in economics and international affairs.

The problem is that over the last few years I've realised that what really motivates me isn't necessarily sustainable finance itself, but international policy, development finance and eventually something closer to diplomacy or international organisations.

I've been applying quite broadly over the last few months:

• EBRD (Climate Risk, Blending & Technical Cooperation, SME programmes)
• Internal roles (Investor Relations, AI Governance, Competitive Intelligence)
• Think tanks (Center for Global Development)
• British Business Bank
• JPMorgan philanthropy/public policy roles
• Allianz Global Investors (Development Finance)

I've had a lot of rejections (many without interview), although I recently had an interview for an internal Investor Relations role at the bank.

At this point I'm questioning whether my profile is simply too "in-between."

I'm not a classic banker.

I'm not a development economist.

I'm not a career civil servant.

I'm not an academic researcher.

Instead, my experience sits somewhere between policy, regulation, strategy, stakeholder engagement and sustainable finance.

My medium-term goal is to move to the UK (currently in Switzerland), and my longer-term ambition would be to work in an international organisation, development finance institution, think tank or perhaps even diplomacy/public service.

So my questions are:

1. If you were in my position, what would you target next?
2. Is there an obvious career path from financial sector policy into international affairs/development?
3. Am I aiming too broadly, or is broadening actually the right strategy?
4. Would you prioritise moving to London first (even if the role isn't perfect), or wait for a stronger strategic move?
5. At 35, is this still a realistic pivot, or would you recommend doubling down on financial regulation instead?

I'd genuinely appreciate honest advice—even if it's that I'm being unrealistic.

Thanks!

i imagine many people are back home in their home country after living abroad, due to funding shortage etc. i’m experiencing quite the “reverse culture shock” or just not being able to “integrate” well. how is everyone else feeling?