The fellow will be expected to manage juggling multiple, diverse projects simultaneously, as is the nature of work within the department. It is expected that they will learn, gradually, to take the initiative in the handling of their work and not merely wait for tasks to be directly set for them. Past fellows have had a direct impact on the Ministry’s policy making in a variety of areas. Fine-tuning of the fellow’s responsibilities will be made following their arrival in the department in accordance with their skills and interests and the needs of the department, but the fellow is likely to assist the department in the following ways:
• Research and Report Production: The fellow may be asked to prepare reports on international governmental best practice, academic findings, innovative programs and international law in order to assist the Ministry’s Directors’ decision making in their respective areas of responsibility.
• Assisting with Gender-based Violence Cases: The department is responsible for assisting with the emigration of Israeli and Palestinian women at-risk of falling victim to gender-based violence. The fellow may be asked to assist with their emigration by identifying suitable international migration programs for each unique case and guiding the woman and her social workers through the immigration process.
• Assisting the Israeli International Social Service: The ISS is an international network of social welfare agencies that process cross-border social cases through obtaining the cooperation of different nation’s social services and ministries. Cases brought to the attention of the ISS concern issues such as child welfare, custody, adoption, foster care, guardianship, abuse, abduction, missing children, etc. The fellow may be asked to assist Israel’s ISS by contacting international offices and embassies to help resolve these cases. Dealing with these cases will involve exposure to international and Israeli law regarding child protection and other sensitive issues.
• English Language Editing: Although all of the department’s full-time employees are fluent English-speakers, English is not their mother-tongue. The fellow will be asked to review and edit documents (e.g. letters, speeches, reports) in order to ensure that they are grammatically correct and well-written.
• EU Program Requests: The fellow may be asked to help the Ministry’s Directors by writing to the EU to request ‘Twinning’ and ‘TAIEX’ program assistance (i.e. where the EU assists the Ministry by arranging, in collaboration with the department, Workshops, Expert Visits, and Missions to EU countries).
• International Humanitarian Aid Organizations: The department handles the registration and supervision of international, non-governmental humanitarian aid organizations working in the Palestinian Authority and Israel. The fellow will accompany the Director to meetings that are related to this issue in order to ensure that the fellow is fully integrated with the department’s work.
The fellow must have excellent researching skills as developed in their academic career. Master’s degree non-essential but an advantage. The fellow must have excellent report-writing skills, strong command of the English language, and the ability to write official letters and documents to a professional-sounding standard. Grammatical accuracy in English is essential. Knowledge of Russian, French, or Spanish is also an advantage. The fellow should be interested in and have some awareness of (ideally a background in) international organizations, child welfare, human rights, law, and/or public administration. The fellow must be able to act sensitively and maturely in the handling of sometimes emotionally challenging social cases. The fellow must be able to work well independently and in collaboration with others. Strong Interpersonal Skills:
• Being able to network effectively, online and in person
• Navigating a diverse workplace
• Cross-cultural communication
• Team player
• Takes initiative, proactive
