Job Description

Vacancy Notice 2033

INTERPOL is the world’s largest international police organization, with 196 Member Countries. Created in 1923, it facilitates cross-border police co-operation, and supports and assists all organizations, authorities, and services whose mission is to prevent or combat international crime.

INTERPOL strives to achieve a diverse and inclusive workforce and welcomes applications from individuals with diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. To achieve our Diversity goals, we encourage applications from women and nationals of under/unrepresented member countries who are passionate about our mission. INTERPOL’s recruitment process is merit-based hence all hiring decisions are made considering the applicant’s qualifications and the needs of the Organization.

Job Title: Data Scientist

Reporting To: Assistant Director

Location: Lyon

Type of contract: Project Fixed-term Contract

Duration (End date): 31 December 2027*

Grade: 4

Number of post(s): 1

Level of Security screening: Enhanced

Deadline for application: 18 November 2026 11.00 PM (Singapore Time)

Conditions applying for all candidates

Only professional experience for which candidates can provide official proof of employment will be considered. Candidates could be requested to provide copies of such official documents prior to interviews/test.

• This position is financed by a third-party, external to the Organization with funding provided by the donor. Although there is a commitment from the donor, the appointment may be terminated prior to indicate official end date of project, should the external funding for this position no longer be available. This position also carries, in principle, no expectation of renewal. Any potential subsequent extension will be subject to the terms of the Organization’s Staff Manual, to satisfactory performance and to availability of funds.

Tests/interviews in connection to this selection procedure will take place approximately 3-4 weeks after the deadline for applications. Applicants are kindly requested to plan their availability during this period accordingly, in case they are short-listed.

​Selected candidates will be expected to report for duty approximately two to three months after receiving an offer of employment at the latest.

INTRODUCTION OF POST

Context and Mission

The Executive Directorate for Police Capabilities (EDPC) designs and oversees all INTERPOL’s police capabilities, including criminal databases. Within this framework, the Operational Support and Analysis Directorate (OSA) empowers law enforcement officers to respond to international crime in real time. Specifically, the Criminal Analysis Sub-Directorate (CAS) leverages Project INSIGHT, a modern analytical platform designed to harness the power, security, and scalability of INTERPOL’s infrastructure. This initiative aims to make criminal intelligence analysis more efficient and effective for the benefit of all member countries.

The Data Opportunity

INTERPOL databases serve as an invaluable global repository, containing millions of records contributed daily by member countries via a secure communications system. These datasets include information on suspects and wanted people, fingerprints, DNA profiles, stolen motor vehicles, firearms, lost or stolen travel documents, etc. While these resources are vast, maximizing their potential requires the application of up-to-date analytical tools and methodologies to transform raw data into actionable intelligence.

The Role

The Data Scientist will provide advanced analytical support to help users generate actionable insights from these large-scale datasets, both within the core INTERPOL databases and through the Project INSIGHT platform. The successful candidate will translate complex data into compelling graphical, numerical, and narrative formats. We seek an interdisciplinary professional who integrates techniques from diverse scientific and computer science disciplines to solve complex data problems.

Collaboration and Impact

The post holder will collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to continuously refine data science models and outputs. Critical thinking and problem-solving skills are essential for interpreting data and uncovering hidden solutions within massive datasets. This role requires a passion for optimizing data processing workflows and extracting high-value outputs that directly support INTERPOL’s General Secretariat crime and operational support units, as well as member countries worldwide.

PRIMARY DUTIES

In the order of importance, indicate main duties and activities performed by the post holder: supervisory responsibility, taking decisions, etc.

DUTY 1: Source and analyze big data sets

• As a Data Scientist, deliver the best possible analysis including the use of artificial intelligence/machine learning that provides insights, prediction and direction to end-users.
• Provide big data analysis expertise to help solve complex data problems.
• Analyze various formats of data, consult, communicate and ensure that the best information, context, facts, options, approaches and recommendations are delivered.
• Build and document credible models from data, using coding best practices to generate reproducible work.

DUTY 2: Develop new products and models and evaluate the benefits for member countries.

• Work closely with the user community to strategize and execute the development of new data-driven products and new services or solutions for our member countries to aid decision making and disseminate and share findings.
• Implement well documented database models by collaborating with software developers to improve capabilities based on machine learning e.g., natural language processing and named entity recognition.
• Develop and document processes and tools to monitor and analyze model performance.

DUTY 3: Create an effective enterprise data system across INTERPOL.

• Contribute to the creation of an enterprise architecture of the INTERPOL Information System by providing advice on suitable business data information flows between applications and databases, including analytical platforms.
• Identify and report on inconsistent data quality input, to the appropriate system owners to raise awareness of data standards and improve the reliability of future data extraction. Establish data standards/protocols.
• Co-operate closely with the Information and Data Architects in I-CORE to evolve the INTERPOL Information System and INTERPOL’s Policing Capabilities in an overarching sense.

DUTY 4: Using data visualization and effective communication to aid interpretation.

• Translate complex analysis into actionable insights to support in the prevent crime and reduce vulnerability.
• Explore and visualize data to present develop an appropriate narrative a meaningful way to a range of technical and non-technical audiences.
• Work with stakeholders throughout the organization to identify opportunities for leveraging the INTERPOL databases as well as the INSIGHT platform to drive analytical insights.
• Help to grow data science skills in other teams, understanding the variety of functional roles relating to data science and how they can be applied to solve business problems.

DUTY 5: Managing data and taking an ethical approach.

• Improve the information lifecycle management and the quality of data throughout the applications of the Rules of Processing Data and analytical tools and methodologies.
• Document and enable efficient business processes and implement analytics for meaningful insights, such as crime trends, patterns, modus operandi.
• Draw on other technical and analytical standards from across industry.
• Adhere to the data science ethics framework.
• Perform any other duties as required by the hierarchy.

REQUIREMENTS

All candidates will be assessed on the under mentioned requirements

Please only include professional experience for which you can provide official proof of employment (i.e. pay-slip indicating your functional title, work certificates, etc.). You could be asked to provide copies of such documents prior to interviews/tests. Any discrepancies found between the information stated in any of your application documents and the evidence of employment provided, will be considered misrepresentation and may lead to your disqualification from this selection procedure. This is especially important for your current and previous functional titles (they need to be the same as the one in your contractual agreement), exact dates of employment, description of responsibilities and achievements, reason(s) for leaving and part-time work.

Education and Qualification required

Three to four years of completed education at a university or specialized higher education establishment relating to statistics, applied mathematics or computer science or another quantitative field. Graduate degree in Data Science or another quantitative field is preferred.

Experience required

Five years working in data science, manipulating data sets, and building statistical models.

Previous experience working as a consultant in a relevant field would be an additional asset, as well as management experience.

Languages

Fluency in English is required.

Proficiency in a second official language of the organization (French, Arabic, or Spanish) would be an asset

Abilities Required

Strong problem-solving skills, methodical and rigorous approach.

Knowledge of advanced statistical and data mining techniques and concepts.

Proficiency in coding languages such as SQL, Python, Javascript and Java.

Knowledge of distributed data/computing tools (Elasticsearch, Map/Reduce, Hadoop, etc.).

Experience in advanced law enforcement big data analytics.

Ability to present complex ideas in a clear way, knowledge of DataViz tools.

A drive to learn and master new technologies and techniques.

Knowledge of a variety of LLM, Agentic AI and machine learning techniques and their real-world applications.

Ability to work as part of a team as well as individually.

Ability to maintain objectivity and apply logical reasoning.

Initiative, creativity (original thinking) and curiosity.

Personal and professional maturity.

Ability to maintain objectivity and apply logical reasoning.

Ability to work under pressure.

Good social skills, particularly in a multicultural environment.

Ability to develop and maintain professional networks.

Ability to synthesize.

Good listening skills.