The United Nations (UN) decided in 2007 to launch an Outreach Programme and sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with conference interpreting teaching institutions. The objective was to help candidates prepare for the language competitive examination (LCE) and become better acquainted with UN work environment specificities. Since then, more LCEs have been held in order to establish a roster of successful candidates to cover present and future vacancies. Despite the large number of applicants, very few candidates have managed to pass. A survey targeted at all UN staff interpreters was launched to identify the challenges of the LCE, the particularities of interpreting at the UN and the causes of the low pass rate for the LCE. A curricular analysis of MoU schools was also carried out in order to understand how training is structured vis-à-vis the Outreach Programme, the LCE and the UN. The findings show that, even if the respondents considered the training provided to be adequate, the challenges and the type of work encountered subsequently were not directly reflected in the training, and this could have a direct impact on the candidates' chances of passing the LCE and consequently on the employability of interpreters in the UN.