28 Feb Tips for Finding Nonprofit Jobs

Finding work in the nonprofit sector takes a special type of person and a special type of employee. Some jobs ask a lot of the employee with long hours and pay that may not be as competitive as working in the corporate world. However, nonprofit jobs offer the worker a different type of compensation for their time and effort. With all the challenges that could come from working a nonprofit job, there are other reasons why people look to work specifically in the nonprofit world.

Some nonprofit organizations focus on helping the environment, foundations, women’s rights, social services, art, and more. There are a number of nonprofit positions available, as well as organizations looking for volunteers.

Gaining volunteer experience, new skills, and working with great nonprofit organizations can help you get ahead in your career in the sector. In this article, we’re going to take a look at some helpful tips to find your next job in the nonprofit world. For this article, we’ve partnered with Foundation List to make sure we provide quality information and helpful tips from experienced professionals in the field!

Why work for a nonprofit organization?

Working for a nonprofit offers much more than just money and benefits. The other benefits are the ones you see as a result of your hard work and effort and what your personal goals are. These nonprofit jobs help many different causes and help change the world for the better, one day at a time. A lot of nonprofit careers offer great benefits along with room for career growth and development within the organization.

Is it hard to find a job in the nonprofit sector?

While it may seem difficult to land a job with a nonprofit, there’s a very specific approach to it. Foundation List says, “Think of nonprofits and foundations just like any other culture like a club: there is a specific approach for speaking to them, applying with them, and for entering into them for a new career path.”

Isaac Schild, co-founder of Foundation List, says that “gaining real and usable nonprofit experience can be a very tricky thing if you have never volunteered in the past or been a part of a volunteer organization.” While that may seem daunting at first, we promise that we’re not trying to scare you off. We want to share the proper information to help you prepare to find your perfect nonprofit career and help you take off!

Tip: Find Volunteer Opportunities

To a nonprofit organization, volunteer experience can be seen as a crucial need for one of their open positions. To them, it’s an indicator of how you’re willing to spend your time and your effort. While volunteering is important, it’s also important to remember that when it comes to the experience, quality is better than quantity. If you’re looking to work for a specific cause or organization, look for volunteer opportunities in that specific field. It helps you gain relative experience and better understand the type of organization you’re working for.

Some great ways to gain this experience is to join a board of directors or volunteer at fundraising events. There are also some organizations that can help you get started in finding both a career and volunteer opportunities. The Volunteer Center and Board Force are both helpful in finding you ways to start your search for volunteering opportunities and nonprofit jobs!

Tip: Be Mission-Driven

One of the biggest mistakes that people make when they are trying to get into the nonprofit sector is that they try too hard to remain in the same related field that they worked in before. For example, people who previously worked in sales will try to get into nonprofit fundraising. Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite work out that way. Just because you have previous professional experience, or a specific skill set does not make you an ideal candidate for landing a nonprofit position.

What these organizations are looking for is someone with dedication, a strong work ethic, knows how to utilize their resources, and someone who is willing to put time into the process. They aren’t looking for someone who has all the answers; rather, they are looking for someone who is willing to learn and grow from the experience. This means that while you may have had success in the past, you’ll have to prove yourself again.

Tip: Come Prepared, Come Organized

While a strong resume may get you a job in the professional world, it’s certainly not the same when trying to get a job with a nonprofit organization. On your resume, you want to show that your mission is what drives you, rather than what skills make you the best match for the job. Organizations want to see that you have a thorough understanding of their goals and the issues they’re focused on.

Need some more tips on how to be the best candidate for a nonprofit position? Here are some great tips to help!

Important sections to have on your nonprofit resume to make you a strong candidate are Volunteering, Interests, Continuing Education, and Writing. These sections will help you retain an interview for the position you’re looking at. It’s also important to list any important donations that you have given money to. The more you can show that you are truly a part of the sector and the more dynamic skills that you show, the better your search for a nonprofit job will be.

Where can I find a nonprofit job?

There are a couple of different ways to go about finding a position with a nonprofit. Here are some great ways to search for them:

• Search Online –Nonprofit job boards are out there and feature positions with some great nonprofit organizations all over the country. A great resource is nonprofit-jobs.org
• Networking –LinkedIn and other professional platforms are a great way to build a larger network but attending nonprofit events and job fairs is a great way to make a personal connection with hiring managers.
• Search Locally –A lot of large nonprofit organizations have smaller local offices. Volunteering at one of these regional locations is a great way to get your foot in the door and learn about different positions and nonprofit jobs.

Scion Nonprofit can help you find the right nonprofit position!

Scion Nonprofit Staffing specializes in placing experienced, mission-driven nonprofit staff members from the entry-level to the executive level. Our search firm was specifically designed to meet the need of the nonprofit sector and effectively provides our devoted clients with top-notch nonprofit talent pipelines and human resource services. If you are considering a job with a nonprofit, we invite you to apply with Scion Nonprofit today and browse our open opportunities on our job board to find more nonprofit jobs!