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Along with my colleague Roselynn Verwoord, fellow Next Leaders Network steering committee member, I presented on the topic of careers in the nonprofit sector at the latest University of British Columbia Student Leadership Conference (SLC 2010). As a UBC alum, I’ve presented at this conference before – I really enjoy meeting keen students interested in career development and the nonprofit sector.
The top tip I enjoy sharing with students is how a degree does not define you. You do. I demonstrate this by sharing my main post-university jobs (high school teacher, nonprofit gala event manager, and promoter of student engaged citizenship and community-university engagement) and asking what they think my undergrad degree was in. Chemistry and Biology are generally not the first guesses.
The workshop participants brainstormed different tips and resources related to finding employment in the nonprofit sector. They came up with a pile of suggestions in a really tight period of time – many that were new to me. Learning happens in every direction.
Looking for Jobs and Volunteer Roles
- govolunteer.ca (volunteer roles)
- nonprofit and volunteer sections on Craigslist
- charityvillage.com (Canada-wide jobs and volunteering)
- Career & Counselling Services at universities
- The Red Book Online (organizations based in Metro Vancouver)
- careers.ubc.ca
- workcabin.ca (environmental jobs)
- goodworkcanada.ca (green jobs and volunteering)
- Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF)
- Volunteer Vancouver (Vantage Point)
- Idealist.org
- City websites (e.g. City of Vancouver, City of Richmond, City of Burnaby)
- volweb.ca
- Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)
Networking and Mentorship
- Arts Tri-Mentoring/Engineering Tri-Mentoring
- Joining Clubs/Student Associations (e.g Emerging Leaders Group)
- Sharing experience with other volunteers
- Me Inc. – Commerce Conference (external networking)
- Parents and family friends
- Volunteer in residence
- Professors
- Friends of friends
- Mailing Lists/talking to people at fairs
Resumes, Cover Letter and Interviews
- Research company before interview
- Career services (for help)
- Hook for cover letter – be interesting
- Be specific to job description
- Be unique, passionate (to certain extent)
- Interviews –
- be down to earth
- practice potential q’s
- confidence
- Don’t’ answer questions in conventional way
- Situation, task, action, result, transfer (technique for answering interview q’s)
- Reveal your transferable skills
- Be honest
Learning and Workshops
- Mentoring Programs
- Involvement Showcase (CSI)
- Green Book
- SLC 2010
- Events UBC Site
- Career Days
- Community workshops
- Company workshops
- Clubs
- Go Global (Exchange)
- Read
- Community centers/resources
- Research seminars
Things NOT to Do
- Don’t pick something you don’t find interesting
- Don’t lie about your passion
- Don’t be inconsistent in your approach (e.g. volunteer work can be just as important as paid work)
- Bashing – don’t criticize another organization
- Don’t name drop
- No assumptions
- Don’t ask about wages (to begin with, anyway)
- Don’t be in it for the money
- Don’t burn bridges
- Don’t do it just for the sake of your resume
What a fantastic list! You can find more ideas for young nonprofit professionals in Metro Vancouver here.
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Comments
02.16.10
I like your idea of spreading the nonprofit wealth of information. That list is very cool - and we should try to have resources like this nationwide (and worldwide!) awesome- thanks for sharing!!
03.20.10
Thanks Beth. Sharing is caring!
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