Some of the most valuable staff roles at a nonprofit are filled by constituents such as former volunteers, corps members, fellows, alumni, and clients; this article will guide you on how to translate your demonstrated commitment to an organization into a paid job there....

Development professionals looking to move to the next level in their careers need the right mix of experience and education; this article explores the qualifications and experience needed to get ahead....

Earl Martin Phalen, CEO of national early literacy program Reach Out and Read, describes how the program meshes pediatric care and reading to help children and their parents be prepared for that first day of kindergarten....

Transferable skills are skills that are useful and essential to most jobs. They are competencies developed in one situation that can be passed along to another, and are key to career changes across sectors or job functions.

In any field, having a professional mentor can help individuals develop and advance their careers. Mentors are especially important in the nonprofit sector, where structured career development opportunities are not always readily available....

As New York's Executive Director of Project HEALTH, a nonprofit helping to break the link between poverty and poor health, Chinwe Onykere is working hard to get low-income families the resources they need through innovative volunteer services. Commongood Careers recently sat down with Chinwe to hear her thoughts on some of the key issues which are impacting her work, including how the new Social Innovation Fund will affect healthcare in America, and why diversity in the nonprofit sector is now more important then ever....

What place does a Master of Business Administration have in the nonprofit sector? You may be surprised to know that the skills you learn when pursuing your MBA can be important in many nonprofit jobs. What's more, an increasing number of nonprofits are recognizing the valuable skills and competencies that MBAs bring to an organization. In the following article, we will profile two organizations who leverage MBA grads and then conclude with some advice about how to make the connection work....

As the Director of Program Services at Mass Mentoring Partnership, the only nonprofit that focuses on start-up and sustainability of high-quality mentoring programs statewide, Marty Martinez has his work cut out for him. With a deep personal commitment to youth services, as well as over eight years of experience in the field, Marty now lends his talent and drive to helping a number of mentoring organizations become more effective in the communities they serve....

In the job application process, the cover letter often represents the first opportunity you have to communicate directly with a hiring organization. This article explores five easy-to-follow strategies for writing a winning cover letter....

Launching your own social change venture is a labor of passion, creativity, and dedication. Social entrepreneurs typically possess these qualities in spades, but sometimes need support in turning their vision into reality. To that end, Teach For America developed a new program, the Social Entrepreneurship Initiative, to provide its alumni with the tools and knowledge required to create systemic change through social entrepreneurship....

A socially entrepreneurial organization (SEO) takes the goal of creating social impact to a new level by using innovative methods to organize, manage and measure a venture. If you're looking to make high impact in the social change arena and have a new, enterprising plan on how to do it, starting your own SEO could be a great choice for success. In this article, we give you some tips on how to start a SEO that can survive, thrive, and even change the world....

As the demand for leaders in nonprofits is rapidly increasing, concerns about work-life balance are becoming more important to younger professionals. With today's expectations and norms for work, especially in the social sector, many with nonprofit careers recognize that balancing work and life demands may be more easily said than done. To address this challenge, here are some simple ideas that can help....

By the end of any job search, receiving the perfect employment offer can be a welcome and rewarding experience. However, sometimes you will receive a job offer that is not the right fit for you. This article will suggest some ways to turn down a job offer with grace and professionalism....

There are numerous benefits to building a long-term nonprofit career, such as connecting to organizational missions and working in sector that reflects your personal values. However, there are challenges to sustaining a nonprofit career. Understanding these challenges and taking advantage of opportunities to advance your career are key to a long and successful nonprofit career....

In the social sector, organizational culture can make or break an employee's ability to succeed at and be satisfied in a role. However, organizational culture is often difficult to assess because its definition relies on many aspects of an organization, some of which are not always easily accessible to prospective employees. This article aims to demystify organizational culture, and suggest some ways that jobseekers can evaluate cultural fit throughout the application and interview process....

With titles ranging from literacy program coordinator to director of enrollment and beyond, no matter the issue that you are most passionate about, the program management position provides the opportunity to work to make your socially driven goals a reality....

By the end of 2008, Commongood Careers will have participated in over one hundred career fairs across the country. To date, we have met thousands of nonprofit jobseekers, some who have impressed us and others who have left us underwhelmed. Based on this experience, we've prepared a set of tips to help jobseekers gain valuable information, make important connections, and create positive impressions with hiring organizations at career fairs....

In a nonprofit interview, candidates are expected to do more than talk about their professional skills. This article discusses some of the toughest yet most effective questions from actual nonprofit interviews, and suggests strategies for how to communicate the best possible answers to these questions....