A true insight into a career in the charity sector
Getting your foot in the door may be harder than you think, but there are steps you can take to get there…
We recently welcomed a panel of recent graduates to campus, who are all working in various roles within the charity sector. This gave our current students the opportunity to hear first-hand what their role entails, what it’s really like to work for a charity, and how they found and landed their first job. Here’s what we discovered;
Meet the Panel
Giorgia Bracelli |Regional Fundraising Executive |Barnardo’s (Charity Works Graduate Trainee)
After recently graduating in July with a degree in International Relations, Giorgia had been applying for a number of graduate schemes before being offered a role with CharityWorks (a scheme which matches graduates with a charity, working in various roles to build their skills and expertise within the charity sector). Upon appointment, Giorgia was matched with Barnardo’s (a large children’s charity) where she works within a large team on fundraising initiatives where she researches partnerships and supports fundraising events.
Annabel Clarke |Marketing and Communications Coordinator |Eco Birmingham
Annabel’s first role was with Ikon Gallery in Birmingham, where she went on to develop an arts and culture blog which led to a number of marketing roles. She now works for a small environmental charity, Eco Birmingham, and also freelances. Annabel works in a small team of 7, managing their social media, press relations, event promotion, internal communications, branding, and reputation.
Connie Cramp |Programme Coordinator |UpRising
Connie worked in a few roles within the commercial sector before taking some time out to travel and volunteer. She then completed a Masters in International Relations and began looking for roles within the charity sector in Birmingham. Connie was offered a role as Programme Coordinator at UpRising, who deliver a leadership programme for young people within the West Midlands. Working in a small team, Connie is responsible for the development of their programmes where she designs session plans, manages events and social media, and sources speakers.
Faith Jordan | Assistant Reserve Warden| RSPB England
After graduating, Faith took some time out to travel with the hopes of falling into a role within the conservation sector. Faith found this more difficult than she anticipated and ended up doing a lot volunteering before securing an internship as an Assistant Reserve Warden with RSPB England (the largest nature conservation charity in the country). Faith’s role involves looking after the nature reserve, carrying out repair and vegetation work. She also leads a team of volunteers and assists with surveying.
Opportunities
The charity sector is huge, with a breadth of roles available within a variety of sectors (e.g. children, environment, community, animal, health, education, arts and culture etc). Despite the wide range of options, the sector can be highly competitive and our panel quickly learned that just having a degree wasn’t enough to get you that dream job (more on that later).
Due to the breadth of roles and types of charities there are, the panel iterated the importance of getting a feel for what you want and don’t want in a career and whether you want to be working within a large or small organisation. You can do this through volunteering, internships and work experience, or you can also consider a graduate scheme, like CharityWorks, which allows you to try out different roles/types of organisations.
Job Search
There are a variety of different methods you can use to find that dream job;
Websites
More often than not, the first place you’ll want to look is the organisation’s website — not only will you get a good understanding of their work and culture, but it’s where their job vacancies will be advertised.
You’ll often find that you can also sign up to newsletters, enabling you to keep up-to-date with their work, but also alert you of any new vacancies.
Volunteering
If you are volunteering for the charity, then you will have access to internal vacancies which are only open to current employees or volunteers — putting you in a really advantageous position.
LinkedIn
Make sure you follow lots of charities that you are interested in, and that way you’ll stay updated with what they’re up to and any new job postings. You can also connect with people within the organisation and discover more about the roles available.
Networking
Particularly in the charity sector, networking can be really influential in finding opportunities - providing you with key contacts who are already aware of your passion and enthusiasm for the organisation’s work.
The Challenges
Preparation
Many of the panel said that they wished they’d made more use of their time at university to develop key employability skills that would have better prepared them for their roles, such as leadership, project management, and public speaking.
Work/Life balance
Particularly if you’re working in a small charity, you may find that you end up taking on the workload of two or more roles, so you can sometimes fall into the habit of taking work home. You may also find that you’ll work on a lot of events, which can mean working outside of normal office hours or at weekends.
Working in the charity sector can often be very flexible though, allowing you to either work from home or work hours more suited to you, as opposed to the regular 9–5.
Dealing with difficult situations
Depending on the type of charity work you are doing, you may find that you will be faced with situations that you find upsetting, however, there is always lots of support and advice available to help you with your wellbeing.
Limited Resources
Because of their non-profitable nature, resources can often be limited, especially in smaller organisations. This can sometimes mean you’ll be working to a very small budget or staff resources are stretched. So if a priority for you is regular fancy office parties or table tennis in the office — it may not be the career for you.
The Benefits
The panel all felt that many benefits that came with working in the charity sector far out-weighed the challenges, here are just some of the key ones;
Support
As you’ll often be working in smaller teams, you’ll receive a great deal of support from your colleagues, making you feel a valued and respected member of the team.
One goal
Working in a charity means that you’ll be surrounded by colleagues who are all passionate about working towards that one goal — whether it’s reducing waste, or protecting vulnerable people. This harmonious environment can be truly inspiring and motivating, making it all the more easier to get out of bed each day!
Impact
Of course, the most rewarding part of working in the charity sector is making an impact and seeing the difference that you’re making to society. However big or small, this is a really key motivator to delivering your best work each day.
Top Tips
Volunteer/Work Experience
Get as much volunteering experience as you can and you will gain a huge advantage. You’ll develop key skills, discover likes and dislikes, and experience different work cultures. It will also do wonders for you in the recruitment process because it demonstrates your passion and enthusiasm for that sector or charity and gives you insider knowledge.
Patience
Sometimes just having a degree simply isn’t enough, and it often takes a lot of time, effort and patience to land the perfect job. Take the time to discover what you do and don’t like, and gain the experiences you need to improve your chances of success.
It’s also important to remember that it’s more likely that you’ll start your career within very junior positions before progressing up the ladder, but don’t jump the gun too quickly. You’re going to need the patience to spend enough time learning all that you can from those around you before you consider moving on.
Passion
The thing that makes candidates outshine the rest is their passion and enthusiasm for the charity’s cause. So try and target charities that you have a genuine interest in and do everything you can to demonstrate that passion — your chances will soar!
To view our full programme of sector events, please visit our website.
