LFA Conference: Advice on Getting Jobs and Internships in the Social Sector
There are several workshops in the summit talking about getting jobs and
internships, especially for the entry-level positions. Several business leaders in the social
sectors introduced their experiences and advices for newcomers.
One workshop is called “Your Dream Job: The Social Sector Search”. A Yale
Alumna introduced her suggestions of job searches and interview tips. Firstly, There are
several factors that we need to consider when looking for a job, like locations, job roles,
specialists or generalists, company cultures and so on. It is also good for us to have a five
to ten years vision of career path therefore we can move forward step by step. Second,
she listed some resources that college students can use when they look for jobs, such us
the college career center, alumni, job treks, speakers on campus, online resources and so
on. Besides, we can also get a better sense of a company’s culture by doing volunteer job
or internship there. Third, she gave us some important interview tips to remember. We
need to confirm an interview the day before to make sure nothing goes wrong with the
time. The questions we ask during the interview should be as personable as possible
instead of general questions that can be easily found on websites. Another thing to
remember is that do not ask for job or introduction during the interview. This can be done
in the following emails with thank-you notes. There is one template that she introduced,
“It would be really appreciated if you could forward me any opportunity you heard of
that you think might be a good fit.” The most important is that to make sure we are
humble, confident, passionate, open-minded and gracious during the interview to present
the best of ourselves.
Another workshop is “We Want You: Entry-level Jobs and Internships in the
Social Sectors”. Six representatives from different business in the social sector, like Kiva
and Accion, shared their experiences with us. The most significant factor that all of them
talked about is to find our passion. It is almost impossible to work passionately if you
don’t love your work. Therefore they suggested us to try various new jobs in different
sectors and discover what we deeply love. When we really find our passion, it is the half
way to success.
-Sitao Guo ’16