Curious Jobseekers in San Antonio

Last week, we attended and led a workshop at the Idealist Career Fair in San Antonio, Texas. Yeeeeeeha! About 400 jobseekers attended, mainly college seniors looking to begin their careers in the nonprofit sector. Everyone we met was really professional and had great questions about how to pursue a nonprofit career. Some of the most commonly asked questions we received were about timing of the job search (since most nonprofits hire in real time and not months in advance) and how to break into the nonprofit sector (to which we answered, volunteer or intern). We also suggested to many jobseekers to explore Americorps and fellowship programs in order to get one's proverbial foot in the door of the social sector. As most organizations seek to hire talent that already have some nonprofit experience, these can be great strategies for graduating college students or others who may not have years of experience in the sector.

We also met many organizations concerned with the need to develop nonprofit talent in Texas. A representative from the San Antonio Nonprofit Council shared, "Talent is a real need for organizations. We wish there were more resources devoted to connecting professionals and organizations."