Humanitarian relief for career starters

Experience is an essential element for a career in humanitarian relief. With the life-threatening situations that characterize the sector, passion alone just won’t cut it. Relief professionals generally get started with an internship, fellowship or volunteer position within the nonprofit sector. While these opportunities may not rake in the bucks, they do provide the essential skills and experience necessary to get one’s feet firmly through the door. Once in, aspiring relief workers have a better chance at securing entry-level positions - typically as program assistants - and can then proceed to build a career. Terms and duration Most organizations recruit interns and volunteers on an ad hoc basis. The Peace Corps and United Nations, meanwhile, have structured volunteer programs that run anywhere from a couple of months to two years. It is a good idea to do research on humanitarian organizations in one’s vicinity and then contact them directly to express one’s interest. Internships tend to be short-term assignments of three or four months, and geared toward students and recent graduates. In the U.S., for instance, most internships take place from September to December, January to April, and May to August. Non-governmental organizations are generally flexible with start and end dates, and interns who show a high degree of performance might be invited to extend their internships. Some organizations such as the International Rescue Committee have internship programs designed for specific colleges and universities. Others hire interns as the need arises. While fellowships are generally remunerated, internships and volunteer positions tend to be unpaid or offer a stipend. Available openings are typically listed on organizations’ Web sites and through job portals such as Devex.com and Monster.com. A few entry routes Be one of Medair’s “new relief workers.” Medair’s new relief worker program places “people who have never worked as relief workers before” in “chronic complex emergencies,” mainly hot spots such as Somalia, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Afghanistan. Robert Sandberg, U.S. national director for the faith-based organization, said prospective new relief workers should be “aligned with” Christian values, have at least one year of professional experience in a relevant field - particularly in health or administration - and must complete a one-week relief orientation course or ROC in Switzerland, where Medair is headquartered. “We want to use the application for the ROC as a screening process because we don’t want to mislead anyone,” he said. The ROC takes place in March, June and October. It comprises lectures and simulations on relief and development, humanitarian law, and the GenevaRed Cross/Red Crescent principles and code of conduct. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. Selected individuals are notified two months prior to their chosen session. In addition to covering traveling costs, each participant is required to pay a course fee of 500 euros ($730). “They are exposed to a lot of different things that they would encounter and they would need to know for the field as well,” Sandberg explained. “And that helps them to be better prepared in case they are going to a situation like Darfur in West Sudan, where it is a complex emergency that’s been going on and is a very unstable environment.” Over 90 percent of ROC participants are “green-lighted” as possible new relief workers with Medair, and stand the chance of gaining on-the-job training and mentoring. The year-long position comes with a $100 monthly allowance, health insurance, housing, food and local transport. “That’s the reason why we don’t do internships,” Sandberg explained. “We train all of our staff for close to about a month before they actually show up on the project location.” After the “volunteer or learning year” with Medair, some relief workers continue on as entry-level staff members and earn $1,000 a month; others pursue opportunities with other NGOs. Intern with the American Red Cross. The American Red Cross runs an annual internship program that consists of two segments: a nationwide summer presidential internship and semester internships with the agency’s international services department. Recruitment for fall internships generally starts in July, with assignments commencing in late August until mid-December. Application for spring internships opens in November, and successful candidates should expect to be engaged from mid- to late-June through early May. The application process for the 10-week presidential internship begins in April. Internships run from May to August or June to September. According to American Red Cross human resources chief Jonathan Markus, interviews may comprise two rounds: a phone interview and then an in-person interview “depending on geography.” Remuneration for the internships ranges from $12 to $15 per hour, he said. The actual rate, however, depends on the availability of funding, as well as the level and type of position. Some individuals have extended their internships for another semester, while others have gone on to secure entry-level positions within the organization. Depending on the organization’s funding base, ad hoc internship positions are also created to support specific programs or projects. All internship positions are listed on the American Red Cross job site. Apply as CRS international development fellow. Catholic Relief Services offers an annual fellowship program “for those interested in a long-term relief and development career,” said Jessica Sysak, the relief agency’s fellowship coordinator. “This opportunity is designed not as a year-long internship, but rather as a career path,” she added. Consequently, there is a lot of guidance and training with an emphasis on financial literacy and research acquisition. The 25-year-old program is geared toward master’s degree holders or second-year graduate students with U.S. work authorization and language competency in Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic. CRS also welcomes applications from individuals with a background in agriculture, health and microfinance as well as proposal writing, project design and implementation, and public relations skills. Sysak said the organization would also consider Bachelor of Arts degree holders with significant language skills and overseas experience amounting to at least six months. Demonstrated interest and community work are encouraged. The competitive program offers individuals the chance to start a career through program management positions. It receives about 350 applications every year, with the annual recruitment typically starting in September and closing on Dec. 1. All applications are submitted online. Once applications are reviewed, 60-70 applicants are invited to the organization’s Baltimore headquarters for in-person full-day meetings involving a panel interview and an essay-writing test. Candidates also get the chance to meet current fellows and staff workers, and learn more about the organization. Placement decisions are made in April, followed by a week-long orientation and paperwork processing at the end of July. In 2008, 26 placements were made. Fellows earn about $20,000 annually, which, according to Sysak, is enough to continue paying off student loans. Additional benefits include simple, furnished housing; vacation; evacuation coverage and medical insurance; and increased settling-in allowance for fellows with an attendant spouse or children. Sysak said the fellowship entails a scope of work that “is not unlike a program manager position, but is scaled down a bit.” Fellows generally spend 10 percent of their time in the office, and are in the field for about 30-40 percent of their total work hours. Some of their duties include writing proposals for grants, monitoring and evaluating projects, and instituting HIV/AIDS workplace programs. Read more of our humanitarian relief career stories: - Humanitarian relief jobs: What you need to know - Humanitarian relief: The ‘ideal’ job candidate - Humanitarian relief salaries: What you need to know - Top employers in humanitarian relief: A primer - Women in humanitarian relief: Challenges and myths - Humanitarian relief jobs: Resume and cover letter tips - 30-second checklist: Preparing for the field Read more career advice articles.