So you want to change the world by working for a non-governmental organization and you can’t exactly say you’ve ever been a “Sandalista,” or a Birkenstock-clad activist who spent college summers on reality tours to developing nations in solidarity with the poor and oppressed?
Is there any way to make your resume more “nonprofit-ish”? How do you show how your skills relate to important global causes and that you have the personality to segue from a corporate or government job?
In general, employers look for a clean, concise resume that highlights related job skills and is not so jam-packed with text that it loses the reader in the first 10 seconds. Nonprofit-style resumes need to strike that fine balance between business smarts and passion for a cause, and convey that in under two pages.
“You need to pack a punch with what you say because a lot of people that are reading your resume are doing so in addition to their other jobs,” said Margaret Christoph, senior administrative associate for policy and communications at InterAction, a coalition of 175 U.S.-based non-governmental organizations focusing on eradicating poverty worldwide.
