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.:Resource Guides:Interviews-Lori Bezahler.
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Interviews
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Advice
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What books, magazines, periodicals, websites or other materials should people read to learn more about this field? |
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For info on foundations, try the local/regional association of grantmakers. However, my best advice for someone who wants to work in a foundation would be to develop content knowledge in a specific area and think about why working in the field of
philanthropy would offer the opportunity to have an impact in some way. For me, this has been the ability to push for a social justice agenda, particularly as it relates to education.
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What questions would you ask of someone who wants to do this work? |
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What do you think needs to change and why? Why do you think working in a foundation will enable you to move that change forward?
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In what kinds of jobs can recent college graduates have the most impact in your field? |
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In social change, I believe that working locally in some grassroots context is the first step toward working for social change from a "bottom up" perspective. This could be in a community organization in the states or overseas,
depending upon the person's interest. For foundation work, I think that first jobs should be in the content area, rather than entry level foundation jobs such as grants manager, etc. While there are undoubtedly exceptions to this, people who have never been on
the grantseeking end of the equation can have a different perception of the interactions and processes and may not be as sensitive to the realities of the nonprofit.
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What are the major trends and/or key issues in your field? |
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Social change philanthropy has grown over the past decade. There are foundations that now approach the issue of social justice and human rights from numerous perspectives, from movement building to community development to education
to globalization, etc.
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What forms of support and/or advice have you found most valuable (mentoring, trainings, professional development, attending conferences, etc.)? |
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Personal relationships, either one-time interactions or mentoring over time, have been the most valuable for me.
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What is a common or tough interview question a candidate in your field should be prepared to answer? |
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What do you imagine it would be like to work in a foundation?
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What other advice would you give people who want to do this work? |
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Get experience in the field and develop a personal analysis of the problem you want to work on before expecting to work in a foundation. It will make you a much more effective grantmaker.
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