20 Free Or Low-Cost Professional Development Opportunities
Ah, the back-to-school energy around this time of year makes us eager to roll up our sleeves and learn, too! Consider these opportunities, events, and resources to advance your career this September.
Leadership, management, and entrepreneurship
Collaboration and community building
Special events from Idealist:
- Joining the board of directors of a nonprofit can boost your network and career while allowing you to give back to an organization you love. Learn the ins and outs in our free live chat Wednesday, September 4th at 1pm ET.
- Thinking about graduate school? Stop by a free graduate school fair! At a fair you can meet admission representatives from grad programs in fields such as social work, public policy, international affairs, education, and more. We're visiting 18 cities this fall, starting on Monday September 16th in NYC so click here to find a city near you.
- Each month the New York City chapter of the Nonprofit Technology Network offers workshops for nonprofits. These workshops take place in our office and are free to attend! Join us Wednesday, September 18th at 5:30pm to learn about how your organization can use text messaging to fulfill your mission.
Managing your career:
- Fast Company put together a series teaching you how to be successful at everything from public speaking lessons to mastering both sides of your brain. [Free, article]
- Do you possess the five must-have qualities of a modern employee? Use them as a template to grow at work this month. [Free, article]
- Invest time in developing your personal brand this month with personal-branding guru Dan Schwabel at Udemy. [$40, on-demand webinar]
- Need help discovering your purpose? Beach Cities Health District in Manhattan Beach, CA wants to help you develop your talents so you can help the world. Participate in their Volunteerism & Civic Engagement Fair and Power of Purpose Workshop on September 14th starting at 9AM. [$15, in-person workshop]
- Are you a recent graduate or an experienced professional transitioning to work with nonprofits for the first time? Join Donors Forum in Chicago on September 26th and 27th for Nonprofits 101: Introduction to being a nonprofit professional.
Leadership, management, and entrepreneurship
- If you're planning to start a nonprofit, you should check out this free, self-paced tutorial from the Foundation Center. [Free, on-demand presentation]
- Learn the best practices for project management with General Assembly. [$25, on-demand e-course]
- Need a little inspiration on how to become a better leader? Check out this series of Ted Talks on iTunesU. [Free, on-demand podcasts]
- Each year, the Nonprofit Association of Oregon offers a series of workshops that incorporates the most relevant topics facing the nonprofit sector. The first, on developing peer networks, takes place on September 18 at 1:30PM. [Sliding scale based on organization membership, in-person workshop]
- In Philadelphia? Learn what you can do to increase your organization's competitiveness and strengthen its financial health in the current economic climate with Regional Foundation Center on September 24th at 10AM.
Fundraising and marketing
- Already launched your nonprofit but need help branding and marketing? Head to CreatorUp for some help getting started. [$40, on-demand e-course]
- Maybe instead of watching how-tos, you want to create them? Sign up for this course on Skillshare. [$20, on-demand e-course]
- How can we use creative media to further our causes? Learn how in this podcast series from Creative Activism. [Free, on-demand podcast]
- Fundraisers and program managers don’t have to live in separate worlds. In fact, they shouldn’t. Sign up for this webinar from the Grant Professionals Association to learn more. [$60 if not a member, on-demand webinar]
Collaboration and community building
- Ready to increase your organization's impact through meaningful collaborations? Check out this free webinar from Nonprofit Webinars on Wednesday, September 18th at 3pm ET.
- How can communities come together to create new ways to address environmental issues? Join the Community Resilience webinar taking place Tuesday September 10th at 11am PDT. [Free, webinar]
- If you want more information about community organizing, NYU Wagner has a series of videos to help you get started. [Free, videos]
Bonus tip: If you're looking for more in person events, check out Idealist.org! Find more events near you by searching our site.
What's on your professional development agenda for this month?
By Aaron McCoy
This post was contributed by a guest author.