Expect to interview for a volunteer position as you would a job interview.

Do you need volunteer experience to qualify for a college or university program sometime next year?  Do not procrastinate!  It takes 6 months of volunteering 4 hours per week to accumulate 100 hours of experience!

A common misconception about volunteer work is that employers welcome “free labour” with open arms — that is, you can easily show up and start the next day.   Unfortunately it’s not always that easy.  Many organizations have a standard application and interview process for volunteering.  Some may take volunteers only on a seasonal basis.   And a lot of positions require a criminal record check, which can take up to 2 weeks to process.  Also, if the work is specialized, training may be involved.

Panicking? Don’t worry; here’s how you can avoid the pitfalls:

A job interview with a committee is very common with non-profits.

Joanne Fritz from About.com’s Nonprofit Charitable Orgs  posted a great blog about her experiences interviewing between non-profit organizations and for-profit companies. One of the differences she noticed:

Whenever I interviewed for a for-profit job, I usually interviewed with one person at a time, although I could end up talking with up to three people eventually. Sometimes I had an interview with the human resource person for an initial screening, then with the person to whom I would report, and, finally, sometimes with the department head or even the head of the company if it was a rather small one.  On the other hand, the first job interview I did with a nonprofit, which was a college, I found myself facing the “search committee.” That was pretty scary and very different. I had to impress several people and take questions that cut across multiple subject areas.

When I interviewed for my position at a non-profit society, I also faced a committee which included a department member and two managers. I was then asked for a second interview with the director of finance and deputy executive director. I didn’t find either of them excruciatingly difficult or intimidating, but I think a lot of that had to do with the office culture and the friendly, close work relationships between the interviewers. During the first interview, for example, they asked me if I could handle working with a “bunch of grandmas.” (Everyone in my department is basically planning or are on the brink of retirement.) The style of the interview and number of interviewers is definitely a factor, but office culture is a factor worth considering, as well.

Is it too late for Saab to bounce back and make it’s mark in the Canadian automotive market? When General Motors acquired Saab, Saab was pushed to the sidelines of the market and consequently lost a lot of its market share. Now in the midst of dwindling sales, well-publicized financial woes and a brand that continues to crumble, my team, Creative Copy, examines the once prestigious automaker and recommends a solution for Saab to become successful.

This presentation was put together by me and my wonderful team members in MKTG 1102 at BCIT. I designed the title card and layout in PowerPoint. The video above is a clip of my own speaking parts (introduction, company profile). It’s easily one of my proudest groups projects because everyone contributed and performed well during the presentation. And yes, we did get an A on it. =) I’m only in first year of my program but I’m looking forward to doing these types of projects. Its very rewarding ttcollaborative efforts succeed.