We Need Your Views on Graduate Capacity in the Nonprofit Sector 

Posted on 16 Apr 2021

2Into3 in conjunction with The Wheel invites you to participate in a quick poll to assess the current level of graduate recruitment in the sector, demand for graduate talent and what the existing barriers are for organisations in recruiting and developing graduates. Your input will benefit us greatly and will only take 2 minutes of your time.

Over the last 12 months, the nonprofit sector has continued to provide a wide array of essential services across society in Ireland while adapting to the fallout of the COVID-19 crisis. Although nonprofits continue to meet their core objectives, underlying stressors which existed pre-COVID-19 are having an impact on the sector.

There is also a need to provide opportunities for new graduates looking for an entry-point into employment in the sector, with youth unemployment levels currently standing at 59% as of March 2021.

Amongst the key challenges in our sector are recruitment and retention of staff along with insecurity and uncertainty of funding. Talented staff are critical for nonprofit organisations to achieve their objectives; however skills gaps exist across the sector in areas such as fundraising, IT, marketing, communications and HR. Combined with the uncertainty of funding for posts, this can create a difficult landscape for nonprofits to recruit, develop and retain talent.

Graduate programmes which involve the attraction and development of early-stage talent into organisations are commonplace in both the private and public sectors. State funding is currently available to organisations within these sectors, however no such funding currently exists for the nonprofit sector. Graduate programmes could address some of the sectors resourcing needs and develop a pipeline of future talent in addition to adding strategic capacity. It might also provide a bright alternative to young graduates who might otherwise have only a 40% chance of employment.  

Start the survey - https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KVVDLQJ

The information you provide will help to inform how graduate opportunities could be developed for a brighter future for all of us. Thanks for your time and feedback.