Overview

Feeling lost in your conservation job hunt? Want to work in conservation, but don’t know where to start? Get your career on track in 2018 with the Kick-starter online training for Early Career Conservationists designed to help you understand the job market, to navigate your career options, and to get hired more quickly.

Whether you’re at university and planning your next steps, a graduate in the job hunt or working in an unrelated job but interested to switch into conservation, this course is designed to help you.

With wildlife in crisis all around the world and numbers of threatened species at an all-time high, the natural world needs your help. The good news is there are a growing number of jobs available in conservation – it’s become a professional industry requiring a diverse and growing range of skill sets. The bad news is it’s more competitive than ever before, with 92% of conservationists confirming that it’s become tougher to get a job in the last decade alone.

This unique online course has been designed to increase your chances of success, and is being specially organised and run by Conservation Careers.

Who is the course designed for?

The course is designed for early career conservationists. This includes under-graduates, graduates (inc. Masters and PhD students), along with people looking to switch into conservation from a totally different sector. If you want to start working in wildlife conservation, or just would like to know more about what’s involved, this is the course for you.

Timetable

The course has been based on the experience of hundreds of professional conservationists, from around the world, who have shared their advice with the Conservation Careers team. Over eight weeks you’ll cover the following through online modules:

Theme Module / Session Contents Release Date Commitment needed
WELCOME 1 – Welcome Group Skypes A welcome group Skype to meet Conservation Careers and your fellow classmates, introduce yourself, and ask any questions before the course starts. Mon. 19th Feb 1:00 hour
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GETTING CLEAR

2 – The Conservation Industry Overview – You’ll get an overview of the rapidly growing sector, the main employer types, top employers, and different job types. You will also learn which jobs are most popular, abundant and where the biggest opportunities lie. We’ll also look at industry trends. 

Presentation – Covering (i) Employer types, (ii) Jobs types, (iii) Trends. One hour. 

Task – Employer Decision Matrix. 30 minutes.

Mon. 26th Feb 1:30 hours
3 – Self-Assessment Overview – During this module you’ll better understand yourself, to identify the job(s) which are going to be best suited to you. This gives you the best chances of success – because having a niche is key today to being competitive. In this session you’ll explore different important aspects of what makes you, you. Through some structured self-reflection you’ll learn some important lessons for your career planning and job hunt. 

Presentation – Covering the importance of (i) Skills & flow, (ii) Knowledges. 30 minutes. 

Tasks – (i) Identify your flow patterns, (ii) Identify your favourite knowledges. 1 – 3 hours.

Mon. 5th Mar 1:30 – 3:30 hours (depending on how fast you complete the tasks)
4 – Finding Your Niche Overview – This is an important session which lays the foundations for a successful job hunt. By now you’ll have learnt a lot about yourself during the self-reflection which you can use to help identify the right career path for you. In this module you’re going to give your ideal job a name. 

Presentation – An introduction to this very practical session. 15 minutes. 

Tasks – (i) Brainstorm (longlist), (ii) Broadcast (longlist), (iii) Review (shortlist)

Mon. 12th Mar 2:00 hours
GETTING EXPEREINCED 5 – Getting Experienced & The Job Hunt Overview – This week we’ll help you to figure out what skills, education and experiences you’ll need to get your chosen role(s). By now you have a clearer idea of the job you’d like to aim for having undertaken the exercises outlined in the earlier modules. You may have also asked for help to answer some specific questions you may have had. Now it’s time to get tooled-up for your chosen career. We also cover a detailed review of how to find and monitor jobs online; stopping your dream job from slipping you by. 

Presentation – Covering: Getting educated, Volunteering your way to conservation success, The five golden rules of internship success, Job Boards, Google Alerts, Employer sites, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, To apply or not to apply?! 

Tasks – No task this week.

Mon. 19th Mar 1:00 hour
GETTING HIRED 6 – How to apply for a conservation job Overview – SO many people mess up at the application stage … and this week you’ll learn (i) how to write a winning curriculum vitae, (ii) how to write the perfect covering letter and (iii) ten steps for applying for a conservation job. 

Presentation – Covering: Example (Save the Rhino), A typical job description, How to write a winning curriculum vitae, How to write the perfect covering letter, Ten steps for applying for a conservation job 

Tasks – CV Review, Become a recruiter.

Mon. 26th March. 2:00 hours
7 – Being great at interviews Overview – This week we’ll cover all the key aspects of preparing for, and delivering, a great interview. 

Presentation – Covering: Competency-based interviews, Questions and answers, The big day, Interview nerves, Skype & phone interviews. 

Tasks – Practice interviews.

Mon. 2nd April 2:00 hours
  8 – Top Tips in your Conservation Job Hunt Overview – This final module is a best of the rest week. 

Presentation – Covering important topics and themes that will help to increase your chances of career success in the conservation sector. 

Tasks – No task this week.

Mon. 9th April 30 mins.
CLOSE Course ends Everyone who completed the course receives a certificate. Mon. 16th April
   

Total commitment – 11:30 – 13:30 hours over eight weeks.

Duration & Commitment

The course will last for eight weeks in total – covering one module per week. The time commitment varies each week (1 – 2 hours per week on average). See the timetable above for fuller details. All you need is an internet connection.

Date

The course is planned to start in the week commencing Monday 19th February and closes on Monday 16th April.

Costs

The cost for the course is £149. This includes a six month Lion membership to Conservation Careers (worth £22.45). Everyone who completed the course receives a certificate, and spaces are limited to 30 students. If you’re not 100% happy, we offer a money back guarantee.

Feedback from the first course:

  • Satisfaction rating (out of 28 participants) – 100%!
  • Recommendation rating (out of 28 participants) – 100%!

What people said about the Kick-starter for early careers conservationists

  • “Incredibly thought-provoking, empowering, helpful!”
  • “It set my mind at ease about the upcoming job search. I certainly feel less intimidated by the process.”
  • “It gives you all the info you need about applying for conservation jobs, and most importantly which ones you are best suited for/which ones will make you happiest!”
  • “Conservation-focussed, interactive and really pertinent information.”
  • “Good tips for the job hunt.”
  • “Engaging, particularly in the methods finding the ideal jobs – The mind map creation and involvement/contribution from other people really made potential ideas previously overlooked seem a real potential!”
  • “Overall, reigniting my enthusiasm for searching for a conservation job.”
  • “The encouragement to pursue a career suited to each individual.”
  • “Having support staff directly available, networking opportunities, filling big gaps in knowledge, super helpful with CV & interview improvement.”
  • “It’s a great way to learn more the conservation sector and gain valuable skills.”
  • “I thought the self-reflection approach was really useful in help us gain a clearer idea about what career we are suited for and encouraged us to consider things we had not previously thought of.”
  • “Structured clear and concise advice. Resources shown. Real world examples and good interactive sessions.”
  • “Informative about the industry and applicable to the whole audience. Really loved the personal exploration exercises. Some useful tips for job hunting that I will definitely use in the future.”
  • “It was a clearly laid out and well-paced progression through the process of gaining employment.”

Register your interest

To register your interest please use the form below. Spaces are very limited, and you’ll be contacted soon if you’ve been successful in securing a place.

About Conservation Careers

We are the #1 careers advice centre for conservationists – helping over 15,000 conservationists in 175 countries across the globe. We believe that all wildlife is beautiful, and that it deserves great conservationists working to protect it. We have extensive international knowledge, experience and a network of contacts within the conservation career sector. This means that we can help job seekers and conservation organisations to form lasting relationships. We do this by providing careers advice and information to a network of dedicated conservationists across the globe.

Contact Us

If you have any questions or queries, please contact us at mail@conservation-careers.com