Membership Reseach Assistant
(Female, Age 29) from Washington, DC
This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 29 who works as a Membership Reseach Assistant in Washington, DC. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.
At a Glance
Current Job
Basic data on your current job
| Job Title | Membership Reseach Assistant |
|---|---|
| Salary | $33,000 |
| Other Compensation | None Set |
| Hours/Week | 37.5 |
| Company Size | (not answered) |
| Location | Washington, DC |
| Years Experience | 3 years |
Career Ratings
Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)
| Years in Career | 0 |
|---|---|
| Education | (not answered) |
| Income Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Interest Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Work-Life Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Fulfilment Rating | 0 / 10 |
Current job Q&A
Describe the type of organization you work for.
The non-profit I work at has approximately 20 people working there (it varies for instance in the summer we have interns). More specifically we deal with environmental issues. We are a small grassroots organization
Describe your job role and responsibilities.
I do prospect research which is research on potential donors. I also do research on our current members so that we have a better idea of the giving interests of the people who give to our organization. In addition I work a lot with our database and process credit cards.
Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
three weeks of vacation, four weeks of sick time, Carefirst health insurance and a 401K
Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
I feel that I am compensated adequately and it is within the normal range for the sector I am in
Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
Yes I work with others on a daily basis. I work with the two other assistants who have slightly different duties. I like that I get to interact with people
Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes
Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes
Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
I work with my supervisor on grant proposals and coming up with ideas for prospect research. I work with my coworkers on a wide variety of things, database management and technical things.
Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 5
Benefits: 6
Hours: 7
Co-Workers: 4
Supervisors: 2
Job Title: 8
Level of Responsibility: 3
The Actual Work: 1
A day in the life of…
Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:
| 5am to 6am | |
| 6am to 7am | |
| 7am to 8am | |
| 8am to 9am | |
| 9am to 10am | Arrive at work. Deal with call from tech support over our ongoing technical issue. Go into weekly meeting. |
| 10am to 11am | Weekly meeting lasts until about 10:15. Return to desk and start looking up phone numbers for supervisor. Then start doing research on current lists of prospects. |
| 11am to 12pm | Continue with the list of prospects and file information that has been collected. Second phone call of the day with technical support. Problem is finally resolved. Send email to Executive Director informing him of this development. |
| 12pm to 1pm | Enter the donor information into the Excel spreadsheet. Email boss the information that she wants. Receive email back. Take phone call from prospective donor. |
| 1pm to 2pm | Lunch break |
| 2pm to 3pm | Do the research that boss has asked me to do. This takes precedence over prospecting. Answer member phone calls. |
| 3pm to 4pm | Email boss back the information since boss is out of town and unable to check shared network drive. Look at campaign contributions for prospects. Add that to the information that we already have on them. |
| 4pm to 5pm | Process credit cards and finish the donor data entry. Ensure that the Excel file is neat and organized. Reply to co-worker’s email about the member query that was sent to me earlier. |
| 5pm to 6pm | Going home time! |
| 6pm to 7pm | |
| 7pm to 8pm | |
| 8pm to 9pm | |
| 9pm to 10pm | |
| 10pm to 11pm | |
| 11pm to 12am |
Table of Contents
How you got your job
How did you get your current job?
I found it on craigslist
What was the application process?
resume and cover letter
Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
I had one interview with the Executive Director and the then Development Associate. Then I was offered the job on the spot assuming my references checked out which they did.
If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
Why do you want this position? What qualifications do you think that you have for this position? Mostly the standard questions. I don’t really remember it was a blur.
Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes because I think that this is very much a learn by doing sort of position
Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
For the research part no. I was given a list of tools that would be helpful but it was very much a learning on the job type thing. For the database I was trained by the Membership Manager and go to her if I can’t figure something out.
Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Not really. I have a BA degree. I think it helped because it got people to look at my resume but my BA is in French so no.
If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
I would recommend first of all that they get some fundraising experience. This can be helping their college make phone calls to alumni, or just something like working in retail to get a feel for how customers act. Donors are just customers with another name.
What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
I think that it helps to be organized. It also helps to be able to feel comfortable with databases because there will be a fair amount of data entry and it is just easier that way. They have to be comfortable on the phone.
Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Not especially. I do know that there are a lot of places that would rather you have a BA but I am not sure that it is entirely necessary.
What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Take advantage of any opportunities that you have for training. Ask questions if you don’t know the answers. If you see something that needs improving feel free to do it.
Long-term career plans
Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
Yes. This was a step away from the admin positions so I think it is a plus.
What are your current career goals?
To end up as Director of Development.
Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
Prior work history
Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:
| Title | Length | Salary | Description | |
| Prior Job 1 | Admin Assistant | 1 year | 25000 | Answering the phones, making appointments and arranging travel for people.In charge of ordering supplies |
| Prior Job 2 | Receptionist | 1 year | 25000 | Same as above but for a smaller company |
Educational background
Please list your educational background:
High School GPA:4
| GPA | School | Degree | |
| College (Undergraduate) or Technical/Vocational |
3.75 | University of Virginia | French BA |
| Graduate or Professional (Masters or Doctorate) |
Ask a Question of this Mentor
This mentor has opted to receive questions from people interested in this career or job position. Please be respectful of their time and willingness to help. Include some basic relevant background so they can intelligently answer your question.