Frequently Asked Questions
General Support Questions
- For what types of positions does Commongood Careers recruit?
- What is Commongood Careers’ role in the hiring process?
- How can I utilize Commongood Careers as a resource in my job search?
- How does the Commongood Careers application process work?
- Why do you want to know where I found out about the position?
- What do you do with my resume once it’s in your database? Is my information secure?
- What do you look for in a resume and cover letter?
- Why do I have to submit a cover letter?
- Why do you ask for the text of my resume in a separate box if I am already uploading my resume?
- I was invited to a phone interview with Commongood Careers. How should I prepare?
- Can I come to your office for an in-person interview for the position that I applied to?
- I thought that I was qualified for the job that I applied to, but I did not move forward in the process. Can I receive some feedback?
- I received an email stating that I’d hear back regarding my candidacy within a week, but haven’t heard anything. What should I do?
- I had a phone interview with Commongood Careers, but have not yet heard from the hiring organization. What should I do?
Technical Support Questions
- I clicked on the link for the job I want to apply to, but it keeps taking me to the general application page. What does this mean?
- What should I do if I can’t remember my password?
- What should I do if I can’t enter a state of residence on the application page?
- I use Microsoft Word 2007. Why won’t the system accept my resume or cover letter?
- When I enter my password, the system tells me it is not long enough. What should I do?
- I sent my resume and cover letter by email, but it bounced back. What should I do?
- I’m having a technical problem that is not answered by the above information. What should I do?
General Support Questions
Q: For what types of positions does Commongood Careers recruit?
A: Commongood Careers works with innovative nonprofits across the country to support their recruiting and hiring at every organizational level and across every functional area, including finance, operations, development, marketing, human resources, program and general management.
Q: What is Commongood Careers’ role in the hiring process?
A: Commongood Careers works in close partnership with our hiring organizations whose staff members and/or Board of Directors make the final hiring decision. Commongood Careers manages all recruiting for these positions, screens all resumes and cover letters and conducts phone interviews with the strongest candidates for each position.
Q: How can I utilize Commongood Careers as a resource in my job search?
A: There are a number of ways that Commongood Careers can serve as a valuable resource in your job search. Our Knowledge Center contains articles written by our staff and partner organizations that address a range of issues relating to the nonprofit search process. We add new articles regularly and are happy to consider specific topics if you have any additional suggestions.
For those seeking a more personalized and in-depth level of support, Commongood Careers offers fee-based, one-on-one career advising and resume writing services.
Q: How does the Commongood Careers application process work?
A: The first step for every candidate is to apply for an open position. You can see our full list of available opportunities in the Job Listings section of our website. Commongood Careers carefully reviews every application that we receive and if we determine that your application is among the best fitting in the candidate pool, we will invite you to participate in a phone interview. The phone interview generally lasts about 30 minutes, during which time we will discuss your background, experience, and core competencies.
Following the phone interview, if we determine that your candidacy is among the strongest in the pool, we will pass your application to the hiring organization. Each candidate is notified within approximately 2 weeks after the phone interview about the next steps in the interview process, which are unique for each position and hiring organization.
For a step-by-step description of the application process, please visit the What to Expect section of our website.
Q: Why do you want to know where I found out about the position?
A: Commongood Careers is strategic about our recruitment efforts, so knowing where you first found out about the position helps us track the effectiveness of our recruiting techniques.
Q: What do you do with my resume once it’s in your database? Is my information secure?
A: Unless instructed otherwise by an individual jobseeker, Commongood Careers holds the resumes and cover letters of all applicants who apply for specific positions, or join the general talent pool, in our secure and private internal database. Only Commongood Careers staff members have access to this database, and our staff may contact you directly to invite you to apply for positions that fit with your background and experience. Your privacy is important to us. We never share your resume with a third-party, other than the organization(s) to which you have applied. For more information, please review our Privacy Policy.
Q: What do you look for in a resume and cover letter?
A: Overall, Commongood Careers’ hiring organizations look for strong writing skills, attention to detail, organization and clarity when reading through application materials. More specifically, we strongly encourage you to use your cover letter as an opportunity to share your unique connection to the mission of the organization and describe how your skills and experience fit the requirements of the role for which you are applying. For some friendly advice on how to structure your resume and cover letter, please check out these articles from our Knowledge Center: Writing a Winning Cover Letter and Ten Resume Tips for Nonprofit Jobseekers.
Q: Why do I have to submit a cover letter?
Commongood Careers requires that all candidates who are applying for a specific position upload a cover letter pertaining to that particular position. Cover letters are often the first opportunity that you have to communicate with your prospective employer and can offer valuable insight into your background, experience and unique qualifications for the position. Additionally, they give you an opportunity to demonstrate your strong writing skills!
For more advice on how to structure your resume and cover letter, please check out these articles from our Knowledge Center: Writing a Winning Cover Letter and Ten Resume Tips for Nonprofit Jobseekers.
Q: Why do you ask for the text of my resume in a separate box if I am already uploading my resume?
A: Our database allows us to search for candidates based on keywords within the content of their resumes. In order for us to find candidates who might be a fit with one of our open positions, we need the text of your resume to be pasted into that box, as formatted attachments cannot be searched while a stream of unformatted text in a text box can be searched by our system.
Q: I was invited to a phone interview with Commongood Careers. How should I prepare?
A: Your first round phone interview with Commongood Careers should last approximately 30 minutes, depending on the position and the organization. The goal of this conversation is to get a better sense of your fit for the role. We highly encourage you to research the organization so you are familiar with its mission, programs, senior leadership and financial information, and be prepared to discuss how your background and experience meets the requirement of the position. For more information on how to prepare, you may wish to read our article, The Art of the Phone Interview.
Q: Can I come to your office for an in-person interview for the position that I applied to?
A: Commongood Careers does not conduct in-person interviews. All first round interviews conducted by Commongood Careers take place over the phone at a time mutually agreeable time between the candidate and Commongood Careers.
Q: I thought that I was qualified for the job that I applied to, but I did not move forward in the process. Can I receive some feedback?
A: We regret that due to the confidential nature of our relationship with our hiring organizations, we cannot provide specific feedback to applicants regarding the searches we manage.
If you are interested in receiving personalized and in-depth feedback on your application materials, interview skills, or other aspects of the job search, Commongood Careers offers fee-based, one-on-one career advising services. Please note that while these services are designed to support your job search generally, they will not provide you with any specific advocacy or any other special advantages in your pursuit of specific searches being managed by Commongood Careers.
Q: I received an email stating that I’d hear back regarding my candidacy within a week, but haven’t heard anything. What should I do?
A: Commongood Careers makes every effort to communicate with candidates as quickly as possible, regardless of the decision about your candidacy. However, there are instances where follow-up will take a bit longer, should there be an overwhelming response to a particular job posting. We thank you in advance for your patience.
You may also wish to check your email spam filter for our messages and ensure that the domain “@commongoodcareers.org” is “white listed” as an approved sender in your account.
Q: I had a phone interview with Commongood Careers, but have not yet heard from the hiring organization. What should I do?
A: Our clients are incredibly busy, so we do ask that you try to be patient. However, if it has been more than 2 weeks and you have not heard back from either Commongood Careers or our hiring organization, please feel free to follow up with the Commongood Careers staff member you interviewed with. Additionally, if something in your job search changes, for example you have received another offer or you are moving to a different city, we encourage you to reach out to us quickly so that we can communicate that message to the hiring organization.
Technical Support Questions
Q: I clicked on the link for the job I want to apply to, but it keeps taking me to the general application page. What does this mean?
A: This generally means that the position that you are applying for has already been filled. Please know that we do our best to remove Job Listings as quickly as possible when a position is no longer available, but some postings may remain on the Internet longer than others.
Q: What should I do if I can’t remember my password?
A: From the login screen of the online application portal, please click Forgot your password? Your password will then be emailed to you.
Q: What should I do if I can’t enter a state of residence on the application page?
A: In the browser address bar at the top of your screen, first check to see if there is a “.” (period) at the end of the URL that you are using, and if so, please delete it. Then, click the refresh icon at the top of your screen. The state of residence field should now work properly. We apologize for this glitch in our application system.
Q: I use Microsoft Word 2007. Why won’t the system accept my resume or cover letter?
A: We are currently upgrading our system to work more smoothly with documents created with Microsoft Word 2007 that are saved as .docx. Until this upgrade is complete, please convert your documents to an older version of Microsoft Word before uploading your resume or cover letter. This can be done by selecting “save as” in the document, and then selecting “Word 1997-2003”.
Q: When I enter my password, the system tells me it is not long enough. What should I do?
A: Please email your first name, last name, and email address to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). We will assign and email you a new password.
Q: I sent my resume and cover letter by email, but it bounced back. What should I do?
A: Please check to make sure that you did not send an email to a web address. Most of the application instructions for the positions listed on our website contain a link to our application portal. Please click on this link or paste it into an Internet browser, after which you will be able to create an account and then upload your resume and cover letter directly through our system.
Q: I’m having a technical probli that is not answered by the above information. What should I do?
A: In order for us to troubleshoot your particular technical problem, please email a description of the probli to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
