Inside the ideal candidate profile: What animal advocacy nonprofits look for

Discover the key characteristics of successful candidates and learn how to stand out in the animal advocacy space

At Animal Advocacy Careers, our mission is to help animal advocates find impactful roles, such as within organisations focused on farmed animals.

We conducted research on our most successful candidate placements at animal advocacy nonprofits, and are excited to share our findings with you!

Our analysis of these profiles reveals key traits and backgrounds of successful candidates. This article will help you identify the key characteristics, experiences, and skills that align best with the needs of animal advocacy organisations and could enhance your chances of being hired.

You can find detailed information about our research and analysis methods, along with a document containing more in-depth data visualisations in the form of graphs and tables, below.

Demographics of the candidates analysed

Location

While we have some representation across 14 countries, including Germany, India, and Brazil, the concentration of roles in the US (9 roles) and UK (6 roles) reflects the prevalence of opportunities in these regions.

Key trends among successful candidates

The impact of volunteer experience

• Volunteer experience seems to play a significant role in securing roles within animal advocacy. Our data shows that 64% of placements had some form of volunteer experience, with 48% specifically in animal advocacy.

• While volunteer experience appears to positively influence job placement, it doesn’t seem to impact how quickly candidates secure a role (average of 7.1 years of work experience before securing a role for those with volunteering experience in animal advocacy, compared to 6.5 years for those without).

Volunteering shows commitment and helps build relevant skills and networks. While it may not speed up the job search, it often makes candidates more competitive in the animal advocacy sector. If you’re considering volunteering in animal advocacy to start helping animals, build your skills, and enhance your profile, we have this volunteering page you can check out.

Familiarity with Effective Altruism

• 66% of our successful placements had some level of familiarity with the effective altruism (EA) movement. However, this doesn’t necessarily imply that EA knowledge is crucial for securing a role in animal advocacy. AAC’s early stages likely attracted a broader audience from EA sources due to its connection with Charity Entrepreneurship (CE), a well-known incubator within the EA movement.
• 12% of the placements discovered AAC through the EA network, with an additional 6% through CE. According to our organisational survey, EA knowledge is generally not a key hiring factor. However, it can be advantageous for roles within organisations more closely aligned with the EA movement, particularly those that seek to elevate animal advocacy within the broader EA community or focus on multiple cause areas, including animal advocacy.

Educational background

Level of education

Most successful placements had a degree, with 61% holding a bachelor’s and 27% a master’s. Advanced degrees, including one with a Master’s + Juris Doctor and two PhDs were less common.

Average years to get a job in animal advocacy per level of education

On average, those with a bachelor’s degree took around 9 years of work experience before securing a role in animal advocacy, while those with a master’s degree took about 8 years. Candidates with higher degrees, such as a PhD, generally found roles more quickly, averaging 3 years of work experience.? It’s important to note that candidates with higher degrees pursued programmes specifically related to animals. This suggests that relevant studies matter more than the degree level itself.

Field of education: how your degree might affect your path in animal advocacy

The most common degrees among those placed in animal advocacy roles through AAC were related to Marketing/Communications/Journalism and Psychology/Sociology/Philosophy. Candidates with degrees in these areas generally took longer to secure a role, averaging around 11 years of work experience before landing a job in animal advocacy.

In contrast, candidates with degrees in animal-related fields found roles faster, with 2 to 4 years of experience. While a variety of educational backgrounds can lead to a career in animal advocacy nonprofits, animal-related degrees often provide a quicker path.

Work Experience

Years of work experience & career capital

Average years to get a job in animal advocacy per job category

The graph highlights the various job categories of individuals who successfully transitioned into animal advocacy roles and their average years of work experience before securing these positions.

? Project/Program Management: This category has the shortest average work experience before securing an animal advocacy role, at 3 years. This suggests that experience in project or program management can potentially lead to quicker transitions into animal advocacy.

? Fundraising: Fundraising roles take the longest on average, with 9 years of experience before securing a job in animal advocacy. Despite the lengthy path to securing fundraising roles, there is a current talent shortage in this area within the animal advocacy movement.

? Leadership and Human Resources: Both categories show a longer average experience period of 10 to 12 years. This suggests that leadership and HR roles may take longer to transition into, potentially because they require broader experience or expertise.

? Marketing: With an average of 7 years, marketing roles align relatively closely with the overall average.

? Operations: This category shows the highest average experience at 22 years, which might reflect the complexity and seniority often associated with operations roles.

Career capital: why your career experience counts

Securing a role in animal advocacy may take time, but every step you take brings you closer to making a meaningful impact. Building your experience and career capital is a journey worth investing in. Every skill you develop and every connection you make adds value to your future role protecting animals. Discover which roles and skills are most needed in animal advocacy organisations below, and focus on building those skills. This will boost your chances of getting hired and increase your impact, as those skills are in need.

Field of experience: How different backgrounds influence job search duration

• Longer transition for common fields: Roles in marketing/communications and fundraising, which are among the most common, tend to take longer to secure, averaging 10 and 7 years of work experience respectively. This aligns with the broader trend of longer transitions in similar fields of education.
• Specialised fields: Areas like research and education, though less common, often lead to quicker transitions, averaging 3 to 5 years. This suggests that specialised expertise can facilitate a faster entry into animal advocacy roles.
• Impact of experience: Fields with longer transition times, such as operations and fundraising, may require additional experience or strategic positioning to enhance chances of securing a role.

Field of experience in relation to new job field

?? Most of the placements were in fields different from the candidates’ original study or work experience.

The animal advocacy sector offers high flexibility, as most skills are broadly applicable across different functions.

Expertise in areas such as project/program management, marketing, and operations proves versatile, enabling candidates to move into various positions, from fundraising and leadership to HR and research. This demonstrates that many skills are not only valuable in their original contexts but also adaptable to multiple roles within animal advocacy, stressing the need to recognise and market your transferable skills effectively.

Transferable skills are crucial in animal advocacy, often bridging the gap between different fields and roles. To identify your transferable skills, reflect on your past experiences—whether in education, marketing, or law—and consider how those skills apply to the needs of animal advocacy. By recognising and showcasing these abilities, you can pivot effectively into impactful roles, even if your background isn’t directly in animal welfare.

What are the roles organisations find harder to hire for?

Some roles are much easier to fill in organisations than others. This means that if you have the skills to help in these harder areas, you can have a really great impact on the animal advocacy movement.

Not all jobs that help animals are nonprofit jobs

We know you’re passionate about helping animals — the good news is that you don’t need a nonprofit job to make a significant impact. You might not even need to change your current career path. Consider roles that influence animal welfare laws or supply chains. Look into positions with higher salaries that allow you to donate more to animal nonprofits.

Our movement thrives on diversity, with advocates needed in every sector of society. We’re here to help you find your path. Explore the resources below to discover various career options and identify what suits you best.

Explore adjacent roles: Don’t overlook roles outside traditional nonprofits. Many positions in other sectors can significantly impact animal advocacy.

Support animals in your current job: If you’re not in an animal advocacy role, you can still contribute. Consider donating part of your income to animal charities—it’s a powerful way to make a difference as you work toward a direct advocacy role.

For instance, when we asked organisations in our talent bottleneck survey about where they would like to direct animal advocates outside of the nonprofit sector, these were the most common responses:?

1. Government/civil service

2. Leadership positions in food corporations

Still not sure where to start?

• Ask your peers: Join our Slack space to connect with other professionals who are also navigating their careers in animal advocacy. Share experiences, ask questions, and find support in a like-minded community.
• Ask our team: Apply for a career advising call to get personalised guidance tailored to your goals and interests.

You have the power to make a difference. Trust in your ability to create change for animals, wherever you are in your career.

To get inspired, you can check out some of our success stories of candidates who found their place in the movement.

Research methodology and data visualisation

How we investigated successful candidate profiles

To understand what contributes to a successful placement, we conducted interviews with candidates who secured jobs through AAC. We explored how our services supported their journey and what motivated them to apply. Additionally, we reviewed their LinkedIn profiles to assess their work experience and volunteering history, helping us identify the key factors behind their success.

For a more in-depth understanding, we concentrated on 33 of our most successful placements, all with nonprofits. Through this process, we employed both statistical analysis—looking at patterns in job roles, educational backgrounds, and the time it took to secure positions—and qualitative insights—examining interview responses to identify common motivations, challenges, and success factors.

Finally, we categorised the data into key themes, such as career backgrounds and volunteering experiences, to highlight the traits that consistently led to successful placements.

Feel free to connect with us if you’d like to discuss this topic!

You can download below a file with all the graphs:

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