{"id":1628,"date":"2020-03-03T11:30:31","date_gmt":"2020-03-03T11:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/2020\/12\/23\/how-to-start-your-career-in-the-social-sector\/"},"modified":"2025-11-10T14:22:40","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T08:52:40","slug":"how-to-start-your-career-in-the-social-sector","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/kn-in\/how-to-start-your-career-in-the-social-sector\/","title":{"rendered":"How to start your career in the social sector"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s hard being a young person in India looking to join the social impact space. You think about it for a long time, and after much thought, you decide this is really what you want to do. Your peers, your parents, even your neighbour’s uncle, try to dissuade you. You argue, reason, and finally just ignore them all. The greater challenge though, is when you start looking for that first job in the sector.<\/p>

Over the past five years, we have spoken to more than 200 young people who’ve wanted to do something impactful, but were confused about how to go ahead with it. We have had similar experiences, taking the corporate route at McKinsey for a few years, before joining the nonprofit space by working at SEWA<\/a> and Pratham<\/a>. In this article, we have tried to draw on our experiences to put together a guide for young people looking to work in the social sector.<\/p>

If you are between zero and three years out of undergraduate college and looking to explore the nonprofit space for at least a few years, some of the information below might be helpful.<\/p>

\"What<\/a><\/div>

Related article: Finding your social purpose<\/strong><\/a><\/p>

The different types of organisations that are part of the social impact space<\/h3>

There are four main types of organisations in the space. You might move among these during your career.<\/p>

1. On the ground practitioners<\/div>