Application Guide

How to Apply for Development Manager

at Family Education Trust

🏢 About Family Education Trust

Family Education Trust is a mission-driven organization focused on family policy advocacy, making it unique for candidates passionate about social issues affecting families. Working here offers the opportunity to directly contribute to shaping public discourse and policy while operating remotely in a part-time capacity, ideal for those seeking meaningful work with flexible arrangements.

About This Role

As Development Manager, you'll build FET's income growth function from the ground up, focusing on establishing major donor and mid-value programs while managing a trusts and foundations pipeline. This role is impactful because you'll directly enable FET's mission by securing unrestricted funding and developing sustainable fundraising capacity, with minimal administrative overhead.

💡 A Day in the Life

A typical day involves strategic donor outreach to build the new major donor pipeline, researching and preparing trusts and foundations proposals, and developing systems to streamline fundraising operations—all while working remotely. You'll balance relationship cultivation with capacity-building activities, focusing on sustainable income growth rather than administrative tasks.

🚀 Application Tools

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Interview Prep

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🎯 Who Family Education Trust Is Looking For

  • Has recent, hands-on fundraising experience in mission-led organizations, specifically with building (not just maintaining) income streams
  • Possesses proven experience establishing and managing major donor pipelines, not just participating in existing ones
  • Demonstrates specific competence with trusts and foundations fundraising, including pipeline development and stewardship
  • Shows genuine personal alignment with FET's established public positions on family policy, not just general interest in non-profit work

📝 Tips for Applying to Family Education Trust

1

Quantify your 'building' experience: provide specific metrics showing how you grew income (e.g., 'increased major donor revenue by 40% in 18 months by establishing new pipeline')

2

Explicitly reference FET's public positions on family policy in your application to demonstrate genuine alignment

3

Highlight remote fundraising experience or strategies, given this is a remote position

4

Emphasize your experience with streamlined operations, as the role specifically mentions minimized administrative responsibilities

5

Provide examples of developing fundraising capacity (systems, processes, teams) rather than just executing fundraising activities

✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter

['Your specific experience building income streams (not maintaining existing ones) with concrete examples', "How your personal values align with FET's mission and established positions on family policy", 'Your approach to establishing new fundraising programs (major donor and mid-value) from scratch', 'Experience balancing income growth with donor relationship management in a streamlined operational environment']

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🔍 Research Before Applying

To stand out, make sure you've researched:

  • → FET's specific public positions on family policy (available on their website/publications) to understand their advocacy focus
  • → Their current funding model and public supporters to identify gaps and opportunities for growth
  • → Recent campaigns or publications to understand their communication style and priorities
  • → The competitive landscape of family policy organizations to understand FET's unique positioning

💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics

Based on this role, you may be asked about:

1 Walk us through how you would establish FET's first major donor program from zero to operational
2 How do you personally align with our public positions on family policy, and how would this inform your donor communications?
3 Describe your most successful trusts and foundations pipeline development experience and the specific strategies you employed
4 How would you approach building income growth function remotely in a part-time capacity?
5 Share an example where you built fundraising capacity (systems, processes) that created durable results beyond your tenure
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⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Focusing on general non-profit fundraising experience without specific examples of building (not maintaining) income
  • Failing to demonstrate knowledge of or alignment with FET's specific family policy positions
  • Emphasizing administrative or operational experience when the role specifically seeks streamlined responsibilities

📅 Application Timeline

This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.

Typical hiring timeline:

1

Application Review

1-2 weeks

2

Initial Screening

Phone call or written assessment

3

Interviews

1-2 rounds, usually virtual

✓

Offer

Congratulations!

Ready to Apply?

Good luck with your application to Family Education Trust!

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