Application Guide
How to Apply for Field Organizer
at United Today, Stronger Tomorrow
🏢 About United Today, Stronger Tomorrow
United Today, Stronger Tomorrow is unique as a community power building hub specifically focused on rural and remote areas in the Upper Mid- and Mountain West and Alaska, working to restore trust in democracy through distributive organizing. Unlike traditional political organizations, UTST builds from the ground up by developing local leadership rather than imposing top-down solutions, making it ideal for someone passionate about authentic community engagement in conservative rural settings.
About This Role
As a Field Organizer, you'll identify and recruit rural community members for research activities (surveys, focus groups, one-on-ones) and conduct follow-up conversations to identify potential leaders for UTST's work. This role is impactful because you'll directly contribute to building the next generation of rural leaders and gathering crucial insights that shape democracy-building initiatives in underserved communities.
💡 A Day in the Life
A typical day involves conducting 5-10 phone/Zoom assessment conversations with rural community members, meticulously tracking insights in UTST's database, following up with previous research participants to identify leadership potential, and coordinating with team members on focus group logistics for remote communities. You'll balance relationship maintenance with new outreach while ensuring all interactions respect local contexts and build toward long-term community leadership development.
🚀 Application Tools
🎯 Who United Today, Stronger Tomorrow Is Looking For
- An exceptional active listener who can accurately reflect back what rural community members share and hold sensitive information with discretion
- Someone genuinely comfortable and respectful engaging with conservative rural stakeholders including elected officials, business owners, faith leaders, and law enforcement
- Highly organized with proven ability to track data systematically while managing 100-300 relationships and assessing people's underlying motivations
- Patient and persistent communicator who can conduct 50-80 assessment calls plus 10-20 deeper conversations monthly while maintaining authentic connections
📝 Tips for Applying to United Today, Stronger Tomorrow
Highlight specific experience working in or with conservative rural communities - name the states/regions and types of stakeholders you've engaged
Quantify your relationship management experience (e.g., 'managed 200+ stakeholder relationships' or 'conducted 150+ assessment conversations')
Demonstrate your active listening skills by describing a specific technique you use to reflect back what people say during conversations
Show you understand distributive organizing by explaining how you've helped communities develop their own leadership rather than leading for them
Include any experience with rural research methodologies like focus group recruitment or community-based participatory research
✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter
['Your genuine respect for and understanding of conservative rural communities in the Upper Mid- and Mountain West/Alaska regions', "Specific examples of how you've practiced active listening and relationship tracking in previous organizing or community work", 'Why distributive organizing (building local leadership) resonates with you more than traditional top-down approaches', 'Your ability to handle the volume requirements (100-300 contacts, 50-80 assessments) while maintaining quality engagement']
Generate Cover Letter →🔍 Research Before Applying
To stand out, make sure you've researched:
- → Study UTST's distributive organizing model versus traditional community organizing - understand how they build local leadership capacity
- → Research the specific challenges facing rural communities in the Upper Mid- and Mountain West (states like Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Alaska)
- → Look into UTST's previous research initiatives to understand their approach to community-based research
- → Explore how UTST navigates working in conservative areas while promoting democratic engagement
💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics
Based on this role, you may be asked about:
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using urban-centric or condescending language about rural communities (avoid terms like 'flyover states' or assumptions about rural values)
- Focusing only on your speaking/persuasion skills without emphasizing listening and relationship-building abilities
- Applying with a generic political organizing background without demonstrating specific experience with conservative rural stakeholders
- Failing to address the logistical challenges of remote work while engaging geographically dispersed rural communities
📅 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:
Application Review
1-2 weeks
Initial Screening
Phone call or written assessment
Interviews
1-2 rounds, usually virtual
Offer
Congratulations!
Ready to Apply?
Good luck with your application to United Today, Stronger Tomorrow!