Interviews: getting involved

Do you want to become part of our team? We will be holding interviews in Brighton on Tuesday 20th March 2012.

We are looking for individuals who really want to help make a difference. We strongly encourage and train our team members to be the best they can be. We are unusually successful, focusing on achievement. This is an exciting and unique opportunity to do something meaningful.

We are only interested in people who really want to give and do what is needed. We don't take on casual volunteers who want to do a little bit when it suits them.

Qualities such as self-honesty and honesty are important to us. Punctuality, reliability, and being willing to learn are also essential.

We provide all necessary training.

This is a potentially life-changing opportunity to make a dream of helping wildlife come true. But it needs a serious attitude and step-by-step commitment.

"What will I be doing?"

You will be working at The Oasis, our nature reserve and education centre in Sussex. We train our team members to do whatever is needed to run nature reserves. The tasks are many and varied. Have another look at The Oasis page to see what is going on and imagine yourself helping to make this all happen.

Haywards Heath is our nearest railway station on the London to Brighton line and we can pick you up from here if you don't have your own transport.

Looking further ahead, a range of abilities are required to manage our project work both here in the UK and overseas. We usually provide a minimum of one year's training at The Oasis before someone works at our nature reserves in South Africa.

Working non-paid

We have a long history of working non-paid. Although we have a mini-team of volunteers who feed our animals at The Oasis, our main team works as non-paid professionals. We do whatever is needed, whenever it is needed. We are highly effective and efficient, working to high standards.

Obviously, we have other jobs to financially support ourselves. Flexible paid work is nowadays easy to get or arrange. And when you're busy doing what you find meaningful, you spend less time and money distracting yourself from the drudgery of the rat race.

The minimum commitment we require is every Wednesday and Sunday - our normal workdays at The Oasis. If you are currently working full-time, we can be initially flexible for someone with good potential.

Disappointed over many years with how charities usually operate, we have pioneered a "third way". We have combined the best of the old-fashioned volunteer spirit with the more modern professional idea. Working as non-paid professionals really works. And it saves a lot of money to buy land for nature, fencing materials, etc, that would otherwise have been wasted on paying ourselves!

How we work obviously isn't for everyone. If you believe all the marketing hype that "You're worth it" or "You deserve it", then no doubt you won't have seen the limitations of the "me, me, me" mentality. We are interested in individuals who really want to give. We are proud to be different.

How to apply for an interview

Before applying, make sure you've carefully read "The key to our success" page. And, if you haven't already done so, follow the link to our "sister" charity: www.thehumanpotentialtrust.org.

Your application for interview should include the following:

1. An email introducing yourself to us. Be open, rather than just professional.
2. Please explain why you specifically want to work with our organisation.
3. Why, at this stage in your life, do you think you may be a suitable candidate?
4. An up-to-date CV. Please attach this as a simple Word document (.doc) or alternatively use .rtf or pdf format. Don't worry if you lack conservation experience as this isn't an important issue to us because we provide all the necessary training.

Blanket applications will not be successful. Furthermore, at this time, we do not offer short-term opportunities (e.g. summer placements or internships).

The next interviews are on Tuesday 20th March 2012 and will be held at The Thistle Hotel in Brighton. The first stage is a one-to-one interview. Assuming we ask you back, the second stage will be a group session in the afternoon of the same day. We will explain a lot about our work and answer any outstanding questions during this second stage interview.

We look forward to meeting you.