You’ve helped your favorite charities raise money and you’ve found you had a talent for it. Why not turn that talent into a career? Today, fundraising professionals go beyond just raising money; responsibilities include marketing, community outreach, public relations and often website management. The following are 10 great places to find fundraising jobs:

1. AFPnet.org. The Association for Fundraising Professionals seeks to promote ethical and effective fundraising practices and has an online job board geared specifically to fundraising jobs.
2. Philanthropy.com. The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s goal is to connect non-profits by providing news, resources and ideas. Additionally, they have a job board that lists positions within non-profit organizations across the country.
3. FundraisingCrossing.com. Acting as a clearinghouse for a wide variety of job boards and career pages, FundraisingCrossing.com states they offer the largest collection of fundraising jobs on Earth.
4. PhilanthropyJournal.org. This online journal offers both non-profit news and resources. In addition, their job board offers everything from entry-level fundraising jobs to senior level non-profit management positions.
5. NPConnect.org. Nonprofit Connect offers training and tools for nonprofit organizations and those who work for them or would like to work for them. The site also offers networking opportunities in order to facilitate the missions of non-profit organizations. Of particular note, Nonprofit Connect offers a career center with listings for non-profit management and fundraising jobs.
6. DotOrgJobs.com. Don’t let the strange domain name confuse you; this website is devoted solely to philanthropic job searches. This includes job opportunities with non-profits, private foundations and charitable organizations looking for fundraising professionals.
7. FundraisingJobs.org. FundraisingJobs.org is a no-frills fundraising jobs aggregator. The site scours the Internet and gather results from multiple job sites and organization job boards. It’s a good first stop in the search for the perfect fundraising job.
8. Traditional job boards. Don’t forget to search the traditional job boards for fundraising jobs. Monster, Career Builder and even USA Job Bank often have fundraising positions listed. Twitter can also be a great way to find information about fundraising jobs before the job opportunities attract too many applicants.
9. Charitable organizations. Of course, you can always be proactive in your fundraising job search. Talk to your favorite charities and ask them if they have any positions open currently. Share your past experience fundraising for them and other organizations. Be sure to detail these past results on your resume, even if it was volunteer work. That still counts.
10. Universities. Fundraising is often a significant portion of a university’s budget. Be sure to check your local university’s website for job postings, or give them a call and inquire about possible positions.

Randall Davidson writes for Fundraiser-Ideas.net, an extensive site about the fundraising world.  The site provides a lot of information about fundraising jobs and easy fundraising ideas. It also provides a helpful list of nonprofit consultants.

With Christmas break just around the corner, students are getting geared up to finish their finals and be free for a few weeks before it all starts again in January. For students of all ages, giving gifts to friends and family is an important part of the holiday season. Many students want to extend that tradition to their favorite teachers or professors by giving them gifts to say “thanks” for a good semester. If you want to give a gift to your teacher, but are at a loss as to what you can give, here are 10 gift ideas that almost all teachers would like:

1. Journal. Most people can find a use for a journal, whether it’s to write in at home, or carry around for any times they need to scribble down a few notes.
2. Book. If you know of a specific book your teacher would likely enjoy reading, get it for them! They will appreciate that you thought of them.
3. Amazon gift card. Give them the option of picking their own Christmas gift by giving your favorite teachers a $10 gift card to Amazon. Don’t make it too expensive or they may feel uncomfortable taking it.
4. Sweets. Who doesn’t love a box of chocolates or a jar of candy? Teachers will especially enjoy getting something they can share with family or even other students.
5. Office Decoration. Is your teacher a book-end user? Do they collect shot glasses from around the world? Whatever it is that they enjoy, give them something along those same lines.
6. Restaurant gift card. What teacher doesn’t like to get a gift card to a restaurant? This is an especially courteous gift because your teacher will be able to take their significant other with them for an evening out. Don’t make the restaurant too fancy and expensive, which might make them feel uncomfortable in accepting the gift.
7. Tie/lotion. If your teacher is a man, he could always use another tie. Make it a funny one and he will appreciate it even more. If your teacher is female, get her a mild-smelling lotion that she can use at home or keep at her desk.
8. Homemade treat. Whip up a batch of Christmas cookies to bring with you to your last day of class before Christmas vacation. It will be even more pleasant if you make enough to share with the entire class, with a special plate on the side just for the teacher.
9. Water bottle. The general population are water bottle carriers these days. Giving a bottle makes a great gift for anyone, especially for teachers, since it’s something practical that you know will likely be used. Another option for this would be to give them a customized mug.
10. Pens. This probably sounds like a bland gift, but it’s all about presentation. Teachers love gifts that are useful, and pens are always in demand. Buy several packages of pens and organize them into a mug, add some Christmas ribbons for beauty, and you’ve got a fine-looking gift on your hands.

About the Author

Natalie Clive is a writer for MyCollegesandCareers.com. My Colleges and Careers is committed to helping students find online college degree programs that will prepare them to gain one of the top jobs in their field of interest.

Many people in a position of renting a home feel as though there is nothing that they can do to cut down on energy use in their homes. So many people think that energy efficiency is something that their landlords should take care of when it comes to modernizing a house or a home. The truth is, even as a renter there are some easy things you may not have thought of that can cut down on your energy use, and your bills in the long run. Whether cost effectiveness is your motivation, or a desire to lower your impact on the environment, you can make small changes to your home to fit your personal needs.

Change Your Light bulbs

Believe it or not, changing your light bulbs into energy efficient ones is a great way for you to cut down on your energy consumption and monthly spending. You may not even notice how much of your current budget is spent on lighting your home, but you will notice when your bills get smaller from using these energy saving lights.  Some of these can save over $60 a year, which is definitely better in your pocket. To save extra money each month, you can also take extra care to turn lights off when they’re not needed.

Mind Your Electronics

Today, one of the leading energy wasters in homes happens to be the consumption of energy by electronics on standby. In other words, a great amount of money is leaking out of your wallet each month by leaving electronics on while you’re not actually using them. From televisions to computers, if you’re not using it right now for anything, remind yourself to turn it off until you need it the next time.

Adopt a New Strategy For Kitchen Cleanliness

If you currently have a dishwasher, you may be familiar with the need to rinse dishes before using your machine. Today, many dishwashers are fully capable of washing dishes that have been scraped off instead of rinsed. Using hot water to rinse dishes is a huge waste of water and of energy. See if your dishwasher can tolerate having the food scraped off the dishes, instead of rinsed. You may be surprised how much less energy you use with this small change.

Launder Differently

Washing in cold water wherever available is another great way to slow down your energy consumption. Some experts estimate that over 80% of our energy consumption comes from the use of hot water. If you can cut your hot water usage down by washing your clothes in cold water, you can make a big difference in your families energy use at home. Be sure to avoid over drying your clothing, too, which can use a fair amount of unneeded energy.

Invest in Insurance

It doesn’t matter how much energy you save at home, or how much you cut down your monthly electrical bills, if you don’t have renters insurance to protect your assets. You work hard to provide comfort for your home, and without insurance, all your hard work can disappear before your eyes. Insurance on your rental is necessary to keep your home safe and secure, and your bank account safe from having to replace all your hard earned items.

This guest post is from Allison with RentersInsurance.com, where you can go to learn more money-saving rental tips, as well as how to purchase the best renters insurance for your new place.