Information on Posting to the ACT Forums &
Accessing the ACT Resume Database
This section provides an overview of how you can post to the ACT Forums. If you're an organization interested in accessing the ACT Resume database click here. If you have a question that is not answered below, please feel free to contact us. Note if you are interested in subscribing to the ACT Forums please go to the Questions and Answers page
What are the ACT Forums?
The ACT Announcement Forums are one of the premier sites for posting information on career and educational opportunities in the fields of peacebuilding, conflict transformation, development, humanitarian relief, civil society, public health and related fields. Over 100 organizations and universities throughout the world use the Forums to recruit entry-level to advanced professionals for academic, professional and consulting opportunities. The ACT Forums membership is several thousand strong, with candidates from over 120 countries covering a wide variety of sectors and skill levels (from senior level practitioners with 20+ years experience to students seeking entry-level internships).
What types of announcements can I post on the ACT Forums?
The ACT site maintains individual boards for jobs, scholarships, grants and events related to the fields of peacebuilding, conflict transformation, development, humanitarian relief, civil society, public health and related fields. The forums are divided into geographic regions covering all areas of the world. Please Note that ACT does not permit individuals to post their own requests for jobs or scholarships.
How are announcements distributed?
Postings are sent out via email to subscribers. They are also posted in the online archives that subscribers can access.
What is cost to post?
Posting on the ACT Site is currently free and allows you to access a highly skilled and dedicated group of professionals to help address your recruiting needs.
How do I post?
There are two ways to post to the ACT site.
1) By Email (open to all organizations): Posting by email is open to any organization by sending an announcement to forums@conflicttransformation.org We welcome postings in a variety of formats (PDF, email, Word). When posting please try to be as specific as possible including information on deadlines, required skills, citizenship restrictions, etc.
2) Via the ACT site (for organizations that have organizational subscriptions and/or will be posting frequently to the ACT site): If you wish to post directly via the ACT Site, you will first need to register by going to ww.conflicttransformation.org, click on register and follow the steps. If your organization is not subscribed but would like to post frequently to the site please contact ACT and we can explore establishing a special posting account for you. After registering, follow these steps to post:
· Choose the Site: Choose the board you would like to post an announcement (jobs, grants, scholarships).
· Select Location: Select the appropriate geographic region appropriate for your announcement.
· Click on Post New and Enter Text (and Upload Documents if appropriate) While viewing the category, you will see “Post New” at the upper-right side of the board. Click this link, and enter the announcement description in the fields provided below. You may also choose to upload a document (such as an application form or PDF of the job description) but note that these documents will not appear in the search results for candidates, so it is best to enter as much information as possible in the job description.
· Enter Expiration Date and Highlight Requirements for Applicants: While posting an announcement you may also enter an expiration date, after which your posting will be removed from the system. We recommend that you set a date not more than two months from the day that you post the announcement, unless the application process is a rolling one, or there are multiple similar positions. When posting announcements please try to be as specific as possible in your announcements including deadlines, required skills, citizenship restrictions, etc.
How do I edit or delete my postings?
If you wish to make edits or delete your posting, you can send an email to forums (at) conflicttransformation.org and please let us know of the change. If your organization has an organizational subscription to the ACT Forums, you can edit postings directly on our site. To edit a posting that you have submitted, locate it by either browsing the categories or searching the appropriate board. On the right portion of the individual posting, you will see a small pencil icon. Click this icon, and you will be taken to the editing page. Click on Update when you are finished.
What is the difference between registering for the ACT Site and Subscribing?
By registering on the ACT site, you gain access to some basic features such as the discussion boards and the ability to post. However if your organization would like to receive postings via email and access the online archives you need to subscribe.
Recruiting via the ACT Resume Database
What is the ACT Resume Database?
We have also recently created a resume database that select employers can access if they would like to search for qualified candidates to help fill a particular opportunity. The resume database provides access to hundreds of potential consultants and employees who posses the skills, technical expertise and linguistic abilities to meet almost any need.
How can my organization access the Resume Database?
To learn how to access the online resume database and associated costs please contact ACT at forums (at) conflicttransformation.org or phone 1(703)461-3650. ACT can work with your organization to explore your recruiting needs.
How to Use the Resume Database?
If your organization has permission to use the resume database, to browse or search resumes, first click on jobs, then click on the Post/View Resume link and go to the category that you wish to browse. Candidates are listed by posting date. You may also search candidates by either keyword or category, or using the advanced features, by years of experience and salary requirements. Clicking on the candidates name will bring up that candidates information.
How do I download resumes?
Most candidates have uploaded their resumes to the database. You can download a resume by clicking on the download link. We recommend saving the document to your desktop and opening with Microsoft Word or other Word Processor.
How do I contact potential Candidates?
Once you have found a candidate you wish to contact, you may contact them using the information that they have provided in their resume. You may also choose to send an inquiry or set an interview directly from the ACT website using the options on the right side of the page visible while viewing the candidate information. Using this method, only your username (and not your email address) is revealed to the candidate.
Feedback From Organizations Recruiting via ACT:
The Center for Civil Society and Governance (CCSG) at the Academy for Educational Development (AED) first learned of ACT in the Spring of 2004. At the time, we needed to hire a mediation quality control specialist to go to Guatemala for a consultancy. We had only two weeks to field the consultant. After contacting ACT, they immediately recommended two qualified individuals, one of whom was hired and successfully carried out the tasks under the work order. Since then CCSG has often sought ACT's recruitment services in order to find consultants and Chiefs of Party for field projects. Each time, ACT responds quickly with well-qualified individuals. On one these occasions, we requested a conflict specialist with knowledge of Liberia/West Africa to go to Liberia to help us develop a proposal (again, with very short notice). The next day we met with one of the ACT-proposed candidates and hired him for a three-week consultancy which he completed successfully.
I would highly recommend ACT's recruitment services to other organizations. With their database, ACT has access to a broad and deep pool of experts that can fill a wide range of positions required by groups working internationally in the field of peacebuilding. ACT's response time is always short and the candidates that it proposes are invariably strong and possess relevant qualifications.
-Anne O'Toole Salinas ,Senior Program Officer, Center for Civil Society and Governance, Academy for Educational Development
ARD, Inc. has accessed the ACT Forums posting services since its inception. We have found this service to be highly responsive in reaching a specialized niche of consultants, particularly those working in areas of conflict sensitivity assessment, mediation, management and transformation as well as other areas related to certain forms of disaster intervention, civil society and governance. In addition, the ACT Forums site is becoming very useful in steering staff and consultants to peer reviewed texts in the conflict literature.
— Donna C. Read, Manager, International Consultant Service, ARD, Inc.
I would just like to comment that the ACT Forums is a unique and beneficial resource for professionals, academics, and community workers who are not only in the field of conflict transformation and peace studies, but also among those devoted to greater social engagement for our communities and our world as a whole. Thank you for building and developing this living, breathing resource!
- Linnea Allison, Senior Program Manager, American Councils for International Education: ACTR/ACCELS
The Center for International Understanding at Bluefield State College (CIU) has been well served by the ACT Forums Site. For many years, the CIU has posted announcements for interpreting and translation services and for lead trainers in specific subject areas for training programs it implements for the State Department and USAID. Responses to these announcements have come from around the world, thereby helping the CIU comply with procurement regulations by recruiting nationally and internationally for federally funded positions.
-Sudhakar R. Jamkhandi, Ph.D. Director, Center for, International Understanding at Bluefield State College
I will not exaggerate at all if I say that this is the best service of the kind available, in my part of the world at least. I check it every day and it keeps me up to date with what is going on. One benefit that I would single out it gave me the info and the opportunity to apply for the master (and scholarship) on local development that I am currently finishing. It is an incredible source of news on events and opportunities.
— Risto Karajkov, Program Officer, Balkan Children and Youth Foundation