The Job Hunt: Not-for-profit jobs growing

I've been looking for months to work for a not-for-profit group, mostly because I'm interested in the work they do and would like to find a job helping the community. A recent report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics points out a few other good reasons: Non-profits are experiencing rapid employment growth, and they pay a little better than other businesses.

As a former newspaper editor, I can write and edit for pay, among other skills, and I'm always on the lookout for expanding industries that may need my talents. The most expanding area is in general, medical and surgical hospitals, followed by colleges, universities and professional schools. If you want to go where the money is, or at least where more jobs are, then your local not-for-profit hospital or university is a good place to start.

Although for-profit businesses pay better, more jobs are being created in the not-for-profit businesses, according to the BLS report. Not-for-profit employment has increased 5% in two years between 2002 and 2004, while total private employment increased by less than 1%.