Description:
"The Student Prospect Researcher supports the Prospect Development & Research Manager to help identify, research, and analyze information on prospective donors. The student researcher provides research support to the fundraising team to identify prospects for Major Gifts, Corporations, Foundations and Planned Giving. The student researcher also proactively identifies prospective major gift donors who have given at lower levels.
This internship is part of the Spring 2025 Professional Internship Program. To be eligible for the program you must:
- Be enrolled as an SUU student during the course of the internship.
- Have and maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher.
- Be willing to work 10 to 20 hours per week.
- Provide thoughtful responses in your application.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Conduct proactive research to identify new potential major and principal gift donors using data mining, screening and other methods.
- Manage grant calendars of foundation and corporate due dates for grant proposals.
- Develop proficiency in drafting Letters of Intent for foundation and corporate grants.
- Support prospect screening and data mining projects. Help to independently verify screening results.
- Update information in Banner database following established data standards.
- Using a variety of resources, develop and synthesize information on prospects (including individuals, corporations, and foundations) to produce clear profiles/biographies of their background, career, financial capacity, philanthropic interests and nature of relationship to SUU.
- Develop proficiency in using the Candid foundation database and analyzing past giving and board member affiliations accessed on IRS 990 forms.
- Set measurable goals, plans, and execute the identification and qualification of new major gift prospects.
- Develop supportive and productive relationships with Advancement staff.
- Track research activity for internal prospect research metrics.
- Safeguard the confidentiality of constituent information at all times by adhering to ethical and confidentiality guidelines of SUU and the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement (APRA).
- Perform additional duties as assigned.
Qualifications:
- Demonstrated ability to retrieve, manipulate, analyze and synthesize information gathered from a variety of sources (electronic, print and personal accounts).
- Skill in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships, including the ability to communicate effectively. Strong commitment to customer service required.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- High attention to detail and follow-up, and excellent organizational skills required, including the ability to prioritize and multi-task several projects simultaneously.
- An aptitude for critical thinking and problem solving.
- Ability to manage confidential information with discretion and tact.
- Strong work ethic.
- Flexible and adaptable to new programs in an emerging and changing environment.