Case studies: Communications and enquiries officer: Donna MacIver

Donna graduated in Gaelic and history from Glasgow University. She is a communications and enquiries officer for Tearfund, a relief and development charity, which works with churches worldwide to tackle poverty

While at university, I was fortunate in gaining summer jobs in a Gaelic cultural organisation, a Gaelic TV station and at BBC Alba. These jobs gave me experience of administration, events management and broadcasting - all essential for my current job. My degree subjects certainly helped in getting these jobs.

After graduation I was unemployed for three months, during which time I decided to aim for charity sector jobs. Ironically, my first job was not in that field - it was a graduate placement in a small Gaelic publishing firm. For a year I worked to improve their online and social media communications. I didn't know where that would lead, but I knew that the experience would make me more marketable to employers.

Although I lacked voluntary sector experience, I was drawn to working with an organisation that could really make a difference in people's lives. On the CharityJOB  website I found my dream job - the one I'm in now!

The communications and enquiries officer post combines my strong motivation to work for charities with my interest and skills in communicating appropriately with our supporters of all ages and backgrounds. We realise that many lifelong supporters will never be Twitter followers, but unless we reach out to younger people via their favourite social media, Tearfund's work will suffer. Our communications strategy, therefore, includes traditional magazines as well building a presence in electronic media. It is exciting to be part of this outreach because there are constantly new developments. I love being right there at the leading edge.

As well as helping to develop our media presence, I deal with phone and email enquiries. These may be straightforward, but sometimes they involve research. I enjoy dealing with even simple requests as this brings me into contact with our supporters and Tearfund staff around the country.

Our small team at the Tearfund Scotland office is very dedicated, flexible and friendly. It means a lot to me to work with people who really believe in what they do and who all pull in the same direction. Although office hours are nine to five, I don't mind occasional overflow into my own time as it is my choice if I want to finish a task.

I have been in this job only a few months and so have no thoughts yet about my career development. Nevertheless, social media communications is such an evolutionary field, in which as yet there are few experts, that my experience here would undoubtedly be valued by many employers.

My advice to would-be charity officers is to make the most of skills and experience gained in other sectors. My transferable skills from several jobs (including my first retail job), along with my genuine enthusiasm for charity work were my passport into this post. I am living proof that there are many routes to becoming a charity officer.