Communications Summer Student 

Role Description and Responsibilities 

The Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations (ECVO) supports non-profit and charitable organizations to build and sustain their volunteer programs and services through resources, networking, and skill development opportunities. 

ECVO is a member-based non-profit organization serving voluntary sector organizations in Metro Edmonton. 

Mission: Working with the non-profit sector, we convene, build capacity, and amplify our common voice to strengthen collaboration, responsiveness, and resilience. 

Vision: ECVO strives for engaged, inclusive, and resilient communities. 

Values: Braided together, these five values guide our work and posture in the world. 

Collaboration: We believe collaboration, not competition, strengthens our communities and sector partnerships. We support sector organizations to find common ground and discover ways they can share resources and ideas. Internally, we encourage our team to work without silos and find interdisciplinary solutions to common challenges. 

Boldness: We seek to be bold in our ideas and in the way we communicate our work because the issues our sector face require honesty and approaches beyond the status quo. We push into uncomfortable places in order to achieve new learnings and opportunities for growth and necessary change. 

Adaptability: The sector and society are shifting, and our work at ECVO must respond appropriately. We seek sector transformation that will enhance sector agility and resilience so organizations and their personnel may adapt to the social, environmental, and economic changes of the 21st Century. 

Credibility: We conduct our work and relationships in ways that build trust. We aim to fairly, transparently, and accurately represent our members and community so they can rely on our strong voice and reputable programs to achieve their goals. 

Just Relationships: Relationship is at the core of everything we do, whether through supporting the development of interpersonal relationships—member to member, mentor to mentee, volunteer to staff—or more macro sector partner relationships. We understand that the way we relate to each other can be marked by inequality and injustice that is structural in nature. In all of our relationships we strive for equality, justice, and reconciliation 

Position Overview:

The communications summer student will conduct an audit of current communications materials and collateral. The students will research audiences, conduct interviews with internal clients, and create compelling copy that aligns with ECVO’s tone and strategic framework.

The communication summer student will also be asked to plan and create social media calendars, posts, blogs, and other digital content.

This work will rely on building relationship with internal clients, taking initiative to identify opportunities, creativity, and strong writing and editing skills.

Position Function:

The communications summer student will work closely with the communications team and internal clients to enhance ECVO’s brand and reputation as a primary resource in supporting growth, resilience and transformation within Edmonton’s non-profit sector.

The communications summer student will:

• Work with internal clients to create sector and public-facing communications deliverables including blogs, photography, infographics, brochures, communications templates, and collateral for a variety of programs.

• Use metrics and data to audit current social media accounts and create social media plans, calendars, and content including images and videos.

• Develop high quality communications that align with the goals and objectives of ECVO’s strategic framework and operational plans.

• Support other communications department priority projects as needed.

Education and Experience

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Significant understanding of social media platforms and their engagement dynamics

• Interpersonal and organisational skills

• A proactive nature, with an interest in being mentored.

• In addition, the successful candidate needs to be working on or completed a post-secondary degree in public relations, communications, or other related education. Previous work experience will be an asset.  

The successful candidate must also meet the following criteria:

• Be between 15 and 30 years of age (inclusive) at the start of employment. 

• Be a Canadian Citizen, permanent resident, or person on whom refugee protection has been conferred under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. *International students are not eligible participants. International students include anyone who is temporarily in Canada for studies and who is not a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or person who has been granted refugee status in Canada. As the objective of the CSJ program is to support youth entering the Canadian labour market, the temporary nature of an international student’s time in Canada does not allow for a long-term connection to the labour market. 

• Must not be employed in more than one Canada Summer Job-funded job at a time.  

Desired Competencies

• Ability to plan, organize and make independent decisions for the benefit of the organization

• Ability to prioritize work and meet deadlines with a high degree of personal initiative

• Ability to synthesize and distill key information for broad consumption

• Self-starter who takes initiative, can successfully prioritize, and managed a varied workload.

• Exhibits attention to detail and is committed to producing accurate and high-quality work.

• Creative problem solving and judgement skills.

• High level of professionalism, integrity, confidentially and accountability.

• Enjoys working independently and in partnerships and in team environments.

• Willing to take measured risks.

• Advanced knowledge of tools such as Canva, social media platforms, various analytics platforms and models, and Microsoft 365.

Working Conditions

This position is a full-time position, with a standard work week of 35 hours (Monday – Friday) over 8 weeks. (Work term must be complete by 2023/09/02)

The successful candidate will work on site.

This position will start upon successful hire. Screening of applicants will begin May 15, 2023. The posting will stay open until a successful candidate is found.

Why you should apply:

The hourly wage to be paid is $21.40/hour.

It is intended that by the end of the work term, the successful communications summer students will have a strong portfolio of internal and external communications collateral.

The success summer student will receive formal and informal mentorship opportunities from a mid-level CPRS member.