CCollegeMatcher

Fundraising Managers

US occupation · SOC 11-2033

Job titles people report: Advancement Director, Annual Giving Director, Development Director, Donor Engagement Director, Foundation Director, Fundraising Manager, Individual Giving Director, Individual Giving Manager, Institutional Advancement VP (Institutional Advancement Vice President), Major Gifts Director

Pay and outlook

Median annual wage, May 2025
$125,470
Half earn more, half earn less
Middle half earn
$95,970 – $169,990
25th to 75th percentile
People employed, May 2025
38,810
Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)
Projected change, 2025–35
+5.4%
At or above the all-jobs rate (3.5% to under 7%)
Openings a year (projected)
3,700
New jobs plus replacing people who leave
Typical education to enter
Bachelor's degree
BLS
  • All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
  • Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
  • Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.

What the work involves

Plan, direct, or coordinate activities to solicit and maintain funds for special projects or nonprofit organizations.

Main tasks

  • Develop strategies to encourage new or increased contributions.
  • Manage fundraising budgets.
  • Develop fundraising activity plans that maximize participation or contributions and minimize costs.
  • Plan and direct special events for fundraising, such as silent auctions, dances, golf events, or walks.
  • Establish goals for soliciting funds, develop policies for collection and safeguarding of contributions, and coordinate disbursement of funds.
  • Establish and maintain effective working relationships with clients, government officials, and media representatives and use these relationships to develop new fundraising opportunities.
  • Compile or develop materials to submit to granting or other funding organizations.
  • Contact corporate representatives, government officials, or community leaders to increase awareness of organizational causes, activities, or needs.

Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.

Getting in

Typical education to enter (BLS)
Bachelor's degree
Work experience in a related job: 5 years or more
O*NET Job Zone 4
Considerable preparation
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

Interests it suits

The strongest of the six O*NET interest types for this occupation, highest first. The short glosses are ours.

  • Enterprising: leading, persuading and making business decisions
  • Conventional: organising information, records and procedures
  • Social: helping, teaching and caring for people

Fields of study that lead here

From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 8 programmes to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.

Business

  • Non-Profit/Public/Organizational Management
  • Organizational Leadership
  • Grantsmanship
  • Marketing/Marketing Management, General

Find colleges that fit you with our matcher: choose Business at the Major step.

Where many students take business

Ordered by the field's share of degrees awarded times undergraduate enrolment (College Scorecard), among colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates. Online universities are included. It's a rough measure of how big the programme is. It says nothing about quality. The share counts every programme in the field, not only the ones linked to this career.

Communications & Media

  • Communication, General
  • Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication
  • Public Relations/Image Management
  • Communication Management and Strategic Communications

Find colleges that fit you with our matcher: choose Communications & Media at the Major step.

Where many students take communications & media

Ordered by the field's share of degrees awarded times undergraduate enrolment (College Scorecard), among colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates. Online universities are included. It's a rough measure of how big the programme is. It says nothing about quality. The share counts every programme in the field, not only the ones linked to this career.

Related careers

Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.

← All careers

Sources

This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CollegeMatcher has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET 31.0 Database · CC BY 4.0

Changes: we show the core tasks in the O*NET database with the highest importance ratings (up to eight, in that order), the top three O*NET interest types by score, and shortened Job Zone names. Titles, descriptions and task text are unchanged.

Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Projections, typical entry education and training: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–35. Fields of study: NCES and BLS CIP 2020–SOC 2018 Crosswalk. All public domain. OEWS · Employment Projections · CIP–SOC crosswalk