1 Preview the application
The application is short and written. You'll be asked questions such as:
Which problems do you think most urgently need more people working on them?
Expected effort: Medium · 2–3 minutesCould you give us a sense of what your longer-term career paths might be?
Expected effort: Medium · 2–3 minutesTell us about any interest or involvement you've had in effective altruism.
Expected effort: Low · 1–2 minutes2 Example responses
Comparing a weak answer with a strong one is the fastest way to calibrate.
What would make 1:1 advising especially useful for you right now?
"I'd love some general advice about my career. I'm not really sure what I want to do yet, so it would be helpful to hear your thoughts on what kinds of jobs might be a good fit for someone like me."
Why it's weakVague and passive. It hands the advisor the job of setting the agenda, gives them nothing specific to prepare for, and doesn't say where the applicant is actually stuck or what a useful outcome would look like.
"I'm graduating in June with a CS degree and have two offers: a big-tech software role and a junior research-engineer position at an AI safety lab. The lab pays roughly 40% less and feels riskier, but might build more relevant career capital. I'd find it most useful to pressure-test how I'm weighing near-term skill growth against longer-term impact, and to hear whether you think the safety role is worth the financial trade-off at this stage."
Why it worksNames a concrete, live decision with real stakes, shows the applicant has already done their own thinking, and points the advisor at exactly where input would be most valuable. That makes the call easy to prepare for and far more likely to be high-leverage.
View examples for:
3 Common mistakes
These are the patterns we most often see hold applications back.
Answers are too vague
Limited evidence of interest in high-impact careers
Little engagement with key problem areas
Insufficient evidence of career capital
4 Recommended preparation
Before applying, we recommend reading:
📖 Approximate reading time: 2–4 hours — the Career Guide is in-depth and best read across several sittings5 Practice your answers
Draft your responses here before starting the application. They're saved in your browser only — nothing is sent to us.
Could you give us a sense of what your longer-term career paths might be?
You can copy these responses into the application later. Estimated remaining application time: < 2 minutes
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