Rabbinic Search

Resources for congregations looking for senior staff, including rabbis, cantors, executive directors and education directors.

Overview

USCJ regularly assists congregations looking for senior staff, including rabbis, cantors, executive directors and education directors. We can provide resources and direction to help ensure that the professional search process is a source of growth for your congregation in partnership with the professional organizations of the Conservative Movement listed here and below.

As your synagogue embarks on a professional search, committee chairs should be in touch with a USCJ Synagogue Consultant. If you are not sure who to connect with, contact information can be found here. Your Synagogue Consultant will be able to help explain the process and guide the committee through the search.

Rabbinic Searches

The most complex type of professional search can be the search for a new congregational rabbi.

Conservative Rabbis who are members of the Rabbinical Assembly are specifically trained and experienced in helping Conservative synagogues to grapple with the tasks of finding sacred meaning in Jewish Tradition while engaging fully in a changing world. USCJ Synagogue Consultants and the Rabbinical Assembly (RA) have years of experience assisting Conservative congregations that are seeking their next spiritual leaders. Together, they will help you address your synagogue’s unique situation.

Your USCJ Synagogue Consultant can be your best resource throughout the process. The most successful congregations are often those who have actively worked with a Synagogue Consultant from the beginning – as soon as they know that they will need to conduct a rabbinic search.

In addition to reaching out to a Synagogue Consultant, search committee chairs can also reach out to the Rabbinical Assembly for support and guidance. Instructions, contacts and resources related to a rabbinic search, including specifics about posting a position and rules of the process can be found on the RA website.

Conservative shuls who are members of USCJ and looking to engage a new rabbi agree to the standards of the process, including, but not limited to, only advertise their job opening on the RA pulpit job board, and not anywhere else. This guarantees that every RA member seeking a position can see each congregation’s listing and that they apply to affiliated congregations. This Conservative Movement collaboration ensures that Conservative congregations and rabbis have a strong commitment to Conservative Judaism and that spiritual leaders have been trained in a way to best meet the needs of Conservative synagogues.

Emily Hendel, Director of Career Services at the Rabbinical Assembly, works closely with USCJ Synagogue Consultants throughout a synagogue’s search process. She can also be available to assist a congregation’s search committee through the steps of beginning a search. In addition to the preliminary conversations with Synagogue Consultants, Search chairs can feel free reach out to schedule an introductory appointment with her. Separately, for any website or technical issues related to the jobs board, please email [email protected].

The RA has an independent jobs board for positions that are not considered to be the mara d’atra of a synagogue, those who take the lead on a congregation’s spiritual leadership. Such non-pulpit roles are not bound by the same rules of rabbinic search and the process differs accordingly

Resources

Webinar recordings and sample resources from USCJ and the Rabbinical Assembly include:

Panel on Professional Searches: Webinar | Materials
Intro to Rabbinic Search: Timeline | Aliyah Rabbinic Search Guide
Rabbinic Search: Placement Stories: Webinar | Questionnaire
Rabbinic Search: All About Interviews: Webinar | Slides
Planning a Virtual Rabbinic Search: Webinar | Slides | Sample Welcome Packet | Sample Schedule
Rabbinic Search Basics: Webinar | Slides
Rabbinic Search – All About Interviews (12/7/21): Webinar | Slides
Rabbinic Search: Transitions and Onboarding (4/5/22): Webinar| Slides
Rabbinic Search: Navigating the Final Steps (1/13/22): Webinar | Slides
Rabbinic Search: Overcoming Bias (2022): Webinar