FEATURE
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ad of entering the corporate world, equates opt for alternative jobs
How to find more alternative job options:
"Students need to consider lots of different alternative job options because it's not one size fits all," Wendy Shoemaker, senior associate director at the University Career Center says.
Alternative job options can range in terms of length, skill sets required and the experience a person will gain. The website www.idealist.org helps with finding non-profit and volunteer opportunities across the world.
Idealist's mission is to "connect people, organizations and resources to help build a world where people can live free and dignified lives," according to its website.
Visitors can search for a specific type, like a job or volunteer opportunity, specific interest or skill, like agriculture or public policy or specific location, ranging from New York to Nepal.
Contributed photo Maksimowicz shaved her head due to the Tanzania heat.
Contributed photo Maksinowicz receives henna tattoos prior to attending a Muslim wedding.
rangements with the volunteer's community to provide both housing and medical care at United States standards. Volunteers also receive a stipend to live comfortably at the level of the people in the community and 24 vacation days. When volunteers return, they receive a $7,500 readjustment allowance.
Maksimowicz, the Peace Corps education volunteer in Tanzania, lives in a small house with electricity, something other volunteers in the same area don't have access to. She doesn't have running water, and must carry buckets of water dispensed from a pipe back to her house. It's a 25-minute walk from the nearest vegetable stand, and a 30-minute bus ride to the nearest town.
Maksimowicz says the culture, living conditions and working in the school have changed her for the better. "I'll never know the actual, long-term impact of the things I do here," Maksimowicz says. "But the sense of accomplishment I feel, every time a student makes an improvement or I learn about the culture here, are worth the difficult times."
Teach for America
Kayla Kuhl, a 2011 an alumna from Shawnee, says she felt both nervous and excited when 30 ninth-grade students walked into her math classroom outside of Atlanta at the beginning of the school year. She had no idea what to expect. While playing get-to-know-you games, one student stood up and said, "I have a bad attitude." Kuhl says she knew she might have her work cut out for her. "I was nervous the entire day just being in charge of all of them," she says.
Despite majoring in civil engineering, Kuhl opted to apply for Teach for America her senior year after assisting a Teach for America teacher in Chicago over winter break. "Thinking about how much of an impact those five days had on me and the students, I couldn't even imagine how great the impact would be if it turned into two years," Kuhl says.
Accepted alongside 12 other University students last school year, Kuhl is now working to complete her Masters in Education from Georgia State University, while teaching five classes and tutoring students.
Nationally, Teach for America is expanding. Currently in 43 cities, by 2015, the organization plans to reach 60 cities, says Alicia Herald, executive director at Teach for America in Kansas City.
The organization is also growing among applicants, the majority being recent college graduates, says Kaitlin Gastrock, Teach for America's regional communications director. Seventy-seven percent of the 2011 Teach for America members are recent graduates. "There's a spirit among graduating seniors looking for a way to have an immediate impact," Gastrock says.
Teach for America's on-campus presence helps produce consistent numbers of applicants, says Braum, the University's recruiting manager. He says students look for ways to give back, while also accelerating their career. Teach for America members do this by gaining real-world experience while helping students with little educational support.
Before acceptance into Teach for America, applicants must apply, teach a five-minute sample lesson, interact with other applicants and participate in a personal interview. Once accepted, members are sent to low-income communities to provide educational opportunities to students.
Teach for America doesn't look for a specific type of person during the interview process, but they do look for certain skills. Past leadership roles, strong critical thinking and interpersonal skills are traits that stand out, according to the Teach for America website.
Nora Burt, an alumna from Libertyville, Ill., and Teach for America member, teaches high school Spanish in Kansas City. Her classroom sizes are larger about 30 students—and she teaches five classes a day. Every day she plans in-class activities for the students, including group and individual work, and comes up with fun ways to engage her students.
Although Teach for America members learn the basics of lesson planning during their training institute, it's up to them to craft plans to engage their own students. Because of the nature of her job, Burt, and other Teach for America members, put hours into planning lessons.
"It's not just a resume builder," Burt says.
"It's something that you really need to feel passionately about, because you're responsible for the education of these students who may not have had the best learning experiences in the past."
Teachers in the program make a two-year commitment, and are considered part of their school's faculty. They receive a full first-year teacher's salary, ranging from $29,000 to $51,000 based on region, Baum says. They also receive a federal loan forbearance and education stipend. When teachers' two years are up, schools can decide to hire them or not.
Besides monetary benefits, Teach for America members also see students improve in their learning. However, it's an up and down process that can sometimes be frustrating.
Kuhl says one of the hardest parts of her job is keeping her students motivated. Less than half of her students do their homework and it's hard to get them caught up to the educational level they should be performing at. She also says most of them don't see a future for themselves. "I can see all of my students have so much potential, but I just wish they could see that for themselves," Kuhl says. "If I see a student's grades are slipping, I find time to talk to them. It makes a big difference when I have a personal relationship with them."
The opportunity to help and relate with students is what Gastrock, Teach for America's regional communications director, says is so appealing to almost-graduates. "It's one of the hardest jobs, but also one of the most rewarding. You can find a way to service a community and find personal fulfillment."
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