Life After AmeriCorps

AmeriCorps National Best Practices ConferenceMay 5- 7, 2009

Agenda

Session Outcomes Non-Profit Career

Explorationo Issue/ Process/ Job

Planning Transitionso Skill Assessmento Skill Transfer

Celebration to Action!

Panel

Translating Serviceo Resume Writingo Interviewingo Networking

Eli Segal Education Award / My AmeriCorps

Closing Remarks Evaluation

Session Outcomes

This workshop will help participants to: Plan transition to the “next step” Reflect upon personal and

professional growth Assess skills and accomplishments Weigh choices for “what next” Identify resources and strategies for

the transition

Nonprofit Career Exploration

Oh, The Places You’ll Go

Don’t cry because it

is over.

Smile because it

has happened.

Issue Focus

Housing Mental Health Child care/Early

Childhood Education

Job Training Youth

Development Legal and Civil

Rights

Environmental Justice

Urban Planning Public Health Homelessness Immigrants Economic

Development

Process Focus

Provide Service Coordinate Services Improve infrastructure Provide funding Research Advocacy/Policy Organizing Education

Job Focus

Administrator/Director

Accountant Project Manager Coordinator Case Manager Property Manager Fund Developer Researcher Lobbyist

Advocate Organizer Educator Counselor Facilitator Trainer Strategic

Planner Evaluator Program Officer

Jobs: Divisions of Labor

BOTH

Direct Services

Administrative

Pros & Cons of Direct Service

PROS Not a “desk job” Lots of

interaction with others

Can make an impact every day

Professional victories feel more personal

CONS Risk of “burnout” Salaries tend to be

low Funding for positions

is often unstable Advancement usually

means you go into supervisory jobs and may stop doing direct service to clients

Pros & Cons of Management

PROS More opportunities

for those with “generalist” skills

Opportunities for advancement

Higher salary levels

Skills directly transfer to and from different kinds of workplaces

CONS No or little

contact with beneficiaries of your efforts

Jobs feel similar to those in private sector but pay less

May have very limited resources to get the job done

Planning the Transition

My AmeriCorps service can land me a Job?

YOU BETCHA!

Assessing & Transferring Skills

How do you get skills? Jobs Volunteering Sports

What skills do you have? What skills can you use on the

job? Reflect and transfer!

Reflect

Complete these statements . . .From my AmeriCorps service I discovered that I… I learned that I… (Or I relearned that

I…) I intend to…

What Next?

AmeriCorps Experience – What did it do for me?

Identifying Resources

Building a Resume What goes into a Resume & Cover

letter Interviewing How AmeriCorps service can

work for you in the resume and interview process!

Resumes & Cover Letters

Resumes should: Highlight your

skills Show off your

accomplishments Show how you are

qualified for the job

Show where you want to go in your career

Chronological vs. Functional

Chronological Shows what jobs

you held, for how long, in order from most recent

Preferred method – most straightforward for employer

Functional Highlights skills

and accomplishments

Consider if you don’t have strong work experience (+10 years)

Consider if you are transitioning fields

Can mix with chronological

Resumes MUST Include

Complete and Current contact information Name, phone number, e-mail

address Work experience Volunteer and leadership

experience Education

Resumes MAY Include

Objective make sure it matches job!

“Other” experience Research/publications Interests/hobbies Computer skills Language skills

Things to Remember . . .

Tailor to the job or type of job One page or less

Exceptions: oYou have more than 7 yrs experienceoYou have many publications

Do not lie about your experience

Do not furnish references in resume

Things to Remember . . . Use action verbs that quantify your

accomplishments AmeriCorps goals accomplished Skill clusters

Use succinct language Use consistent tense Make it clean, organized, and

readable with ample white space Proofread! Use TWO sets of eyes

Cover Letter Goals

Provide more details than the resume

Showcase “you as a person” Demonstrate writing ability Demonstrate your knowledge

of the organization Tailor specifically to each job/

organization

Cover Letter General Guidelines

Address to a specific person – and spell his/her name correctly

Limit to one page Use cover letter to highlight

resume and provide additional details – tell a story

Refrain from listing salary requirements

Proofread!

Cover Letter Structure When writing a cover letter, examples

of recommended paragraphs include: Why I am interested in this job How does this job fit into my career plans My relevant skills and experience; some ideas I

have for the job Why I support the organization’s mission and

values/how I can contribute Always conclude with:

I would like an interview, here’s how to contact me. However, if you can follow-up do so - it shows INITIATIVE!

The Informational Interview

How To: The Informational Interview

BEFORE E-mail, phone, letter Name dropping

helps Ask for 20-30 minute

meeting; be flexible Send resume in

advance Do background

research Prepare questions Bring pen and paper

AFTER Pay if you’re at a

cafe Ask if they know of

any job openings Ask for referrals for

other informational interviews

Send a thank you note

Keep in touch

Preparing for a Job Interview

Research the organization Think in advance about what you want

the interviewer to know about you Anticipate questions they are likely to

ask Develop questions you would like to ask Bring resume and anything they asked

for Bring pen and paper Arrive early

Networking

Successful networking depends a lot on your attitude, your etiquette and your mindset.

Who are some people/ groups you may have already networked with? LISC AmeriCorps Alums Civic leaders

Impact of Social Networking

LinkedIn MySpace & Facebook Blogging Personal Web Pages

Dream of the Possibilities

Talking about your service Think in the

positive What did you

discover during service?

Where do you intend to go?

What new action can you take?

Resource: Education Award

Test your knowledge of the Eli

Segal Education

Award

Student Loans

FAQs Repayment Options

Payment on Principal Advance Payments

oAlways submit your voucher with instructions on how the repayment needs to be applied!

oCase Study of Lindsay & Marcus

Non-Traditional Ed Award Uses

“I’m not going to college, so why would I want an AmeriCorps Education Award?”

www.AmeriCorps.org

Logon to www.americorps.org

Look under the third heading

Select My AmeriCorps/ AmeriCorps Online Payment System

My AmeriCorps

Member/Alum Registration

I’m registered- now what?

Once you have registered, you’re set!

You can use this site To get tax forms To complete your interest accrual

request for your student loans To submit payments to your loan

lender or to the school of your choosing

How to Navigate My AmeriCorps:

Focusing on “My Requests”:

This section identifies payments that you have made through AmeriCorps.

You can track if your school or loan has received payments.

You also can review the process of your interest accrual form.

My Education Award

View Interest Accrual

View Ed Award Payment

Payments from My AmeriCorps

Create an interest accrual request You must have your loan information on

hand. You’ll need the name, address, and zip code of your lender.

Interest Accrual Request

School Search

Using the Education Award

After you have created your Interest Accrual, you’ll have access to your Education Award.

You can create an account with your school or lender, then choose the amount you would like used at that time.

Resources

Questions & Evaluation

Plus/Delta Formal Evaluation