Home > Opportunities > Undergraduates > Summer Fellows Program
2010 AmeriCorps Summer Fellows program
START DATE:
June 7, 2010 or June 14, 2010 for students whose university finals run during the week of June 7
END DATE:
August 20, 2010 or August 27, 2010 for those who start the program on June 14
APPLICATION DEADLINE:
Round One: February 12, 2010 Round Two: March 5th, 2010
LOCATION:
Boston, MA
CLICK HERE TO APPLY FOR THE 2010 SUMMER FELLOWS PROGRAM!
New Sector's Summer Fellows program provides a select group of undergraduates and young professionals the opportunity to serve as AmeriCorps members at nonprofit organizations and gain transferable knowledge and skills over the course of the summer.
32 AmeriCorps Summer Fellows are selected from a competitive pool of applicants to complete projects that strengthen organizations (service sites) in the Boston area. Projects include enhancing program development, measuring impact, strengthening operational procedures, and expanding communications and strategic marketing efforts. We strive to ensure that every project provides each Fellow an opportunity to make a substantive, lasting impact on an organization while developing his or her civic engagement, leadership, and professional skills.
Training:
The Summer Fellows program includes intensive training that introduces Fellows to the social sector and helps them develop essential career skills. Training is provided through a week of kickoff training and biweekly workshops continuing throughout the summer. Curriculum topics range from effective communication and project management to nonprofit financial literacy and strategic planning. Summer Fellows also benefit from peer-facilitated Learning Teams and a variety of social events, which allow the Fellows to build a unique bond with their fellow corps members while gaining a holistic understanding of the social sector.
Support:
Each Fellow is matched with a volunteer consultant advisor from firms including Accenture, Bain & Company, The Boston Consulting Group, The Bridgespan Group, Deloitte, McKinsey & Company, and Oliver Wyman. These consultant advisors provide instruction and concrete feedback to improve Residents' project management skills, persuasive communication, and analytical analyses.
Serving as a Summer Fellow:
Fellows are placed at our service sites, which vary in their area of focus--from addressing environmental or human and health services issues, to engaging in education or community and economic development. Past projects have included developing performance management measures, researching partnership opportunities, and designing new marketing strategies and materials.
New Sector develops a "project scope" with each service site before Fellows arrive to ensure a structured, challenging experience. Fellows participate regularly in small-group, peer-facilitated Learning Teams that provide a support network and a more intimate forum for sharing knowledge, ideas, successes, and challenges. Through their efforts on strategic initiatives, their exposure to the daily operations of their service sites, and New Sector's training, Fellows develop an understanding of how ideas and strategies are designed and implemented in a real-world, social impact setting.
Key Duties and Responsibilities:
While no two New Sector experiences are the same, all offer unique opportunities and challenges. Specific responsibilities vary based on project and placement, but a typical Summer Fellow's duties include:
- Plan and manage projects to address a service site's key strategic opportunities and challenges
- Perform quantitative and qualitative analysis
- Generate practical, creative, and action-oriented insights and recommendations for a service site
- Create and give presentations and provide other deliverables to ensure service site satisfaction
- Work with service site staff members to implement recommendations
- Recruit and manage volunteers for service events
- Assist in daily service site operations
- Effectively communicate and manage relationships with all stakeholders in the New Sector model
Eligibility Requirements:
Fellows must:
- Be U.S. Citizens or Permanent Residents
- Have a high school diploma or GED
- Not have served two or more State and National AmeriCorps program terms
There is no "typical" Fellow; New Sector consciously seeks individuals of differing perspectives and backgrounds and with various career goals. Successful applicants will demonstrate the following:
- Passion for and experience in achieving social change
- High level of self-motivation and a proven ability to deliver excellent results, demonstrated by a record of strong academic, extracurricular, professional, and personal accomplishment
- Core leadership attributes, including: resourcefulness, responsibility, independence, patience, integrity, energy, and a strong work ethic
- Ability to adapt and remain flexible in the face of various challenges and opportunities
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills, including the capacity to understand the needs of multiple and diverse stakeholders, build strong service site relationships, and work effectively individually and as part of a team
- Excellent quantitative and qualitative analytical skills
- Ability to approach challenges in a structured manner by setting goals, devising a plan to achieve those goals, and meeting those goals in a timely manner
- Desire to proactively take on responsibility within the New Sector organization and network
Compensation and Other Benefits:
Compensation includes:
- A living stipend of $1000
- A Segal AmeriCorps Education Award worth $1337.50 distributed upon successful completion of the program, which can be used to pay for outstanding loans or future educational expenses at any accredited institution in the United States
- Travel stipend (in form of subway/bus pass) totaling $150
Selection Process:
After a review of application materials, each qualified candidate will be invited for a 60-minute phone or in-person interview conducted by a New Sector staff member or alumnus/a. Candidates selected from this process will then receive an offer to participate in the New Sector Summer Fellows program. Candidates who accept the offer will become a part of the New Sector Summer Fellows program. In accepting our offer, candidates accept an offer to the program as a whole, and not to any one particular service site or project. Once candidates have accepted our offer, we will match them with a service site.
Release of Information:
To facilitate participant selection and matching, New Sector may share candidates' resumes with potential service sites and professional consultant advisors. If candidates have any questions or concerns about this, they may contact our Senior Manager, Jessica Lee, at jlee@newsector.org.
Application Deadline:
February 12, 2010
CLICK HERE TO APPLY FOR THE 2010 SUMMER FELLOWS PROGRAM!
Candidates will be asked to prepare a cover letter, resume, and writing sample.
Inquiries can be sent to Jessica Lee at summerfellows@newsector.org.. Please no calls.
The New Sector Summer Fellows program is supported by the Massachusetts Service Alliance and the Corporation for National and Community Service.
New Sector Alliance actively seeks to build a Fellows class with a broad range of backgrounds and experiences, representing a diversity of race, color, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, secular preference, political affiliation, socioeconomic status, and ancestry. Further, we encourage individuals with disabilities to apply to the program and can provide reasonable accommodations for those individuals upon request. For additional assistance please contact Hollis Van Inwagen at hvaninwagen@newsector.org..
