<p>Son is freshman due home in 3 weeks. At this point, he does not have a job. He has
applied to 25+ jobs (waitering, landscaping etc., department stores which have advertised for seasonal help) and we (his parents) have talked to everyone we know regarding internships or any kind of job (which I know are really hard to get freshman summer). He has been looking since January and would take anything at this point. He is an engineering major. </p>
<p>Any ideas at all, as to how he can fill his days would be helpful - volunteering… temporary employment agency?</p>
<p>This is a difficult situation but one that my kids, and many kids, are facing these days.</p>
<p>One summer my son volunteered at a music camp and taught violin and viola.</p>
<p>My daughter taught the history portion of the GED.</p>
<p>One summer my son stayed on campus and did research for a professor.</p>
<p>One summer my daughter did the same.</p>
<p>Some of these things paid; some didn’t.</p>
<p>Don’t worry. If he can’t find anything and you have a local college that is very affordable (CC or state) perhaps he could take a course and lighten his course load during his semesters.</p>
<p>I found jobs around the house – deck painting, etc.</p>
<p>I sent mine to the local Democratic party headquarters to volunteer one summer. Your party may vary, but you get the idea.</p>
<p>It doesn’t lessen his work; these are just tough times.</p>
<p>Can you contact the ministers at local churches (or synagogue or mosque) to ask for their list of elderly or disabled people without enough family support, who have trouble handling their own errands and chores? If he’s an engineering student, I’m assuming he has a certain penchant for “fixing things.” He could help them fix broken pieces or things around their homes (window screens, etc.). Plus there’s regular grocery shopping and other errands, always.</p>
<p>If they belong to the church and the minister sends him over, they won’t be afraid to let him into their home to help. Sometimes there are whole committees of people who do this for each other. If he can join that committee, he’ll also meet some very goodhearted adults, expanding his sense of humanity.</p>
<p>I’m not sure I’d recommend he drive or take people out into the community, as it can sometimes be so complicated on your insurance, knowing the right way to get them in and out of cars, and dealing with their idiosyncracies. Some young people are good at this, others not… but all can help with errands and chores.</p>
<p>Instead, something where he visits their home or yard to help out the physical situation, to improve their environment. It’s also useful for him to learn “fix-it” skills; someday he’ll want to keep up his own household.</p>
<p>Another place he can inquire: ask the principal of his former high school, or a district superintendent, if there are any summertime reorganization tasks in the building where he can provide assistance. Some schools use summer months to move and reorganize offices and classrooms. While custodians handle the actual moving of boxes, there’s also a lot of files, books and supplies to unpack, sort and shelve, which principals find time-consuming. Someone with good sense and a strong back, like a freshman engineering student alum, might be able to do that work.</p>
<p>Local community theater - help build a set, manage props backstage, or do lighting. Contact the director or producer of the play, ask if help is needed on any “stagecraft.” Emphasize that he’s an engineering student, but willing to be on the bottom rung, to learn how to do this technical work. Good if he’s assigned to someone else skilled.</p>
<p>I’m not sure where you live, but how about asking around at local farms or greenhouses? I did some farm work while I was in high school, and it wasn’t all that bad. It takes an aptitude to survive the heat and deal with customers, and it’s only seasonal, which makes the work easier to get through. </p>
<p>They were very flexible and understood that I could only work in the summer, which was their busy time of the year anyway. I only did one summer before senior year, but if I had wanted to come back, I’m sure they would’ve been very receptive. </p>
<p>Farmers are very nice, simple, and family-oriented people (if it’s a family business). Odds are they have family the same age as your son, so that would be good socially and morally since the farmers would be familiar with how to treat his age group.</p>
<p>He might want to contact a temp agency. My husband’s business hires students this way over the summer for jobs like data entry, shipping & maintenance.</p>
<p>D2 is a humanities student and a freshman. She is per-law, so what she does in the summer is not going to matter as much. Having said that, she doesn’t want to just hang out in the summer. She is in discussion with director of the office she is working at on campus. There is a possibility she may be able to work remotely over the summer. She also applied to a summer camp in our city and they are interested in meeting her. She may do some babysitting in our building, which probably would pay her the most. She will take some ballet classes in the city. </p>
<p>I am not a big supporter of internship without pay, so I try to steer her away from that.</p>
<p>Some school districts have morning summer school to improve reading and math for elementary students with weak academics. Those teachers sometimes welcome classroom teaching aides. If paid, he might compete with regular school aides, so unlikely, but it’s still worth asking.</p>
<p>Have him sign up at a temporary agency (manpower or such). They staff some factory and labor positions. Both of my kids did this at different times. One got a job shredding documents and the other worked an assembly line. The pay wasn’t great but they worked 40 hours. </p>
<p>These are all great answers and some of them we have tried already. I was thinking about the temp agency route, but I thought that most of them would want some kind of experience, but yes that was exactly what I was thinking - an assembly line would be good experience for him (he is an IE major) and that is all about refining processes. What better way to understand processes than by standing in an assembly line -I think that would be great experience. </p>
<p>Anything regarding our town, school, though is really tough - there are a lot of politics and those jobs (even the maint ones) are given to the people who know the selectmen, school committee etc. Parks are not an option - the closest one is 1+ hour away.</p>
<p>Catering is a good idea - this past fall he did do some catering at a very exclusive club - around the holidays - so he knows the ropes there - he did apply to one catering job already.</p>
<p>Is he athletic? My son has done caddying, volleyball ref, etc. - good (well, decent) cash in the volleyball ref arena for some of the summer sand volleyball leagues.</p>
<p>Also, Americorps. My son worked an Americorp position last summer in a child food/ educational enrichment program - which was great since he is an education major - it was a full time commitment.</p>
<p>If you happen to be in or near an area where there are any canvassing organizations, they usually hire a lot of summer help. Basically there’s no limit to positions; they’ll give almost everyone a tryout–and take on anyone who can make a go of it. Both my kids work at this full-time at field management level–they’re always looking for more canvassers (they work for an environmental advocacy organization.)</p>