D graduated last May with a fashion merchandising degree. She didn’t want to jump into the serious job market right away so she has been supporting herself with a combination of three part time jobs. Now that she is ready to jump into it, she wants a job where she makes a difference, helps others, etc etc. Someone told her about AmeriCorps. She doesn’t want to teach, so no Teach for America or anything similar. She wouldn’t be satisfied with anything like being an Admin for a non-profit. She wants to actually “do the work” of the cause. She can be on our health insurance for a couple of more years.
I have asked her to come up with a list of causes for which she is passionate.
Does anyone have any ideas of where or how to get such a job? I hate for her youthful idealism to go to waste.
With a her background I would look at the non-profits that have retail outlets - Goodwill, Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity plus any local organizations. I don’t know that any of them count as “fashion merchandising” but they certainly do good and she might be able to put some of her education to good use in their retail operations or administration. If she has no interest in admin or office work and wants hands-on do-gooding then the Conservation Corps or Peace Corps is a great place to start.
Do you have voter registration groups like Move where you live? Groups that work with refugees like HIAS? (We have a few local variants of HIAS here in South Texas, some for Spanish speaking, some for non Spanish speaking.) Would she want to work for the park service?
One of my kids had that impulse and looked at at Americorps. He was interested in teaching, however, so found his niche there. He said there were non teaching Americorps jobs.
There are a lot of political campaigns and also ballot initiative campaigns looking for staff right now.
D lives in a red state, as do we, and her political leanings are “blue.” Her job has to pay enough for her to be able to support herself. I suggested finding a regular (not helping mankind) job in an area of the country where there would be many volunteer opportunities for causes that interested her.
I thought of political campaigns, but those can end quickly, depending on how the candidate does.
I don’t know if she wants to use her fashion expertise, but something like Dress for Success?
https://dressforsuccess.org/about-us/what-we-do/
Depends upon which causes she wants to advance.
Someone mentioned Peace Corps…I was a volunteer many years ago, and at that time there was an emphasis on recruiting volunteers with various business-type degrees. Don’t know what’s out there now, but I could see someone wiith a background like your daughter working with women’s co-ops. For example, a lot of people in developing countries make a living as dressmakers/tailors. There are also handicraft groups selling to markets overseas. If she’s at all interested, there’s a wealth of information on the Peace Corps website. While she wouldn’t make a professional salary for 2+ years, student loans are deferred and the experience can be invaluable in multiple ways.
Some causes won’t pay much or are nearly all volunteer, for the client interface.
If she knows merchandising, does that include anything about the money side? Fundraising can be quite well paid, as you gain experience. And lots of starter jobs. Some entry level includes admin, but for the right cause and career track, she might learn to live with that.
If she didn’t want to work for a non-profit working on her cause (like the refugee aid workers, voting rights workers or environmentalists mentioned by @Lizardly) she could also consider working for the government in a position that in her view helps the people or cause she wants to advance: something like on-the-streets work with the homeless or opioid users, or outreach to low income pregnant women, or something of that nature.
Whatever she chooses, it’s not going to pay well. She’ll be living on a shoestring.
How about something in youth development such as after school programs at schools or at places like community centers or Boys and Girls Clubs? Then she could still work another part time job during the day, which will be needed as the other posters have indicated.
Working with the elderly also is an idea.
If she opts for the Peace Corps, she really won’t have any living expenses beyond what PC provides. The only thing is…she isn’t going to get to choose what kind of assignment she gets. My kid really wanted to be a health volunteer and her application had health related things on it (think…EMT, etc). She was assigned to teach secondary school sciences…and you know what? She loved it.
Have her check out a job site called idealist dot org. Lots of non-profit jobs listed in all areas of the country.
D was volunteer coordinator for our local United Way for a year through AmeriCorps after graduating smack in the middle of the recession with an art history degree. She had an internship with an art museum during undergrad and that internship and the AmeriCorp year led her into her current career path in her college city where she has been very successful. However, that first year out meant living at home, since AmeriCorp pay is less than minimum wage. I think the experience with United Way was wonderful for her as it exposed her to many local non-profits who are partner agencies with UW.
Good luck to her.
If she makes a lot of money, her taxes will go to help many less fortunate people in the USA. Plus, there are innumerable ways she can contribute to her community and other causes.
One of my kids worked for the Breakthrough Collaborative for a few summers. She found that very, very rewarding.
Thanks, everyone. D would love to live on the west coast. I admit that I am baffled at how one pursues volunteer/almost volunteer opportunities in the Greater San Francisco area, unless one has free housing.
LOL. +1. Tell her to get rich however she can and then start a private foundation. It worked for Carnegie, Rockefeller, Gates, Mellon and all the other robber barons. These are the people history loves and remembers.
I think she needs to be realistic in terms of where she goes, affordability and the types of jobs…yes plural…she might need to make ends meet.
She might want to look at a less costly areas of the country…and options “to help mankind” in those locations. There are needy people everywhere.
If your D is outgoing, personable, and enjoys talking to and meeting people, she should pick several non-profits whose work resonates with her and look for an entry level job in the development department. Something like a development associate where she can get involved in the organization’s fundraising efforts. All nonprofits need fundraisers. She can get an idea by googling a nonprofit’s website and see what development jobs might be listed on its website.