<p>“Miami, what we are saying, is that if your community is one of blight, unemployment, and despair, then BECAUSE OF THAT there are many, many opportunities to volunteer to help. A place with huge unemployment numbers has more need for unpaid help with church food pantries.”</p>
<p>-And what I am saying that you have it imagined, truth is that people who cannot find work, completely overhelmed volunteering positions and yes, while they exist, there are waiting lists for many of them. While people on waiting lists can wait for few months, it is TOO LATE for summer volunteering seekers. I am not sure, what part of my explanation is not getting thru, but apparently, most do not realize how bad it is in some parts of the country and according to all propaganda machine, “we are getting better”, but we in our city are NOT getting better, people continue loosing jobs and while some of them are moving, others are staying and filling all kind of positions, jobs, volunteering, internships, just cleanning public places on their own,…whatever. But my message is not getting thru, them forget it.<br>
Bottom line, get whatever you can, May is way too late for most, if you get anything at all, then good for you, if not, be happy to have an opportunity to relax with firends as this opportunity will not last. I believe it is straight forward.</p>
<p>I have two options to choose for summer: go volunteering or go to work. I’d rather work, but I would give out leaflets or work as a waitress then, so nothing impressive, just to get some money. And there is my question: do you think colleges prefer volunteering(it’s developing you, right?) than mundane job and to what extent?</p>
<p>I think we tend to over-think this whole issue. College admissions folks are very appreciative of the fact that many students need to earn money, and the jobs available to young people are not usually very stimulating. It still shows an ability to do what has to be done and a desire to contribute to one’s own financial support. Same with a varsity athlete- it may be necessary to go to sports camps and train all summer.</p>
<p>MiamiDAP tends to believe that her own daughter’s experience is representative of the population of students at large, and it simply is not. Not everyone can cram all their ECs and volunteering in during the school year. In fact, not every student can thrive if overloaded with activities. Not everyone even WANTS a ton of activities and ECs. There are many ways to skin a cat, and just because one student was accepted to certain schools or made a choice to go to a state university with a scholarhip doesn’t mean that’s the right choice for someone else.<br>
What works in Toledo might not work in Dallas or Portland!</p>
<p>I would prefer to see a job; it may be mundane to you but there is a lot in the working world that is mundane or not directly related to what you’re hired to do. If you have a job, you have experience with how you get paid, you see taxes getting taken out, you have to show up on time or even get called in outside of your usual schedule, you have to deal with customers, maybe vendors and you get to the hierarchical work structure.</p>
<p>There may be organizations or individuals that prefer to see some volunteer experience on your resume too.</p>
<p>I worked at several jobs that some might consider mundane when I was a teenager. They all provided me with what I consider valuable experiences.</p>
<p>Job, no question, real responsibilities, just to be able to get a job is already impressive…however, you can do both. many are doing volunteering, working and interning at the same time for several years during school year…</p>
<p>My niece is a freshman in college. My sister just sent her a posting for a summer job. The niece called her up, “Mom, did you realize that this is Monday to Friday from 8 - 5?” HELLO!!! My sister thinks she was a little surprised when my sis said, “Yes, Sweetie, I know it’s a big commitment, but SUCK IT UP!”</p>
<p>I love it oldfort. DS was a little miffed when he realized his summer job probably won’t allow him to just take off for Lollapalooza and Warped Tour. Since he will be working on the same campus as his father, he will also have no excuses about being late every day. His job starts the Monday following graduation and will end two days before he leaves fo college. Talk about sucking it up.</p>
<p>“MiamiDap, what is this “list” of which you speak?”
-You cannot just come to any organization and start doing whatever. You got to have the access, imagine if everybody just starting coming from the streets doing whatever they wish. When D. has contacted several organizations (one that I rmember was Humane Society), she was told at many places that she needs to get on waiting list, but they are so long that there is no way she would be able to get volunteering opportunity in a summer. She did find one place eventually, but it took many days / hours of emailing, calling (much earlier than in May), including people that she knew very well as well as many organizations and people that she did not know. Not everybody would be that persistant. As I said, she even did not need it. She did not need a job either as she was on full tuition Merit award, but she worked for all years in UG any way. She has never ever missed any opportunties…</p>
<p>For those who are worried aobut how to find volunteer opportunities, especially in towns with large waiting lists, check out this website. It has been a great resource for my family over the years.</p>
<p>^Volunteer Match is the first organization you contact, and it is pretty useless…at least from our experience. I have no idea what you can find in a middle of May in any place as many positions got filled in January - February.</p>
<p>Sorry that this resource hasn’t worked for you, MiamiDAP, but it has worked for me, as we have found short-term and long term opportunities. Everything from beach cleanups to calling bingo and helping with crafts at a senior center, to volunteering to help at a teen center with financial aid and college advice. In my area I just found a volunteer summer cheer coach position that isn’t filled yet that I will pass along to an enterprising hs student.</p>
<p>As someone said earlier, what works for Detroit may not work for Boulder, but it is crazy not to put the resources out there, especially when new opportunities come in (and are listed by date so you don’t spin your wheels calling for filled positions. </p>
<p>Also, if it is so bad in your area, maybe you could help organize short-term volunteer activities specifically for the summer, such as highway cleanup, form a Christmas in April/Rebuilding Together or kindness through yard work for the elderly drives. I am sure that many hs and college kids with nothing to do would appreciate you leadership and it would open up more volunteer opportunities right in your neighborhood.</p>
<p>Re a previous post by one poster…I suppose if your kiddo has a full, free ride to their state university, they do not NEED to work during the summers. However, my personal opinion is that this has no bearing on whether a student should do nothing for the summer. The reality is that there ARE opportunities to work or volunteer in most communities if someone really wants to. Like I said upstream…sitting around all summer was not an option in our household.</p>
<p>United way has a TON of resources about volunteer opportunities. I think if I post a link it may list the ones in my area, so instead I’d recommend you do a search on “united way volunteer opportunities”.</p>
<p>^Yes, I agree, just relocate for McDonald job (sorry for repetition) and I have also mentioned that my kid has worked despite the fact that she did not need it, all her years in UG she did in addition to volunteering and interning, both were also multi-year commitments. So, what is a diff. between summer job (that was not available) and much longer commitment to job during school year that also had much more responsibilities and where kiddo made real difference in many lives (according to her employer)? What is a difference between multi-year volunteering during school year that also had tremendous responsibilities and where D. was able to save at least one life (according to police) and volunteering during summer (she had fewer than she wished, because positions were not available, but she had some). Why such a push to do everything in a summer when it is not available? Just to show that your kids could get them and mine could not? Well, I accept inferiority, then what. It does not solve anything. It will not resolve somebody’s frustration trying to find some summer opportunties in May, whatever family choice, it is irrelevant at this point.</p>
<p>^MiamiDAP, why are you taking this so personally? This, like all other threads is about sharing resources and ideas, not just for the OP but for all that follow. So when someone next year pulls up this thread looking for advice, I am hoping that there will be good advice here, about where and when to look for opportunities, about taking a chance and coming up with projects without an organization attached, for the general consensus that doing something is better than nothing.
I certainly wasn’t calling you or your D out personally, but rather tried to post helpful links for those who don’t happen to be in your situation, including the OP who seems to have left the conversation.</p>
<p>^it seems that nobody believing my shring of my experience, it seems that others know much better what is going on in places outside of their home towns. I am just trying to open their eyes. Not everybody has the same opportunities, certainly not everywhere, and in May they might not exist any more, no reason to get somebody else frustrated. I do not care one way or another, my kid is well on her way.</p>