AmeriCorps an Option for Grads, College Students

This month, high schools are sending thousands of students into a market with few jobs for high school graduates and tight funding opportunities for college-bound seniors.

Students heading to college may first need to work for a year. Families have seen their investment portfolios dwindle, and non-profits are tightening their belts on scholarships and other giving. That adds up to plenty of job-seekers but few potential jobs for high school graduates.

Many graduates and current college students are looking into a year of service before returning to academics or a traditional job. One service opportunity is AmeriCorps. While most companies and government agencies are cutting jobs, AmeriCorps continues to offer 75,000 full-time jobs for high school graduates each year. The positions are also ideal for recent college graduates who expect to continue with graduate school or perhaps a trade school.

The program is designed to offer meaningful jobs for high school graduates, a small stipend and a $4,700 scholarship that can be used at most colleges, universities and trade schools. Moreover, AmeriCorps positions typically include valuable on-the-job training for a variety of marketable skills.

AmeriCorps has three programs. The most popular for high school graduates and college students is the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC), which provides full-time jobs for high school graduates. The youths aged 18 to 24 are assigned to a team and one of five home bases - Denver; Sacramento; Perry Point, Md.; Vicksburg, Miss.; and Vinton, Iowa.

There, they learn first aid, public safety and team-building skills. They then travel around the nation for six- to eight-week service projects. The work includes service industry work such as tutoring disadvantaged youth and improving health services. The first is valuable experience for any graduate interested in education work and the second could boost the resume of a nurse or other medical worker. Both industries are expected to continue growing in coming years.

There is also production-sector experience available in construction of low-income housing, cleaning and restoring parks and wetlands and disaster response. Again, such work will likely be in high demand.

Moreover, AmeriCorps provides team-building skills and teaches youths how to work effectively with others. Managers and job experts repeatedly suggest management and teamwork skills are among the most valuable traits in workers - and the most difficult to teach.

Those seeking jobs for high school graduates can learn more about AmeriCorps here.