AmeriCorps Career and Employment Planning Assistants

About the role

Through the AmeriCorps Texas grant program, Texas Southmost College (TSC) will have AmeriCorps members who will increase communication about and access to campus resources and support and increase engagement in campus activities and with academic support services at TSC in Brownsville, Texas. At the end of the first program year, AmeriCorps members will be responsible for increasing the fall-to-spring persistence rate of TSC students served by the program to 75% and the fall-to-fall persistence rate to 63%.

Responsibilities

• Serve in the Career and Employment Office to help increase communication about and access to campus resources and support.
• Contact students about how Career and Employment Office services can help current students plan for individual career paths and securing their first professional job based on their persistence courses at TSC.
• Conduct one-on-one tutoring sessions with students for resume writing, cover letters, job searches, personality assessments, employment referrals, and mock interviews as part of student development at TSC.
• Assist students in applying for jobs, especially on campus, that provide them with the means to persist in college.
• Aid in mapping out incoming student college transfers, shaping current student’s career aspirations, and navigating current student’s post-graduation job placements and student career readiness training.
• Assist in promoting, coordinating, and implementing student engagement events and outreach efforts for student services (e.g., Welcome Week, campus events, conferences, webinars) to disseminate knowledge of college procedures and policies to students.
• Measure outcomes: track number of students with undecided or undeclared major who are directly contacted, visit the Career and Employment Office, and persist to end of term/completion, register for and attend following term (Winter/Spring from Fall or Summer/Fall from Spring), and register for and attend term starting one year from initial point or complete program.
• Track number of students who take the Student Interests Survey under supervision and persist to end of term/completion, register for and attend following term, and register for and attend term starting one year or complete program.
• Track number of students who work on job application material or complete a job application with assistance and persist to end of term/completion, register for and attend following term, and register for and attend term starting one year or complete program.

Physical demands: While performing duties, the employee is frequently required to stand; occasionally required to walk, sit, use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl; talk or hear; and taste or smell. Must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.