Americorps....

[suzymoonspider]

I am a junior and thinking of joing Americorp and trying to figure out when to do it. I could do it either this september or next and possibly in January (which is the ideal time but they offer less). I have an appointment to talk about credit with my school. My mom thinks this Sept is too soon and I would be making a rash decisions (mainly cause I want to do it on the OTHER side of the country). What do you think? Or should I scrap the idea all together and wait til after I graduate.

[Eirene_DGP]

One great thing about Americorp is your student loans will be cancelled depending on how long your obligate yourself.

[SATX*APhi]

One of my chapter sisters received a call today regarding her application. They were very impressed by her resume and want her to be a part of the program. Orientation begins this coming Monday, so she isn't sure what to do, as it all begins very soon. She really wants to do it, but isn't sure about beginning next week.

[TheEpitome1920]

Has anyone participated in AmeriCorps? What was your experience like?

[DolphinChicaDDD]

I'm AmeriCorps alumane.
I think it really all depends in the program you choose. I had the opportunity to meet with people from all the AmeriCorps programs in my state (NJ) and some people hated their experience and others loved it so much they signed up for a second term.
I enjoyed my program, because it gave the opportunity to try different aspect of the envrionmental field before leaping into a carrer. Down side would def be the pay, because you are volunteering for a year, but you do get about $5,000 back in education to either put towards future education or pay back student loans. Plus the loans are in deferrment while you are a Corps member.

My advise would be to try and talk to former members of the program you are specifically interested in. Find out what their experiences were, and get them to admit both the positive and the negative. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me:)

ETA: There were 3 other sorority alumane in my program and we would always joke that our AmeriCorps logo sweatshirts were alot like letters because you couldn't wear the logo while drinking, at a bar, while participating in politics, etc. There is a whole list of prohibited activites- much like most of our bylaws.

[TheEpitome1920]

Originally posted by DolphinChicaDDD


ETA: There were 3 other sorority alumane in my program and we would always joke that our AmeriCorps logo sweatshirts were alot like letters because you couldn't wear the logo while drinking, at a bar, while participating in politics, etc. There is a whole list of prohibited activites- much like most of our bylaws.

That's really interesting. But makes sense.

[TheWriter]

I am currently involved Americorp(Began Sept 05) through Notre Dame Mission Volunteers and I love it. The national office for this program is located in Baltimore and I was lucky enough to placed at a Baltimore site but many of the volunteers are from different states and one is from Kenya. The volunteers are placed in different locations in US and Africa. The majority of the Americorp volunteers I work with graduated from college this year(2005) and others are older. I graduated from college in 04 and I using my educational stipend to pay for grad school in 2006.

-I love my Americorp sweatshirt, We get free gear everytime we have a meeting. Ditto to what DolphinChicaDDD, research as much as possible. Here is the site for my program: www.ndmva.org

Feel free to ask me any questions.

[KillarneyRose]

My younger sister did AmeriCorp for a year between college and medical school and she has always said that it was a very rewarding experience.

[AGDee]

City Year Detroit (Americorps) works out of my building and I think it's a great program. It is one of the reasons that I started being in favor of mandatory community service after high school graduation (community or military).

[deadbear80]

Originally posted by AGDee
City Year Detroit (Americorps) works out of my building and I think it's a great program. It is one of the reasons that I started being in favor of mandatory community service after high school graduation (community or military).

I did City Year in Boston after I graduated from undergrad and LOVED it! Glad to hear that the other nation-wide City Year programs are impacting the community and making good names for themselves:)

[AXOVolley]

I am currently serving as an Americorps VISTA in my home state of WV. I decided that I needed a break between college & graduate school. I began my service this past July and it has been a great experience thus far. I would definitely recommend it.