What do you know about "City Year"

[notmytarga]

My daughter is on her fifth quarter of college and is thinking about doing City Year next year.

City Year: give a year. change the world.
The program has a few dozen sites in large cities focusing on keeping students in school through volunteer mentoring. 10 month commitment.

This morning is the first I have heard of the program. She was home for three weeks and didn't mention it. Other options were a year abroad of studying, internships, or just staying in school. Since she hasn't developed a focused career plan, some time off seems prudent.

Anyone have experience with this program? How is it funded - satisfaction of participants, accommodations, costs etc.

I know the Pelican Brain Trust is better than a Google search!

[gtc]

My $.02:
An internship is the only option you mentioned that might actually help her decide on a career path, unless there is a possibility that she might pursue a career in education.
That said, internships can be very difficult to find unless you're a student in a big name school.

[notmytarga]

An internship seems like a great way to explore and network in a field you are interested in. Her interests include writing, journalism, psychology, health care - very unfocused at this time. You are correct that the City Year is about the education system and if she were to teach it would be HS/College. Younger kids and subjects are not her thing it would seem.

I see it like the oft used situation of joining the military to create a focus and discipline. It would give her a year to experience a different environment and area than she is used to and improve her resolve to persue a particular path.



She ran in a Christmas theme 5K - got costumed up!

[porsche4life]

I'll echo what Graham said that it would be a great experience if she wanted to go into education... Not sure about any other field though...

I like the internship idea, but then I have accepted an internship offer for the summer/fall. I really was wanting to take a semester off, and this sort of fell in my lap. Its a really good fit for me, and an excellent opportunity.