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Find information about:

Living on a budget
Using your Education Award
Employment after the WCC

Living on a Budget

(Living on a Budget prepared by King County Individual Placement, Meryl Kamowski)

Income

Probably going to clear ~$1000/month after taxes

Rent

Rent a room in a house, sublet, take on an extra roommate for summer (college students), pay on time and avoid late fees!

Utilities

Heating assistance (DSHS)

Simple conservation: turn down heat when leaving home and at night, only keep on necessary lights, keep fridge at (safe) low setting, let the yellow mellow, shorten your showers (or don’t shower-like a true WCC member).

Phone

Phone assistance (DSHS): pays percentage of cost for a landline
Consider pre-paid cell phone plan to prevent going over minutes
Go in with a friend/relative on a couples/family plan

Food

Food Stamps (DSHS) http://www1.dshs.wa.gov/

Those who are eligible will receive an EBT card (similar to Debit card) with ~$152/month. Make sure you find out the date your EBT card balance is renewed. Apply online as soon as possible because your benefits will be back dated. When you have your interview you will need to take a letter from Olympia saying you are enrolled in an AmeriCorps program. Your supervisor can request this letter from the WCC Admin office.

Transportation

Carpooling: Figure out gas money situation (and be nice to the driver!)
Bus passes: Look into purchasing bus pass through a pre-tax bus pass program.
Purchase bus pass with pre-tax dollars. Information at: http://transit.metrokc.gov/cs/employer/pdf/ps-pre-tax_brochure.pdf

Compare monthly pass versus pack of tickets:
Example (Seattle): Monthly Pass $1.50 pass = $54 or 20 $1.50 tickets = $30 (These tickets are good any month)

How many bus trips do you make in a month?

Greyhound bus companion fare (2 for 1 deal) www.greyhound.com/

Rental Cars: Enterprise is as cheap as $14.99/day if you book a month in advance (Plus an additional fee for drivers under 25).

Clothes, Furniture, and House hold items

Seek out thrift stores, garage sales, and online communities!

www.freecycle.org (free items, search by community)
www.2good2toss.com (items free and up to $99)
http://national.citysearch.com/ Go to “shopping,” then “consignment/thrift stores” and it will rate the store, give address, and distance from your location.

Managing it all…

Budgeting: How much "extra" cash do you really have?
Direct deposit/Automatic Withdrawal
Direct Deposit Advance—in case of unexpected expenses

Extra income

House sit, baby sit, yard work, have your own garage sale, check out Craig’s list for one time/weekend job opportunities.

Fun on a Budget

Seattle

Mariner Baseball games: $7 bleacher seats and $50 family packs for four (hot dogs included)
Pacific Northwest Ballet: cheapest tickets $20 http://pnb.org/
Seattle Repertory Theatre: $10 tickets for any show/any seat if under 25 yrs. www.seattlerep.org/home.html Volunteer for free or reduced admission
Hike that Seattle favorite: Mount Si. Learn all about it on the website: http://www.mountsi.com/.
St. Mark's Cathedral in Seattle offers their soaring Compline concert for free each Sunday at 9:30pm. For more info, check them out: http://www.saintmarks.org/Worship/Music/Compline.php.
Fringe Theatre Festival (Fall)
Frye Art Museum - free admission
St. James Cathedral offers a series of classical music concerts during each school year. Mostly free, some by donation. Visit them online: http://www.stjames-cathedral.org/music/,then click on "2005-2006 Concerts."
Burke Museum - $8 admission
Crest Movie Theatre - $3 admission 16505 Fifth N.E. Seattle, WA 98155 (206) 781-5755
Hunt for places with a cheap or free cover charge for live music.
Check out The Stranger or Seattle Weekly for cheap eats in their food rating sections. Hit up Happy Hours for meal/drink deals.

Other Ideas:

Burke Gillman Trail
UW Arboretum
Conservatory at Volunteer Park
Demo gardens and UW greenhouse
Rent a canoe/kayak from UW Rec. center
Hang out on Alki Beach or Golden Gardens Park

Education Award

Visit My AmeriCorps and take care of all issues related to the Education Award. Register online and no more paper forms! Using My AmeriCorps will also speed up the process. Go to: https://my.americorps.gov

Find out all about the Education Award in this handout (PDF).

Got questions about the AmeriCorps Education Award?

Click here to read an Ed Award Chat Transcript that provides some answers to member questions.

Find out which schools offer a match for the AmeriCorps Education Award.

Database available at National AmeriCorps Association

More information about Financial Aid:

www.finaid.org
www.students.gov
www.fafsa.ed.gov (online free application for federal student aid)
www.americorps.org/ (AmeriCorps Home Page)

Employment After the WCC

Preparing for Employment After the WCC

The Job Hunt:

Research: Use newspapers, websites, and other resources to learn about employers. Find out about specific jobs by checking out the Occupational Outlook Handbook available online at www.bls.gov/oco. The Handbook lists the following information about an occupation: training and education needs, earnings, expected job prospects, typical work duties and working conditions. Take notes on key jargon used in the field—use this in your résumé and on job applications.
Network:
- Attend events that professionals in your field might also attend. Some examples include academic presentations, non-profit annual meetings, and fundraisers. Remember to step outside of your comfort zone and approach people at these events.
- Contact potential employers. Offer to volunteer for a day assisting them in the field.
- Ask your current sponsor for tips on finding employment within their organization.
Your résumé:
- The Basics: List your name, address, e-mail address, and telephone number at the top. Include a career objective for the specific job for which you are applying. Many employers will toss out a résumé that has not been tailored to them.
- Education: Include degree, graduation date, and institution. List your major and GPA. Include information about your studies without listing every course.
- Work Experience:
  §    Start with most recent job. List most significant title, employer’s name and city, dates of employment. Example:
  Crew Member, Washington Conservation Corps, Olympia, WA (10/06 - 09/07).
  §    Use action verbs. List your achievements and skills relevant to the job. Include language used in job announcement. Demonstrate communication, management, and interpersonal skills.
  §    Highlight technical skills—list software programs that you know
Other Tips: Avoid using columns to organize. If your résumé is scanned, the text may become jumbled. Use one easy-to-read font throughout (10-12 point). Avoid personal pronouns. Leave out humor. Use quality paper and ink. Use action verbs.
Cover Letter: Three paragraphs: Opening (demonstrate knowledge of the organization), Body (explain how your skills are a perfect match for the organization), Closing (ask for an interview, list when and how to best contact you).
Proofread: Your Supervisor, Coordinator, and Sponsor are all great resources for proofreading your résumé and cover letter.

Job announcements

The WCC staff often receive job announcements from environmental organizations seeking our Alums! We forward these messages along to our Alums through our ListServ.

<-- Click here if you want to be on this list, or send an email to: wcc.update@ecy.wa.gov with the words "Alum Subscription" in the subject line.

Continue working in public service!

Visit the State of Washington Department of Personnel's website to view current job opportunities: www.dop.wa.gov. Create a profile and attach your résumé.
Federal government job openings are posted online at: http://www.usajobs.gov/.
Find a good database of Washington jobs in a variety of fields, go to the WorkSource website at: https://fortress.wa.gov/esd/worksource/Employment.aspx.

Questions or comments? Contact WCC.