Our Career Coaches are the heart of our career work. We hope to leverage your personal experiences and skills to guide our students in their first career steps. We know that our scholars will make the next generation of leaders and it is thanks to you that they will be equipped with the skills and knowledge to make them excellent. Over the course of seven months, we hope that you will engage and build a meaningful relationship with your scholar(s) as they explore career opportunities and possibilities. Our students come from a range of backgrounds and experiences. We hope that you can add your own knowledge to help them be the best they can be.

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1. Recommended Tools & Equipment:

   The Career Coach program is a virtual program that provides an opportunity for first-generation college students to connect with professionals from different industries for career mentorship. Coaches and students can connect by text, phone, email and video calls. As this is a strictly virtual program, these are the recommended tools and equipment for Career Coaches:

   • Computer
   • Reliable internet connection
   • Phone
   • Headphones

2. Career Coaching Logs (LINK):

   After each interaction, we request that both coaches and students capture notes. Career Coaches are asked to complete a Career Coaching Log to share an overview of the meeting and students’ next steps. This will help us better understand the program and students’ needs, deepening our engagement with students and/or provide us with feedback to continuously improve our programs.

3. ScholarMatch Policy:

   Please review this document regarding ScholarMatch’s policy on the Career Coach selection process.

   Note: Our top priority is the safety and wellbeing of our students. If we identify any misconduct or violation of policies and/or procedures, we will promptly begin an investigation.

4. Matching Process Expectations:

   ScholarMatch selects volunteers based on program capacity and discretion. While we strive our best to match every eligible volunteer with a scholar, our team cannot guarantee a spot in the program every term. Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns.

1. Best practices for coaching students:

   Based on research and our advisors’ experiences, we’ve compiled a list of best practices for working with our first-generation college students. This document will be available to you on the Career Coach Resource Page for future reference.

2. Understanding Our Diverse Students:

   Please review this document to learn more about the first-generation college student experience. While they share the identity of being the first in their family to attend college, each student has a unique story and background.Thank you for listening to their stories and giving them space to bring their whole self. We are confident that our Career Coaches will treat our students with the utmost dignity and respect during every interaction.

3. Actions to avoid:

   While we all bring our professional expertise to coach our students, everyone has a unique story and background. We have created a resource that outlines behaviors we think is best to avoid for the most fruitful conversations that bring out the best in both the coaches and students.

4. Crisis Management & Emergency Protocol:

   Although it is not a common occurrence, our students may describe or exhibit behaviors that may concern you. Please use this guide to identify and address emergency situations.

1. 1. Career Milestones:

      Each scholar is required to complete Career Milestones throughout the duration of the program. These milestones were designed to prepare our scholars for their summer internship. Your role is to provide guidance as our scholars work towards their goal.

      The Career Milestones serve as a curriculum for the program. The first half focuses on job searching skills and the second half prepares students for the working environment. As you can see on the webpage, there are two milestones to complete each month. Career Coaches and scholars are responsible for scheduling two interactions every month to review the topics and complete the respective milestones.

   2. How to Prepare:

      To help you and your scholar(s) prepare for each meeting, we have created resources for all Career Milestones. You can find the student and coach resources by clicking on the milestone name, which expands to reveal the description and relevant links. We strongly encourage you to utilize these resources before and during your interaction with your scholar(s). Students will be asked to review their resources before meeting with their Career Coaches.

      

      We want to stress that your role is of mentorship and support. We never want you to feel that your job is to be their sole support pillar or to have all the answers. You have the full network of support offered by the ScholarMatch community. You are not alone in this work and if you ever encounter a problem you’re unfamiliar with, please reach out to us!

   3. Scholar Expectations:

      Students are expected to prepare for every meeting by reviewing the Student Resources for each Career Milestone, and completing assigned next steps from a previous interaction. After meeting with their Career Coaches, students need to track their progress by completing the Career Milestone completion forms.

    

   How to complete this module:

   Please read through each section carefully before answering the questions in the questions for this module. Each underlined text is a link. Once you review the information, click on the button below to access the form.

1. Scholar’s Career Resources:

   This page features resources, job boards and internships that are curated by ScholarMatch staff. Students and coaches are invited to use resume and cover letter samples, articles about job search trends, and other resources during their meetings.

2. Career Coach Resource Page:

   To make it easier for our coaches to keep track of important links and documents, we’ve created a resource page just for our coaches! Please bookmark the page to access it each time you meet with a student!

3. ScholarMatch Volunteer LinkedIn Group:

   Coaches need community, too! We invite you to join our LinkedIn group that brings together Career Coaches from all over the world. Through this group, our staff will be sharing ScholarMatch announcements, tips for career coaching, and featured internships and jobs that your students may be interested in. Please login to your account to access our page, send a request to join the group, and check back often for great resources and information!

4. Career Community:

   Password is ‘Connect2020’

   Our Career Community is a resource that’s designed for our scholars to connect with volunteers for brief interactions, such as informational interviews. During your coaching term, your scholar may have industry-specific questions as they explore different career paths. Utilize the Career Community as a resource and make recommendations for expanding their professional network. Click here for a quick overview. Interested in joining the Career Community? Simply complete a Career Coach Profile to connect with more students!

5. Contact Us:
   We’d love to hear from you!

   Our office is open from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. PST.
   If you have any questions or concerns, please email careers@scholarmatch.org. For urgent matters, call us at 415-652-2766.