11 Summer Job Resources for Teens and Young Adults with Disabilities

Looking for a summer job?For teens and young adults with disabilities, it can be difficult to find a job. The unemployment rate is exceptionally high among teenagers, and it’s even higher among youth with disabilities. It can be difficult to know where to look for a job — even just a summer job — and resources can be tough to find.

In order to help combat this trend, Partners for Youth with Disabilities recently held a Summer Jobs Workshop to help Boston-area teens and young adults with disabilities find jobs. As a part of the workshop, we provided attendees with a list of local employment resources and options, which we wanted to share more widely.

The full list of 11 summer job resources can be found below. Know of any that we missed? Please share in the comments!

General Options

1. Local Neighborhood: It’s worth swinging by your local movie theaters, grocery stores, golf courses, and coffee shops on a regular basis to see if they are hiring. Even if they aren’t, you can always put your resume on file with them and ask them to consider you the next time they have an opening.

2. Summer Camps: There are a large number of residential and day camps across Massachusetts, and they all need to hire counselors over the summer months. Check in with local schools and Boys and Girls Clubs for day camp opportunities in your area, and check out the American Camp Association’s website for ongoing counselor and staff positions at other New England camps.

Boston-area Opportunities

3. Boston Youth Zone & Fund: The Boston Youth Zone is a comprehensive online listing of activities, job opportunities, after-school programs, and other fun things for Boston’s kids and teens to do. It is also connected with the Boston Youth Fund, whose mission is to help Boston-area teens get jobs. The deadline for the Youth Fund has passed for this year, but be sure to apply next year during January/February.

4. Boston’s Private Industry Council: The Boston Private Industry Council (PIC) offers Boston Public School students a variety of ways to work and learn. Whether you need help passing MCAS, finding a summer job, or want to explore a career, the PIC can help.

5. Boston Center for Independent Living, TIPS Program: The BCIL TIPs program hires interns and matches them with partner sites where they work for the summer. Interns can work for their site between ten to twenty hours per week and will also be expected to attend weekly employment skill building workshops at BCIL. The deadline for application has also passed, but this program will be offered again next year.

6. Department of Conservation and Recreation: The DCR has a Summer Work / STEP program for local teens. Summer workers assists in the smooth operation, maintenance, and cleanliness of their assigned Recreation facility at parks, pools, beaches, reservation and other DCR areas. Applications are due in mid-April.

7. Boston ABCD: ABCD matches low-income youth with partner worksites throughout Boston for summer employment. Participants receive guidance, work readiness and life skills training to learn about resume writing, financial education, conflict resolution, and workplace etiquette. Registration closed in mid-March, so check in again next year.

8. City of Boston Internships: A City of Boston Internship provides students enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate degree program a rigorous learning experience, gaining valuable skills from a City Department. Interns are hired on an ongoing basis.

9. Thompson Island: The Green Ambassador Youth Employment Program provides youth from the Greater Boston area professional experience within the ‘green collar’ economy. It is a partnership program with Thompson Island Outward Bound Educational Center (TIOBEC) and the National Park Service (NPS). The program engages youth with their local environment and fosters investment in future green pathways.

10. New England Aquarium Teen InternshipThe Aquarium offers paid summer and volunteer internships for Boston, Cambridge and suburban youth for six weeks in July and August. Interns receive valuable training and hands-on learning experiences. There are positions available in various departments throughout the Aquarium including education, gift shop and camp.

11. Wakefield Trust Internship: Each summer, the Wakefield Estate offers internships for local high school and college-age youth interested in working outside and learning landscape management skills. The landscape internship typically runs from early July to mid -August and interns work about 20 hours per week. Interns receive a weekly stipend and are supervised by the estate’s landscape supervisor.

For more employment and transition resources, follow along with PYD through Facebook or Twitter.
You can also find our full Summer Job Resources packet on our blog.

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