Comparison of Six National Service Corps That Work in Schools
Enlisting in a service corps is a great commitment: long hours, little pay, intense investment in the people you serve, and often close quarters with
other corps members or colleagues.
On top of that, many program options are available to you. Domestic and international, secular and faith-based, direct service and indirect service,
famous and obscure, individual placement and team-based placement—so many options! Even among corps that serve in schools, you have many
choices—urban or rural; classroom teaching or small group instruction; ten-month to three-year terms.
You owe it to yourself and the corps to investigate your options thoroughly. But you also have to know yourself, your preferences, your requirements, and your goals.
Be smart about your search! Ask yourself what your motivation is for serving, what you see yourself doing from day to day, what you need to be able to serve full-time.
Also ask yourself what you have to offer a program, a community.
Below are six examples of national service corps that work in schools. Find more national and international service opportunities at www.idealist.org/thenewservice
Table 1: General Comparison of Six National Service Corps That Work in Schools
Blue Engine
www.blueengine.org
City Year
www.cityyear.org
Inner City Teaching Corps
www.Ictc-chicago.org
MATCH Corps
www.matchschool.org/
matchcorps/process.htm
NYC Teaching Fellows
www.nyctf.org
Teach For America
www.teachforamerica.org
Mission
To harness the power
of national service to
accelerate student
achievement in U.S.
public high schools.
To build democracy
through citizen service, civic engagement, and social
entrepreneurship.
To transform education
in under-served communities and to empower
children in urban Chicago
schools.
To facilitate college success
and beyond for middle and
high school students by
closing the racial achievement gap.
To recruit and prepare
high-quality, dedicated
individuals to become
teachers who raise
student achievement
in the New York City
classrooms that need
them most.
To build the movement
to eliminate educational
inequity by enlisting our
nation’s most promising future leaders in the
effort.
Location
New York City
20 cities throughout the
United States
Parochial and charter
schools on Chicago’s
South and West Sides
MATCH Charter School in
Boston
High needs schools in
the Bronx and central
Brooklyn
26-29 urban and rural
areas throughout the
United States
Term of service
One school year (1700
hours)
10 months (1700 hours)
Two years
One school year
Three years
Two years
Age and other
eligibility issues
Bachelors (any major),
2.5 GPA; recent college
graduate; U.S. citizenship or national/permanent resident
18-24, U.S. citizenship or
national/perma-nent resident; high school diploma
or GED (or willing to earn
one during the term)
Bachelors degree (any
major); 3.0 GPA; U.S.
citizenship or national/
permanent resident
Bachelors degree; recent
college graduate; U.S. citizenship or national/permanent
resident
Bachelors, 3.0 GPA, U.S.
citizen or national/permanent resident, fluent
in English, NO teaching
certification or education background
Bachelors degree (any
major), 2.5 GPA, U.S.
citizenship or national/
permanent resident
Primary activities
Daily small group tutoring sessions; curricular
planning; college visits;
after-school activities
One-on-one and small
Full-time classroom
group tutoring; teaching
teaching
assistance; leading afterschool clubs and activities
Daily, one-on-one and small
group tutoring sessions in
different subject areas
Full-time classroom
teaching
Full-time classroom
teaching
Comparison of Six National Service Corps That Work in Schools (continued)
Table 2: Comparison of Education Benefits in Six National Service Corps That Work in Schools
Blue Engine
City Year
Inner City
Teaching Corps
MATCH Corps
NYC Teaching
Fellows
Education Award (pegged to maximum Pell Grant each year; use
towards qualified student loans and/or tuition at Title IV schools)
at the completion of a full term of service
X
X
X
X
(AmeriCorps
participation
optional)
X
(AmeriCorps
participation
optional)
X
Deferment or forbearance of qualified student loans
X
X
X
X (optional)
X (optional)
X
Cancellation of qualified student loans
X
X
X
X (optional)
X (optional)
X
Payment of accrued interest on qualified student loans
X
X
X (optional)
X (optional)
X
School partnerships offering Education Award matching grants
X
X
X (optional)
X (optional)
X
Specially negotiated school partnerships offering fellowship
programs for alumni
(coming soon)
X
Specially negotiated school partnerships offering admissions
deferments, application fee waivers, scholarship funding
(coming soon)
X
X
Teach For America
X
X
Participation in the program includes fees and assistance in
teacher certification (may be alternative or provisional license)
X
Participation in the program leads to graduate credits or graduate
degree (participants may be expected to contribute some fees)
X
X
X
X
X
Table 3: Comparison of Pay, Health Care, and Other Benefits in Six National Service Corps That Work in Schools
Blue Engine
City Year
Inner City
Teaching Corps
MATCH Corps
NYC Teaching
Fellows
Payment and
other benefits
$1200/month stipend
(for 12 months); transit
pass
Stipend varies depending on location (in NYC,
$1100/month); T-Mobile
cell phone; uniform
$150/month stipend;
housing; meals; transportation
$650-$850/month
stipend; housing
Health benefits
Basic health insurance
Basic health insurance
Blue Cross Blue Shield
health insurance (including dental and vision)
Basic health and dental Health benefits as
insurance
negotiated by United
Federation of Teachers contract for all
NYC teachers
For much more information about national and international service opportunities, visit www.idealist.org/thenewservice
First-year teacher’s
salary (approximately
$45,530)
Teach For America
First-year teacher’s salary (ranging from $27,000
to $47,500, depending on
district); assistance with
relocation costs on an
as-needed basis
Same health insurance
offered to other teachers in
the placement district