Volunteer College Coach

Volunteer College Coach

Department: College & Career

Employment Type: Volunteer

Location: New York, NY

Description

Breakthrough New York empowers motivated students from low-income communities to achieve a college degree and reach their fullest potential. Our tuition-free program supports over 500 students and their families from 7th grade through college graduation. We accept middle school students who are furthest from high-quality educational opportunities yet show promise and potential: 99% of students identify as persons of color; 76% qualify for free or reduced lunch; and 66% will be the first in their families to graduate college.

As a ten-year program, Breakthrough New York supports students and their families through key transition points in their academic journeys. We provide academic enrichment through summer and after-school opportunities; coach students to gain admissions into selective high schools and colleges, and expose students to diverse interests and careers so they can shape their own trajectories.

In addition to nurturing individual talent, we cultivate a thriving community of like-minded peers and mentors who encourage each other's ambitions and passions. Personalized mentorship and holistic support are signature elements of our model, with over 200 near-peer seasonal staff and volunteers who work with students at each stage of our continuum.

The Breakthrough model works: over 98% of Breakthrough students graduate from college preparatory high schools, and 100% are on track to graduate from college. Learn more at Breakthrough NY's website.

ABOUT THE POSITION

Breakthrough New York's College & Career Success Program supports students on their path to on-time college graduation (within 4-6 years) by providing consistent academic and career support. We guide students through academic and financial processes as well as potential challenges, while providing them with career development tools and resources, all with the ultimate goal of fostering upward socioeconomic mobility. As a volunteer College Coach, you will provide holistic, outcomes-based & student-centered mentorship to a caseload of up to five upperclassmen college students throughout the year to ensure that they have access to resources and guidance to be successful academically and professionally. Working closely with the Director of the College and Career Program, College Coaches meet (virtually or in-person) with each student on their caseload on a bimonthly basis to check-in and follow-up regarding progress towards key milestones (such as class registration, FAFSA completion and internship placement). This will require building positive, affirming relationships with students and offering guidance relevant to their experience and their goals; following the bimonthly coach checklist to share vital information with students as well as additional resources/program announcements/key updates/etc.; reaching out to students at least four times during each check-in month and communicating with the Director if students are ultimately unresponsive; submitting timely, detailed case notes summarizing coaching sessions with students; and elevating critical student concerns to the Director for additional support.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES WILL INCLUDE

Student Advising and Support (40%):

• Building a positive, authentic relationship with your students in a way that centers their goals and interests and maintains trust through consistency and mutual investment.
• Offering holistic, perspective-affirming support across four main "buckets": academic progress, career readiness, college affordability, and socioemotional well-being.
• Proactively communicating with students (via text/email) in general, and specifically to schedule "coach talks" or check-in sessions, which can be held virtually (over the phone/video call) or in-person. This includes reaching out to students (rather than waiting for them to reach out to you), as well as responding to student outreach in a timely manner (as opposed to leaving their messages unanswered).
• Reviewing bimonthly coach talk checklists in preparation for coach talks to ensure that you share pertinent updates with students, complete required activities together, and understand which key pieces of information to learn from your student to share in case notes.
• Being available to meet with each student (up to five students) for at least 30 minutes (or up to one hour) on a bimonthly basis (for example, if a college coach has 4 students on their caseload, they might be available to meet with each student for up to an hour, meaning 4 hours total for a single month).
• Continuing to communicate with students who are unresponsive to initial outreach to schedule a coach talk. Coaches should anticipate that students will not be immediately responsive to their outreach, and plan to reach out at least four times during the month to schedule a coach talk.
• Coaches MUST be available to meet with each student on their caseload for coach talks during the following months: July, September, November, January, March, and May, for a total of at least SIX coach talks per student. Coaches can meet with students (or check-in via text/email) during the off-months as well, depending on student need and coach availability.

Caseload Management and Case Note Submission (35%):

• Submitting case notes in a timely manner before the end of each coach talk month. Writing case notes can take as much as 15 minutes (and sometimes longer), so coaches should allot an appropriate amount of time to ensure that they submit quality case notes with punctuality for each student on their caseload.
• Submitting case notes that are specific, substantive, and clear, including references to matters discussed in coach talks with students with the goal of communicating updates in robust detail so that the College team will be kept well-informed of student progress/challenges when reviewing case notes.
• Submitting case notes when students are not responsive to outreach after reaching out at least four times, specifically indicating that students "did not communicate".
• Communicating critical high-level concerns with the Director of the College and Career Program to triage complex situations that students might navigate, specifically related to their ability to graduate college on-time (such as failing several classes, not being able to afford the semester, etc.).
• Elevating emergency student situations to the Director of the College and Career Program so that Breakthrough New York full-time staff can appropriately respond.

Coach Development (25%):

• Being available to participate in the following four MANDATORY virtual coach training sessions:
  • College Coach Orientation (June 24 and 25, 2025 from 6PM to 7:30PM).
  • Fall Training (September 9 and 10, 2025 from 6PM to 7:30PM)
  • Winter Training (December 9 and 10, 2025 from 6PM to 7:30PM)
  • Spring Training (March 10 and 11, 2026 from 6PM to 7:30PM)
  • Please note: coaches only need to attend one date of each training session.
• Being available for a 1:1 check-in meeting (between January 2026 and March 2026) with the Director, College and Career, regarding the students on your caseload and their progress so far.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree is required
• Near-peer preferred; NYC-based preferred
• In-depth understanding of the current postsecondary education landscape and/or current trends in your industry preferred
• Experience working with youth/coaching young people towards specific goals and/or through obstacles
• Ability to engage effectively with youth across diverse backgrounds, including those from historically underserved communities
• Relative flexibility in weekly schedule to accommodate coach talks with students
• Passionate about connecting youth with folks in your community/network to support career development
• Can commit to one-year of support
• Demonstrates commitment to in BTNY's Core Values