Not the Job for Everyone – Was Definitely the Job for Me
Pros
-Great mission. Our students are awesome, and working with SAGA 100% changed my life. It made everything else about this job so worth it for me – but that's not the case for everyone. You should really only apply if you think you'll be fulfilled by the work. -Much more supported than Teach for America or most other education service-year jobs. (You only work with a handful of students at a time, you work with a whole team that you can collaborate with, and you have a coach that is often a former teacher who can help manage emergencies or any other difficulties that arise.) -If you think you want to go into education, a year with SAGA will give you great experience, insight to what the job is like, and it won't burn you out. -Comprehensive training in the summer. The quality of SAGA tutoring is much higher than most tutoring jobs, and tutors learn so many valuable *teaching skills* in the 2-week summer training. (I'm now in grad school for math education, and all of SAGA's practices align with the forefront recommended practices for math teachers.)
Cons
-Pay is low, especially given how many responsibilities tutors have (it's a service year job, so you just need to know what you're signing up for!) -Benefits aren't great, but HR is working toward more discount programs -There are many improvements in the works – including a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion training component, and structural changes to make senior leadership more effective and transparent. Progress is slow, but I believe the company's hearts are in the right place! Will hopefully see the full effect of these reforms by next school year.