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Posted by DebtKid, May 15

The time is here, the time is now. The air of summer is nibbling at the ears of millions of college kids across the nation, and a rising hum of anticipation is heard among a student populace itching for a change of season, a change of pace, a change of something...

One thing is for certain. There will be long lists and long lines, not of enrollment but of young people eager to land the summer job or internship of their dreams. What better way to spend the summer than earning while learning, and having lots of fun?

students

Plan.

Before starting out on your quest for gainful employment, take a long hard look at how you really want to spend your summer. What are you interested in and what type of work will you be happy doing? How many hours are you willing to give each day? Are you in this to have fun, or money? Are you doing this for future career experience? If so, which kind? Career assessment tools will help you narrow down your choices in your search for the perfect summer job.

You'll also have to ask yourself where you might want to work. On campus? Off campus? Out of state? In another country? Yes, it is possible. There are various opportunities for those who know where to look.

Act quickly.

Don’t wait until classes actually end for the search to begin. By that time, all the coveted gigs will have been landed by the most enterprising early birds.

Ask for help.

The Career Services Office in your college is a good source of information, advice and valuable resources to jumpstart you on your way to becoming part of the summer workforce. Websites like NetMentors.Org will connect you with people who can guide you in your job hunt. Don’t hesitate to ask for help.

Search.

Keep your eyes peeled for want ads in newspapers and community bulletin boards which on any given day have full-time or part-time work prospects. The Career Services Office can provide you with job listings in different areas of interests. Try the business and service directory at your local Chamber of Commerce for interesting leads to where you might want to work.

Browse for summer jobs, internships, summer camp jobs, and even part-time job websites. Sites like groovejob.com, The Job Box, JobDoggy.com, MyFirstPaycheck.com, MyFuture.com, Snag A Job, Student Part-time Jobs, Summer Jobs, and TeenJobSection.com are excellent resources for summer job seekers. You can land fun summer gigs that may come with free meals, discounts, and hold your breath… even free hotel accommodations!

It helps to pound the pavement looking for those ‘Help Wanted’ signs, applying in person, and completing applications where jobs are available. Some employers don't advertise job openings, ask anyway.

help wanted

Spread the word.

Tell all your family, friends and acquaintances that you’re in the market for some serious summer employment. Networking is one of the most effective ways to land a gig.

pizza server

There are lots of choices.

Are you the outdoorsy type who loves to hike a trail or camp in the wilderness? You can be a camp counselor. Although the pay may not be that high, if you enjoy working with children and have special skills to share, like crafts, theater, a sport, or arts, you will have an easier time landing this type of job.

If you love travel and the great outdoors, national and state parks are always on the lookout for seasonal park rangers or hiking guides. The National Park Service hires over 3,000 summer workers annually to staff 370 parks all over the country, including Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands. These jobs usually entail free room and board, and are usually snapped up pretty fast. You can get a list of parks in your area and their addresses from the Federal and State Departments of the Interior.

You can travel the world on cruise ships, but be prepared to work long and hard hours. You can also enjoy long road trips like college kids who get paid 35 cents a mile to deliver specialty or recreational vehicles, such as RVs and vans from the manufacturing plants to car dealerships. Summer is a busy time for over 3,800 transportation companies like Horizon Transport or Morgan Driveaway, and what do you know, peak season for these dealers coincides with summer vacation. Have a driver’s license? You can travel coast-to-coast and deliver vehicles for big bucks.

Construction work takes a lot of effort and energy but the pay is high, and if you want to work in the food industry, you needn't settle for the common waiter or waitress. There are lots of other flexible positions like cashier, cook, bartender, busperson, dishwasher, host or hostess, and even manager. While these jobs are easier to land, some jobs require previous experience, like being a bank teller or working in a banking firm. For these much coveted positions, you'll need to send in your resumes much earlier in the year.

Another summer staple are amusement parks which beef up their staff every summer to fill positions for booth operators, grounds assistants, security, ride operators and commission stand handlers. Apart from the pay, employees may even be entitled to free park admission for family or guests, and discounts on merchandise sold on the premises.

Do you see your future in public service? Apply as an intern for summer government jobs in your state. You can visit your local State Employment Office or submit your resumes at the Federal Agency where you wish to work. Remember that the search for internship positions in the government is very competitive.

Pay and hours for jobs in health care may vary depending on whether you choose to work as a clinic receptionist, a lab technician, a dietitian's assistant, or take a custodial post in a nursing home. Museum and library internships will usually gain you a stipend, but there are paid positions available that are filled even before the first quarter of the year is out. You’ll need to act quickly if you want a shot at these jobs.

Try working in retail over the summer. Stores, malls and other retail outlets will usually rehire their summer workers during peak seasons like the holidays. Plus, as an employee, you get to enjoy discounts on the merchandise. The local community theater will always have room for summer job seekers, from acting, to backstage work, to publicity.

If you prefer to be the boss, think about starting your own business. Vive le entrepreneur! Hire out your skills as a landscape artist, t-shirt designer, dog-sitter, website engineer, lifeguard, caterer, house painter… The list is endless for the young and enterprising summer entrepreneur.

job hunting at employment conference

Get set: Applications and Interviews

Now that you've set your sights on your target, or targets, as the case may be, get ready to get into the nitty-gritty of making that job yours. The first and most important thing you have to do is research. Know more about your prospective employer, the history of the business, even its company mission.

Summer job? Absolutely! Not only will this make good practice for your future in the workforce after graduation, it’ll help you prep for the interview, and impress your soon-to-be boss on how well-equipped you are to start the job. Search the Web about your prospective employer, get a hold of company newsletters or fliers, make friends with people who already work there, and ask around.

writing a resume on a computer

Create your resume and cover letter. There are websites with step-by-step guides on you write your resume. Your college's Career Service Office (CSO) may even have a copy of How to Write a Resume and Cover Letter. Also, don't worry about it if you happen to have limited "previous work experience." Everyone has to start somewhere.

When applying online for a job, always remember to attach your resume. If you’re walking in yourself, have your resume on hand. Don’t forget to have a list of references from your previous work, even if it’s from a baby-sitting or volunteer job.

While employers usually don't require an interview to hire someone over the summer, be prepared to do a dialog with your future boss about your work history and how it may have helped prepare you to do the job you're angling for. Practice an interview set-up with your career counselor, or with your friends. It will build your confidence for the actual thing.

Look the part. Whether you’ll be interviewed or not, make sure you dress appropriately: neatly and tidy. Try not to look like you’re auditioning for a bit part in a zombie B-movie.... unless of course, you actually are.

Remember that small gestures always count to make a great impression. Send a 'thank-you' note after the interview. It'll keep you in the employer's mind longer, and score more points in your favor.

summer interns

Got the job? Congratulations!

Keep one foot in the future by asking your boss for a written reference at the end of your summer job or internship. It will make a great addition to your growing resume.


Posted by Renaud Laplanche, Apr 7

Lending Club has started a process to register, with the appropriate securities authorities, promissory notes that may be offered and sold to lenders through our site in the future. Until we complete the registration process, we will not accept new lender registrations or allow new commitments from existing lenders. We will continue to service all previously funded loans during this period, and lenders will be able to access their accounts, monitor their portfolios, and withdraw available funds without changes.

The borrowing side of our site will remain generally unaffected by this registration process; borrowers can continue to apply for loans and new loans posted after April 7, 2008, will be funded and held only by Lending Club.

Until the registration process is completed, the company will undergo a quiet period and will not be able to respond to press and other inquiries about Lending Club or the registration process during that time.


Posted by Scott Reynolds, Apr 7

Today, we happily deployed the second iteration of our company blog.

If you’ve been following Lending Club since we launched last May, you’ll recall that our deployment path was first as a Facebook application, represented primarily through posts on this blog, and at the time Lending Club was available to Facebook members only. In the wake of opening up the platform to users beyond those with Facebook accounts, the organic growth has kept accelerating and that’s been really energizing. While rapid growth has its “good problems to have” per se, e.g., ensuring ongoing scalability and stability in concert with feature developments and other value adds, the challenges and feedback from our members and readers on how well we’re meeting them keep us continually psyched.

Off-the-cuff, here are some highlights of the upgrade:

  • Updates on the front end
    • More seamless look and feel with the rest of our site
    • More integrated, highlighted tertiary navigation specific to the blog
    • Internal and external search optimizations
    • Randomized, standardized rotation of press and video highlights
    • Standardized, more convenient content sharing and syndication options
    • Printer-friendly pages
    • Friendly error pages
  • Updates behind the scenes
    • New caching hooks for improved performance
    • Improved usability measurement and other tracking points
    • Improved anti-spam rules and other security enhancements
    • New content QA routines

We look forward to bringing you more insights, perspectives, musings and debates from the realm of personal finance: borrowing and lending, also social networking and other related technology topics. Whether you’re a new visitor or a longtime subscriber, please enjoy pounding away on this latest configuration and drop us a comment to let us know what you think.

Better Blogging. Together.


Posted by Renaud Laplanche, Jan 21

Free markets are characterized by prices that vary as a function of supply and demand, and Lending Club is no exception. Demand for loans within the Lending Club community has increased 3-fold in the last 30 days, soaring from 100 active listings in December to 300 active listings today. All loan requests are posted by members with at least a 640 FICO score, less than 30% debt-to-income ratio and no current delinquency.

As a result of the surge in loan requests, we are increasing the base rate today by another 25 bps, less than a month after the 50 bps announced on December 24. The Lending Club base rate increases by 25 bps across all loans grades, and rates now vary from 7.37% to 18.61%. See this page for more details on how we set interest rates, based on the risks associated with any given loan: http://www.lendingclub.com/info/how-we-set-interest-rates.action.

All Lending Club loans are fixed-rate, so the rate hike will only apply to new loan listings. As we continue to collect more data and refine our model, the rate-setting mechanism will become automatic, based on real-time supply and demand.

Better rates. Together.


Posted by Patrick Gannon, Jan 17

With 18 days to go until we reach the end of our 5% Cash Bonus program, we want to update everyone on our progress:

• Our growth has been fantastic! We have reached $6MM in issued loans, and have over $3MM of loans in funding today, so our loan volume is growing extremely well

• Our lender base is growing as well – the number of lenders has doubled in the last month alone

• Our next system release (due in the next few days) also offers a great new set of lender tools that makes lending and account management even easier and incorporates feedback from many in our lending community

With all of the growth in loans and loan requests, we want to reach out as widely as possible to current and now prospective lenders with our special offer: Lending Club will give a 5% cash bonus to all lenders who lend $5,000 or more between December 14, 2007 and February 3, 2008. This bonus can be used to lend or can be withdrawn to your linked checking account. There are no special sign-ups needed to participate in this program.

Click here
to read the program details.

Better Lending. Together

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