BEAM Counselor and Teaching Assistant
This summer, be part of a transformative experience for students from low-income and historically marginalized communities with exceptional potential in math. Be a role model, guide, and friend to your students as they begin their path to advanced mathematics.
sUMMER PROGRAM POSITIONS
We invite college students and recent graduates to work as Counselor/Teaching Assistant (TA) at either:
BEAM Discovery, a five-week program for rising 7th-graders from New York City and Los Angeles.
BEAM Summer Away, a three-week program for rising 8th-graders from New York City and Los Angeles.
As a counselor at either program, you'll have both an academic and a non-academic role:
be a role model and mentor to the students,
run activities each day for them to relax and socialize, and
assist in mathematics courses: guide students through challenging problems, assist instructors, and help give feedback to students on their work.
We're looking for counselors who are reliable, take initiative, who will inspire the students to do better, and who are who can think on their feet while supporting students learning advanced math. The camp's academics will be challenging to everyone, with courses on topics such as combinatorics, number theory, problem solving, graph theory, game theory, and more, so you'll get plenty of chances to stretch your mathematical muscles.
We are looking both for counselors to work at our 5-week Discovery program, as well as our shorter but more intensive 3-week Summer Away program. If needed, we will provide you with the technology and tools needed for you to participate.
What is the job like?
For the first time, the students at this program will discover that they don't have to be alone to do math. As counselors, it's your job to create the unique social environment at the program and also to provide critical support for the academics. While there are differences between the specific tasks to be done at each program, all counselors are role models to students, helping them adjust to the program and develop their self-identities. Counselors must work as a team to meet the needs of students and the program. General responsibilities include:
Supervising students.
Running activities.
Building the social environment.
Working with students on mathematics, both one-on-one and as teaching assistants.
At Summer Away, living in the dorms as a student hall leader.
At Discovery, helping students get to-and-from the program.
This is a demanding job and you should expect to work very hard, but it is also very rewarding. You need to give it your all—but in return, you will change the life of some amazing kids, gain teaching experience, and get plenty of chances to learn some new math yourself. You'll also get the chance to be part of a tight-knit team, and you will be a critical part of shaping what the program looks like.
Qualifications
You must:
Be at least 18 years old by:
June 18, 2024 for LA programs.
June 28, 2024 for NY programs.
Have completed a year of college by Summer 2024.
Have the mathematical skills and experience sufficient to think on your feet while TAing challenging BEAM classes. (See the pages on the programs for the types of classes taught at each program.)
Be reliable and take initiative.
Be able to help kids have fun. (You don't need to be traditionally outgoing if you can engage kids in fun activities, but it helps.)
Compensation and Logistics
Current information can always be found in the complete job application (below).
Counselors hired to work at BEAM summer programs are also eligible to apply for sponsored teaching assistant roles each summer, with recipients gaining networking opportunities as well as a stipend for their time. Teaching assistant roles are sponsored by Hudson River Trading and Jane Street Capital. Recipients of these sponsored roles will share summer photos and a self-written biographies with the sponsoring company as well as preparing and giving presentations at the sponsoring company on their summer experiences and lessons learned. More information is provided each year in the late spring to those counselors already hired.
Finally
Here are some closing words from some of our past counselors:
As a counselor at [BEAM], you're more than just a counselor. You're a role model, a leader and a friend. It's exciting to see how much appreciation students gain for mathematics by the end of the summer, and it cannot be done without the help of influential counselors. - Nerline Hyppolite, Queens College TIME2000 Program
You get to be an integral part of a life-changing program for kids who really deserve it. You also get to work with some of the most caring and talented people I've ever had the pleasure of interacting with. - Victor Bhattacharyya, Harvey Mudd College
[BEAM] has by far been one of the most memorable experiences of my life; to work with a team that constantly manages to teach you something new, to witness how kids handle the complexities of their intellectual and personal lives, to be a part of this massive infusion of creativity, constant energy, noise and drama, friendships and empathy, and a whole lot of edgy math all along, the experience really was, borrowing the phrase from one of the [BEAM] alumni, "somethin' else!" - Siddhartha Baral, Bard College
[BEAM] inspires greatness, opens minds, and changes lives; there's nothing like it. - Ana Portnoy, University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez
The students are the best part about working at [BEAM]. They are enthusiastic, funny and often very insightful. It is an amazing and rewarding experience to be with the students as they grow and learn as both humans and also as young mathematicians. - Matthew Hirsh, Swarthmore College
[BEAM] is a great place to share your enthusiasm for math. The students are curious, and it is a rewarding experience as a role model to know that you are helping them better themselves. - Yuhui Pang, University of Chicago
We are always available to answer any questions you might have, so please feel free to get in touch. We look forward to working with you this summer!
