May 10-11 Measured Progress Job Fair
Commentary by Tim Horrigan; May 7, 2006
On May 7, 2006, Measured Progress ran newspaper ads for a job fair: they are recruiting 60 Math Test Readers to work at their flagship Dover, NH scoring facility. The pay is $10.50/hour with no benefits and little or no hope of ever getting a raise, $12.00 if you are literate in Spanish. A Bachelor's degree or better with some Math coursework is required.
The Dover scoring center is not public transit-accessible, and it is a typical office-park environment, with nowhere to eat out or do errands at break time. Dress code is business casual: piercings, tattoos and dyed hair are acceptable. (One of the few Test Readers ever promoted to a real job with benefits has multiple piercings; another one, who has since moved on to greener pastures, had orange hair and visible tattoos.)
The ad is more self-explanatory than most communications from Measured Progress. Note that you do have to bring your college transcripts. The company usually likes to have you fill out its web application form, but in this case they have a paper form which covers the same ground. If you are a certified teacher in Massachusetts, you may be ineligible for contractual reasons (but this ad doesn't mention that fact, so if this applies to you, you can still go to the job fair.)
Click here to learn about some minor things you might wanna know before you start working.
Click here to learn about my Test Reading experiences in 2002 and 2003.
The ad states that the event is at their facility at 171 Watson Road in Dover. This is their old corporate headquarters: a few support functions are still housed there. The headquarters moved about a year ago to a new facility a few blocks away. For directions, etc., to the old place, see:
MapBlast map for 171 Watson Road.
Here's the ad:
|
|
|
|
Description: |
Temporary
Employment Job Fair Readers Are you looking for the opportunity to play an important role in the education of students AND make some extra money for the Summer? Read this! Measured Progress is looking for individuals to fill 60 Reader positions this Summer at their facility on Education Way in Dover. Readers will evaluate student responses to secondary test questions in Mathematics. The Summer session is expected to begin in early June to continue through mid July - with various start and stop dates possible. Evening hours are also available. This is a fantastic opportunity for teachers and those with a Bachelor's degree (and coursework in Mathematics) to earn some extra money over the summer. The starting rate is $ 10.50 per hour; qualified candidates literate in Spanish are eligible for a starting rate of $12.00 per hour. Scoring accuracy and efficiency will be required to work on this project. To learn more about this wonderful opportunity, attend the Measured Progress Job Fair on May 10-11 from 3-7 PM at their facility at 171 Watson Road in Dover, and bring your college transcripts. You can also learn more about
these and other
|
Rivier College,.a small school in Nashua, NH, posted the following release on its career development web site, with an actual phone number and contact person's name attached to it:
|
5/2/06 - MEASURED PROGRESS, DOVER, NH, is seeking EDUCATORS to score open student responses included in statewide assessments. Scoring provides educators with excellent (paid) training on the use and application of standards-based rubrics for evaluating student work. SCHEDULE: Work is expected to begin around June 12 and continue through August. Hours: Days: M-F, 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. and Evenings: M-F, 5:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. COMPENSATION: $10.50 hourly; $12.00 hourly for qualified secondary Mathematics Scorers who are literate in Spanish. TO APPLY: Educators who wish to be considered are encouraged to attend our Job Fair on May 10 and 11, from 3:00 - 7:00 at our Corporate Office located at 171 Watson Road in Dover and to bring copies of their college transcripts. Interested applicants may also apply online at: www.measuredprogress.org or contact Lynette Cohen directly at: 603-749-9102 x-2443 to schedule an interview. |
This presumably was sent to other colleges in the region. The name “Lynette Cohen” is a new one to me: as far as I know, she might in fact return your phone call. (When I was a test reader, the HR assistant in charge of keeping track of test readers had a strict policy of never returning your phone call. Never. No matter how important the call was.)
More info:
Click here to learn how to get into the Exciting World of High-Stakes Test Scoring!
Click here to go to the official Measured Progress home page.
UPDATE: I actually went
to the job fair. I had a chat with one of the HR people who was very
gracious but who told me I wasn't going to be asked back. This was
disappointing, but it's not exactly a lucrative career anyway. There
was not much traffic at the job fair.
On May 14, 2006, several temp agencies
advertised scoring jobs. The best agency of the bunch would be Kelly
Services (email: KS4020@KellyServices.com )
You can email Kelly directly, or you can apply via monster.com.
The worst is Allstaff (email: Jobs@AllStaffCorp.com fax: (603) 964-6057), which has one of the most horrifying office spaces I have ever seen. They're located in a fairly expensive location (Route 1 in Rye, NH) but they are in a cheap metal building with a leaking roof. Most of the space is full of moldy old papers with buckets put out every few feet to catch the water. And the staff all look moldy too. (Luckily, you would be working elsewhere if they hired you.)
Working through even a moldy employment agency has many advantages over working directly for Measured Progress:
|
|
