In early March 2008, Measured Progress ran
newspaper ads for an upcoming job fair: they are recruiting Test
Readers to work at their flagship
Dover,
NH scoring facility. The main subject
areas would be Math and Reading, but the company may be recruiting
scorers for other areas such as Writing, Science, and Health. The
NECAP and
MCAS
tests are two of the many tests scored at this facility. The job
fairs will be on Wednesday March 12 and Thursday March 13 from 3pm to
7pm. The company is looking for scorers for projects beginning at the
end of March 2008 and continuing throughout the winter, spring and
summer (although perhaps not after July 1st, when the next fiscal
year begins.)
The pay is $10.50/hour with no benefits and
little or no hope of ever getting a raise. Preferably, you need at
least a Bachelor's degree, although they can hire a few workers with
an Associate's degree or the equivalent. (The contracts with the
various state education departments who are Measured Progress's
customers invariably stipulate that umpty-ump percent of the test
scorers will have bachelors degrees and that 100% will have at least
two years of college. And, if you happen to have a graduate degree,
so much the better— even though you won't actually be paid any
more.) You can either work fulltime during the day
or part-time during the evening.
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. It is a gay-friendly
environment— I even had an openly gay supervisor for a while— and
it is generally pretty liberal (with the exception of the union
issue: they hate pro-union talk at Measured Progress, especially if
you say that a union would make sense at this particular company.)
Note that you 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.)
The ad states that the event is at their
facility at 100 Education Way in Dover. This is their corporate
headquarters on 6th Street in Dover, next to Liberty
Mutual and just off Exit 9 of the Spalding Turnpike. See:
At Measured Progress,
we believe that every child can learn — and every day, our
passion, knowledge and expert ise make that belief a reality. As
a national leader in K-12 educational assessment, we've created
an unrivaled standard in large-scale, customized assessment
programs and professional development services — and we've
created a work environment to match. Join us at our beautiful new
campus in Dover, NH, and discover the satisfaction that comes
with realizing your own potential.
Seasonal Employment
Job Fair
Wednesday, March
12th from 3:00 p.m. — 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, March
13th from 3:00 p.m. — 7:00 p.m.
Measured Progress
100 Education Way, Dover, NH
Readers
Working from our Scoring
Center on Education Way in Dover, Readers evaluate student
responses to non-multiple-choice questions at the elementary and
secondary school levels and assign scores via computer according
to established standards in the areas of reading, writing, and
mathematics. Training is provided; scoring accuracy and
efficiency is required.
Interviews
are underway for work scheduled to begin at the end of March!
Work is expected to
begin at the end of March and will continue through the spring
and summer months—with various start and stop dates possible.
Interviews are currently being scheduled on a first come/first
serve basis.
Qualifications:
We are seeking applicants with a minimum of a Bachelor's degree
(or above) who have successfully completed coursework in the
assigned subject. An Associate's degree (or 2 full years of
college, including applicable coursework) will be permissible for
a limited number of positions. Transcripts or other proof of
education credentials are required at the time of interview.
Directions to our
Scoring Center: Take Exit 9 off the Spaulding; left off ramp
to end of road; right on 6th Street; 1st left onto Education Way.
100 Education Way is the second building.
Several
temp agencies have also been advertising 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.comfax: (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:
Several
temp agencies have also been advertising scoring jobs. The best
agency of the bunch would be 
