Whether you are a student, teacher, or a seasonal worker with some free time this summer, you can take advantage of great opportunities to do something meaningful and fun this summer. While we are already into June, plenty of organizations are still looking for eager volunteers to work for anywhere from two weeks to three months on all types of projects – from building eco-lodges to teaching school children the basics.

If you have ever through about taking a trip abroad to volunteer but weren’t sure if you had the time, the time is now for these overseas volunteer opportunities:

1)   Short-term placement organizations (like Cross-Cultural Solutions and United Planet) often offer so many volunteer placements that it is possible to find a project that isn’t full at the last-minute. Right now, there are openings for volunteers in China for healthcare volunteer projects and teaching, starting as early as mid-July with Cross Cultural Solutions. United Planet offers rolling start dates for community development volunteer projects in Africa throughout the summer. Just keep in mind that these programs are fee-based, and you might need to take sometime to fund raise for your volunteer adventure.

2)   “Voluntourism” or “Responsible Travel” describes short-term projects that combine vacation with good deeds. Many of these trips include stays on “workcamps” that offer free or low-cost room and board in exchange for a certain number of labor hours per day. Popular activities include farming and other agricultural activities. Workcamps are typically open year-round, and if there is room can accommodate last-minute volunteers for their work abroad. Service Civil International places last-minute volunteers in workcamps in France, Norway, Japan and Kosovo.

3)   For folks looking for a more, well, passive volunteer experience can take advantage of the many eco-lodges that have cropped up in lush locations in Central America. These lodges are designed to provide sustainable and affordable housing for travelers, and most offer day volunteer experiences in and around the lodge to help keep things up and running. The Rio Magnolia Eco Lodge in Costa Rica offers breathtaking scenery and adventure in a environmentally environment, and is currently accepting bookings for the summer.

4)   Disaster relief efforts are still going on in Haiti and other parts of the Caribbean that have been devastated by natural disasters. Volunteers for Peace is currently planning a trip to Haiti for the first week in July. Volunteers will help locals with farming and agricultural activities. This is a low-cost and culturally immersive volunteer opportunity that people are encouraged to become involved in, especially if they are interested in a rustic, hands-on, transformative adventure.

5)   And for the truly adventurous? How about tracking the elusive whale shark in Honduras! OneWorld365 (among others) offers 1-2 week diving trips for certified divers who want to spend their vacation time looking after rare underwater wildlife.  Since the best time to view the sharks includes the summer month of August, there is still time to join one of the expeditions into the underwater unknown!

Tips for Last-minute Travel

One major aspect of traveling abroad to volunteer is paying for airfare – the organizations listed here do not (in fact, very few do) pay for your airfare. You can find great last minute airline deals online that might help defray some of the travel costs. In some cases, talking directly to an airline about your plans and offering to fly standby can also help you get on a plane at the last minute, if you don’t mind waiting around in the airport for a while.

Also keep in mind for a last minute overseas volunteer trip that you need to check in about travel vs. work visas.

Most countries will allow foreign citizens to stay in their country as a tourist even if they are volunteering – but these tourist visas generally only last for 90 days (sometimes less than that). If your volunteer project will last longer than a tourist visa, be aware that you will either have to take a trip across the border or make other arrangements.

If you aren’t ready for a last-minute volunteer opportunity, but some of these have piqued your interest in overseas volunteer opportunities, make sure that you check out the volunteer program listings on JobMonkey.com!

Welcome to Hot Jobs Wednesday here at JobMonkey. Wow, can you believe it? The 50th Hot Jobs post!

That’s nearly a year of posting about some of the hottest job leads in nearly every imaginable field in the U.S. and around the world. Have you discovered a great job opportunity thanks to the JobMonkey? Please leave me a comment to share the good news!

In the 50th Hot Jobs, I am going to be focusing on jobs abroad. There are a number of hot jobs in Europe and Israel on the JobMonkey Job Center today, so if you are in the market for an international opportunity, get yourself over there now!

1. Residential & Commercial Segment Marketing Manager

Company: SunPower Corporation

Location: Geneva, Switzerland

Job Description: The Marketing Manager will lead the development and execution of SunPower’s commercial and residential marketing strategy in Europe. Duties will include creating country-specific marketing strategies, positing SunPower as the solar solution of choice, developing and capturing program performance metrics, and developing and managing expense budgets. This position is based in Geneva, Switzerland, but extensive travel will be required. The ideal candidate will have an advanced degree in Marketing, Business or an equivalent field, 5+ years of B2C/B2B marketing experience, and a multinational background with fluency in at least two European languages other than English.

2. Business Systems Analyst

Company: BrightSource Energy

Location: Jerusalem, Israel

Job Description: The Analyst will be responsible for all models and algorithms for the company. The ideal candidate will have an advanced degree in Computer Science plus at least 2-5 years experience in software engineering. An additional degree in Physics or Applied Mathematics is preferred, though not required. Candidates must also be fluent in C++ (incl. STL and design patterns), Python, SQL, and Matlab, plus comfortable working in both Linux and Windows environments.

3. Channel/Dealer Marketing Representative

Company: SunPower Corporation

Location: Frankfurt, Germany

Job Description: The Marketing Manager will create demand leads and revenue for the RLC Business Unit by providing operational marketing support to the RLC Sales team; assisting with set up and deployment of the dealer funding program; developing and implementing special initiatives and lead generation programs; collecting competitors’ information; reporting on the status of dealers’ network; and managing and tracking the department budget. The position is based in Frankfurt, Germany, but extensive travel (up to 40%) is required, primarily within Germany. The ideal candidate will have a B.A. degree with 3-5 years of marketing experience in a comparable industry. The candidate should also have a strong grasp of channel marketing and be a native German speaker with oral and written fluency in English.

Remember: The three jobs in this post are just the tip of the iceberg, so if you don’t see your dream job on my list, visit the Job Center for hundreds of other openings.

Good luck with your job search this week!

Are you an adventurous spirit? Do you want more out of job than punching a clock and getting your paycheck?

I read in the Boston Globe today about an interesting new program between the United States and Ireland to approve work visas for college graduates. The program is designed to support recent grads who want to spend a year or more in each others’ country.

That article inspired me to write a post I’ve had on the back burner for a while now: Where and how to get a job in Europe. Let’s take a little trip around the Continent…

Ireland, England and Scotland
The unemployment rate in Ireland is at nearly 10 percent — even worse than here in the U.S.

There are still opportunities, however, for those of you interested in working in tourism or high tech. The Green Isle also hires experienced miners. Temporary American workers can find work in the U.K. at places like pubs or summer camps. Longer-term opportunities are available in the IT sector.

France & Germany
Both France and Germany offer opportunities to English-speaking au pairs, so if you want to work in English nanny-ing is a great way to see central Europe. Other opportunities for English-speaking professionals include military bases or high tech companies in Germany, and the resort industry in France. If you currently have your own business and want to take your show on the road, France is a great place to do that. The country has some of the most favorable laws for consultants in the EU.

Italy, Spain & Greece
Tourism is the name of the game in the Mediterranean, especially in the summer. There are also great opportunities for teaching English and working as an au pair in both Italy and Spain.

Eastern Europe
Opportunities abound for entrepreneurs in Eastern Europe, including those who want to start a business or work as a consultant. Eastern Europe also has English teaching opportunities, including at the college and professional level.

Now once you have found a job or settled on a country you want to work in, it’s time to look at the logistics of this adventure.

•    Do you have a current American passport? If not, now is the time to apply for one.

•    Do you know the visas and work permits for Europe? Each country sets its own guidelines. Check out JobMonkey for a country-by-country list of visa regulations.

•    Do you know where you will live? You will need to line up a place to stay when you first land. In the summer, many colleges rent out dorm rooms. The local U.S. Consulate should have a list of reputable apartment brokers. Or if you can check the city’s Craigslist.

My apologies for not getting these up on Wednesday, but after the Thanksgiving holiday, our system wasn’t quite updated with current listings. 

Today, I am ready to bring you three great opportunities, all of which were uploaded to the JobMonkey free job database yesterday — so these gigs are fresh and ready for you to pick!  (Sorry for the fruit harvesting metaphors, don’t know what got into me

Today I have not one, but two great student internships — the first with Nike (how cool!) and the second with AT&T.  If you are in college or a recent grad, take a look at both of these and keep your mind open to the wonderful possibilities that can come from a quality internship experience.   I’ve also got a great opportunity for a mechanical engineer in Illinois – who says engineers can’t find a job in this economy?

If none of these great job and internship opportunities float your boat, please head on over to theJobMonkey job board and run your own search.  Our listings are updated several times a week and you can search and apply for any job for FREE!

#1. Internships with NIKE, Around the World
NIKE runs a highly competitive internship programs that gives interns hands-on experience in virtually every department within the company, including product design, product development, finance, sports marketing, logistics, facility management and human resources. The Nike Internship program runs for ten weeks, from June 16 – August 21, 2009. Interns not only receive monetary compensation for their work, they also get access to all of the other employee perks, such as world-class athletic facilities and employee discount at NIKE stores. While the majority of NIKE internships are based at the NIKE World Head Quarters in Beaverton, Oregon, there are also internship opportunities at the European Headquarters in Hilversum and at NIKE offices throughout Southeast Asia.

#2. Finance Summer Internship Program, AT&T, Various Locations
AT&T runs a highly competitive summer internship program to help candidates develop their leadership skills in finance while getting to know the AT&T corporation.

The program, which targets MBAs from a variety of backgrounds, runs for 10-12 weeks in the summer.  Interns will be immersed in the financial operations of one of the leading Fortune 10 telecommunications companies in the country, including auditing, budget and forecasting, business case development, business unit finance, corporate controllers, corporate planning, credit and collections, financial analysis, investor relations, tax and treasury. Most of the internships are at AT&T headquarters in Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, Georgia and California.  Inters will receive a competitive compensation package and the opportunity to interview for a full-time position in the company’s Financial Leadership Program.   The ideal candidate will be a first-year MBA student with more than three years of corporate work experience and a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5.  To learn more about the AT&T Finance Summer Internship Program, see the  AT&T Internship page.

#3. Engineer Mechanical, Ameren Corporation, Effingham, Illinois
The Ameren Corporation is looking for a mechanical engineer to perform engineering studies, design, and project management activities for existing and new power generation plants.  Based at the Ameren plant in Illinois, the position will be required to travel to other Ameren sites. The ideal candidate will hold a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering with Professional Engineer (P.E.) licensing and have at least three years of relevant fossil power plant systems and/or project management experience.  To learn more about this position and other engineering opportunities with Ameren, visit the Ameren jobs page.

Jobs in Europe & Work at Home Jobs

JobMonkey launched two new content sections last week, which I wanted to draw your attention to:

1) The new section on Work at Home Jobs has a ton of information about a variety of home-based employment opportunities, from selling on eBay and data entry jobs to multi-level marketing and freelance writing gigs. 

There is also a great little article on home business scams, which you should definitely check out before you commit yourself and your resources to any company.  Remember: If they want you to give them money before they give you a job, then it is more than likely a scam.

2) There is also a new section on Jobs in the European Union.  Whether you are already living in the EU or are looking for a temporary change of scenery, this section has a host of resources about job opportunities, EU work permit requirements and more over on “the continent.”  Most of the information in this section is targeted toward those of you who want a short-term (whether that means a summer or a year) experience in Europe.  If you are looking to make a permanent move to the EU, be sure to contact your local U.S. embassy or consulate for detailed information on citizenship requirements.

If you’ve got the travel bug, you probably already know that there is no better way to learn about another culture than by immersing yourself in it. Of course, not everyone has the budget to spend several months or more at a time just drinking coffee and soaking up the local flavors. If you want to enjoy the adventure of life abroad, but need some cash to fund your trip, there are numerous teaching abroad jobs that just might meet the bill. JobMonkey’s section on Teach Abroad Jobs offers information about training, employment conditions and foreign customs in three different areas: Eastern Europe English Teaching Jobs, Asia Teaching Jobs, and English Teaching Jobs in Greece.