by Willy Franzen on January 5, 2009

Now that we’ve finished out end of ‘08 recap (See: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 1 of non-profits, Part 2 of non-profits, Part 3 of non-profits, and Part 4 of non-profits), we’re ready to to start off the new year by bringing you profiles of all new companies with exciting entry level jobs. We’re also very close to opening enrollment for our job search training course, but you’ll hear a lot more about that soon enough. Today we’re going to focus on Melissa & Doug, a toy company based in Wilton, CT. From what I can tell by looking at their product offerings, Melissa & Doug’s toys are targeted towards very young children, so they don’t have much stuff for big kids like WowWee does. That’s ok though – if they made toys that you actually wanted to play with, you’d never get anything done at work.
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Tagged as:
administrative,
Connecticut,
customer service,
entry-level jobs,
recruiting,
sales,
toys
by Willy Franzen on December 25, 2008

Somehow the Coca-Cola brand has been indelibly tied to the image of Santa Claus. In fact, there’s even an urban legend that the modern image of Santa Claus was created by The Coca-Cola Company. It’s not true, but the fact that many people believe it to be true speaks volumes about Coca-Cola’s branding prowess (dating all the way back to the 1930s). We considered a lot of Christmas themed companies to feature today, but we keep coming back to the image of St. Nick sipping on a glass bottle of Coke. Let’s see how you can find a job with Coke.
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administrative,
analyst,
Arkansas,
Belgium,
California,
entry-level jobs,
food,
France,
Georgia,
international,
marketing,
Maryland,
project management,
supply chain,
Texas
by Willy Franzen on December 14, 2008

For me the wilderness is central to life itself – I can’t be happy without time spent outdoors. That doesn’t mean that I’m not enjoying life in downtown Chicago, but I plan on spending lots of time in the woods and rivers of Wisconsin and Michigan once Spring starts to show its face. My philosophy is shared by the people at The Wilderness Society. Their About page says that “It is our calling and our passion to protect America’s wilderness, not as a relic of our nation’s past, but as a thriving ecological community that is central to life itself.” I couldn’t agree more. They’re a non-profit organization that provides “scientific, economic, legal and policy guidance to land managers, communities, local conservation groups and state and federal decision-makers” to “ensure the best management of our lands – national forests, parks and refuges, as well as public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management.” I’ve seen one of my favorite places in the world (a Northern Michigan tract of wilderness and quality fishing areas) put at risk by poor land management policies that would have allowed natural gas drilling in an extremely sensitive area, so I know how firsthand how vital The Wilderness Society’s work is.
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administrative,
advocacy,
California,
conservation,
development,
entry-level jobs,
green,
outdoors,
Washington DC
by Willy Franzen on December 6, 2008

We’ve catered to the PBS junkies before when we’ve covered entry level jobs at PBS here and WTTW11’s internships on One Day, One Internship, and we’re going to do it again today. WGBH is a non-profit PBS affiliate based out of Boston that also happens to be the “single largest producer of PBS prime-time and online programming.” They started out by broadcasting the Boston Symphony Orchestra over the radio in 1951, but they’ve expanded to television and the web since. It’s really amazing how much of PBS’s programing comes out of WGBH. One of my all-time favorites was ZOOM, which is a little embarrassing to admit, since I was a bit old to be watching it at the time. Another interesting thing about WGBH that I picked up from Wikipedia is that they’re “considered a leader in services for people who are deaf, hard-of-hearing, blind, or visually impaired.” WGBH actually “invented television closed captioning, audio description (Descriptive Video Service), and created the Rear Window Captioning System for films.” As you can see, WGBH is an innovator not just in public television, but in all media, and probably a great place to work.
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account management,
administrative,
entry-level jobs,
human resources,
Massachusetts,
New York,
non-profit,
production,
radio,
television,
web development
by Willy Franzen on November 24, 2008

I don’t recall having any friends in college who sent out their own holiday cards, but if you’re planning on sending out cards, you better get on it. Christmas is 31 days away. My family always tried to send out Christmas cards, but it usually resulted in a fight between my sister and me over which picture to use – if we could even get along long enough for a picture to be taken (yes, we were both in college at this point). With my sister’s and my being difficult and my mom’s procrastinating ability, Christmas cards almost inevitably became New Year’s cards, which typically arrived well after New Year’s. I’m not sure that Mountain View, CA based Tiny Prints could have helped with conflict resolution between my sister and me, but they can make it ridiculously easy to produce a beautiful holiday card.
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account management,
administrative,
California,
customer service,
data,
design,
entry-level jobs,
merchandising,
product management,
quality assurance,
quality engineer,
stationery,
user experience,
web development
by Willy Franzen on November 15, 2008

Usually when we feature non-profit entry level jobs on the weekends, we like to go with well established organizations that we can find a lot of information about. Today, I came across a non-profit that I can’t find much background on, but I’m impressed by how cool what they’re doing is. GreenWood is a non-profit organization that “trains artisans to make high-quality wood products, adding value to forest resources and creating incentives to protect biodiversity.” I know firsthand how cool artisan crafted wood products from the rainforest can be, because my parents recently received a huge wooden table that they bought in El Salvador. It’s absolutely beautiful. There is a huge market for these types of products, and GreenWood is doing its best to “foster self-sufficiency by promoting good forest management, the use of lesser-known species, inspired designs, skilled hand-tool production and access to good markets.”
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Tagged as:
administrative,
arts,
conservation,
entry-level jobs,
forestry,
green,
Maine
by Willy Franzen on November 11, 2008

It’s been a while since we’ve featured any entry level government jobs, and with today’s being Veteran’s Day, we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to take a look at what kind of jobs you can get at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Before you get in to job searching mode, though, go thank a veteran. If your grandfather served in World War II, give him a call and say thank you. Or if one of your buddies has served or is serving in Iraq, shoot him or her an e-mail stating your appreciation. And if any of you job searchers out there happen to be veterans, thank you from the One Day, One Job team. Now let’s get into what the VA is all about. There are 25 million veterans currently living in the United States and 70 million people who are “potentially eligible for VA benefits and services because they are veterans, family members or survivors of veterans.” The VA is responsible for providing top-flight patient care and administering veterans’ benefits. Our vets have risked their lives to earn the services offered by the VA, so it’s important that the VA has a talented staff that is committed to providing top-flight “customer” service.
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Tagged as:
administrative,
architecture,
engineering,
entry-level jobs,
government,
health care,
holiday,
information technology,
law,
nationwide
by Willy Franzen on November 8, 2008

When you hear “pew,” you usually expect something to stink. That’s not the case with the Pew Research Center, which is a non-profit “fact tank” (not thinktank) that provides nonpartisan “information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world.” If you know anything about thinktanks, you may be rolling your eyes at the word nonpartisan, but it’s true. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. Still skeptical? Read their Code of Ethics. They’re all about the numbers, and they don’t care so much about making sure the numbers say what they want them to. The Pew Research Center has seven ongoing projects that focus on some fascinating subject matter. They are: Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, Project for Excellence in Journalism, Pew Internet & American Life Project, Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, Pew Hispanic Center, Pew Global Attitudes Project, and Social & Demographic Trends. If you’re still not straight on what Pew Research Center is all about, take a look at their home page – PewResearch.org – it’s full of the kind of information that the Center compiles.
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administrative,
analyst,
data,
design,
entry-level jobs,
non-profit,
research,
Washington DC,
web development
by Willy Franzen on October 25, 2008

Did your Kindergarten class have a special name? Something beyond the teacher’s name? If it did, you probably don’t remember it, but kids at Harlem Success Academy are going to remember the names of their classes for a long time. Not only are their classes named by the colleges that their teachers went to, but the classes are identified by the year that they will be graduating from college (if my math is right, then this year’s Kindergarteners are the Class of 2025). I think that’s pretty inspirational, and that’s the point. Harlem Success Academy is a charter elementary school that is exactly what its name says it is.
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Tagged as:
administrative,
analyst,
arts,
education,
entry-level jobs,
finance,
human resources,
information technology,
music,
New York,
non-profit,
project management,
recruiting,
speech language pathology,
sports,
teaching
by Willy Franzen on October 22, 2008

Despite what you might think from looking at the logo to the right, Chumby is not the first cousin of Gumby. Chumby is a startup that makes a real-life product that bears the same name. Their product is an “internet radio, digital picture frame, alarm clock, and more.” The “and more” includes news, social networking, weather, and games. It’s a dead simple Internet device that seems perfect for your bedside or the breakfast table. I’ve never actually tried a Chumby, but the reviews are glowing. At the very least it’s a cool niche product, and there’s certainly the potential for a Chumby to replace the alarm clock.
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Tagged as:
administrative,
California,
design,
entry-level jobs,
flash,
quality assurance,
quality engineer,
software development
by Willy Franzen on October 21, 2008

Who builds brands? If you asked 10 people in marketing that question, you’d probably get 10 different answers. If you asked someone from MediaVest, he or she would say, “We do!” MediaVest is a marketing and communications firm that works with some of the world’s biggest brands – Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, Wal-Mart, Continental Airlines, and many more. MediaVest certainly can’t take all of the credit for building those brands, but they can take some of it. MediaVest has seven core competencies, and they are Research, Insights, and Analytics; Strategic Communications Planning; Investment and Activation; Brand-in Entertainment; Digital Connections, Print Investment; and Out of Home. These areas of expertise are all part of MediaVest’s unique process that delivers value to clients.
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Tagged as:
administrative,
communications,
entry-level jobs,
marketing,
media,
negotiation,
New York,
research,
television
by Willy Franzen on October 18, 2008

Surprise, surprise. We’ve selected yet another one of the Wall Street Journal’s Best Small Workplaces to be featured on One Day, One Job. That’s three in a row for those of you who are counting. We can’t express enough how helpful lists like these can be to your job search. Almost as helpful as Rainforest Alliance is to saving the rainforest. They’re a non-profit organization that “works to conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behavior.” How do they do this? By working directly with farmers, workers, business leaders, NGO’s, governments, scientists and local communities to change the way that they do agriculture to make land use more socially and environmentally responsible while maintaining its economic viability.
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accounting,
administrative,
agriculture,
Bolivia,
conservation,
Costa Rica,
entry-level jobs,
finance,
forestry,
green,
guatemala,
international,
New York,
Nicaragua,
project management,
web development
by Willy Franzen on September 7, 2008

Everything that I know about braille, I learned in elementary school. I know that the braille system is used by blind people to read and write, and I also know that braille was invented by a French guy named Louis Braille. I recently learned that L’Occitane uses braille in their packaging, but that’s about all that I can rattle off. There’s a lot more to braille, and the Wikipedia page on braille is a great place to get educated. Why should you be reading up on braille? Because the National Braille Press is hiring, and if you want to work for them, you better be well versed in the ins and outs of braille. They are a non-profit organization that prints and publishes braille books, magazines, textbooks, and tests and offers embossing services with the hopes of promoting braille literacy.
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administrative,
development,
entry-level jobs,
Massachusetts,
non-profit,
publishing,
sales
by Willy Franzen on August 17, 2008

I am the black sheep of my family. My mom is a graphic designer, my dad is an architect, and my sister is a painter (although she doesn’t want to be labeled). I have no artistic talent whatsoever, and I barely have the ability to appreciate good art. That means that I’m probably not the best person to tell you about the The Museum of Modern Art, but they do have some great entry-level job opportunities, so I’m going to tell you about them anyway.
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Tagged as:
administrative,
arts,
education,
entry-level jobs,
history,
museum,
New York,
non-profit
by Willy Franzen on August 16, 2008

Did any of you hear James Blake’s rant on sportsmanship in the Olympics? The man has a point. Tennis is a gentleman’s (gentleperson’s?) game and sportsmanship is an essential part of the sport. That’s probably why Tenacity, a non-profit organization, has chosen tennis as a means of transforming youth, building community, and introducing life skills and literacy. Their motto is “Game. Set. Life.” and we think that it’s quite fitting. We hope that Tenacity is not only transforming youth into literate young adults with great life skills, but also into young adults who will fess up when a ball grazes their rackets.
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administrative,
education,
entry-level jobs,
Massachusetts,
non-profit,
outreach,
sports
by Willy Franzen on August 9, 2008

John James Audubon painted birds. His seminal work, Birds of America, was a collection of 435 life-size prints. To this day, when you hear the name Audubon, you think of birds. Interestingly enough, John James Audubon had no direct involvement with the founding of the National Audubon Society. Audubon’s widow, Lucy, tutored a man named George Bird Grinnell and some of Audubon’s love of birds must have rubbed off, as Grinnell was one of the Audubon Society’s founders. To this day, the Audubon Society persists in its mission “to conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth’s biological diversity.” The Audubon Society works to achieve this mission through a national network of community-based nature centers and chapters and scientific, educational, and advocacy programs.
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Tagged as:
administrative,
animals,
biology,
conservation,
entry-level jobs,
Florida,
green,
Louisiana,
Minnesota,
non-profit,
North Carolina,
outreach,
Texas,
Washington DC,
zoology
by Willy Franzen on August 2, 2008

The day of the mile run was always my least favorite in elementary school. As an overweight asthmatic, I dreaded the experience because it was both painful and humiliating. Getting lapped isn’t fun. By middle school I realized that asthma was a good enough excuse to get out of the mile run. In high school the mile run was replaced by suicides in basketball practice – same pain and humiliation, but in 30 seconds instead of 30 minutes (Yes, I’m exaggerating. No, I wasn’t THAT slow.). At 23 I’m finally starting to almost, kind of enjoy running. I figure that anything that makes my body feel as awful as it does after running must be good for me. The people at the New York Road Runners Foundation probably disagree with me about how running feels, but I’m pretty sure that they agree with me about running’s health benefits. That’s why they’re working hard to build “community-based running programs which enhance physical heath, emotional well-being and personal achievement within underserved populations throughout New York City.”
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Tagged as:
administrative,
coaching,
communications,
entry-level jobs,
New York,
non-profit,
sports
by Willy Franzen on July 31, 2008

Sugar certainly doesn’t have the cleanest reputation. It’s accused of making us fat, rotting our teeth, and causing hyperactivity. Sugar Inc. is a company that wants you to throw out those bad associations you have with sugar and just think back to when you were a kid and sugar was the essence of everything good. Sugar Inc. isn’t in the business of sweets – they run a network of websites, but their CEO is named Brian Sugar and his wife Lisa Sugar is the Editor in Chief, so they’re running with the sweet play on words. Sugar Inc. consists of 15 style/entertainment sites – PopSugar, BuzzSugar, FabSugar, BellaSugar, CasaSugar, YumSugar, FitSugar, Geek Sugar, GiggleSugar, DearSugar, PetSugar, LilSugar, SavvySugar, CitizenSugar, and TeamSugar. You can probably guess from the names what topic each of the sites covers, but you should probably check a few of the sugars out to get a better sense of Sugar Inc.’s content strategy, which is to be “the definitive online media company for trendsetting, passionate women ages 18-44.”
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Tagged as:
administrative,
California,
editorial,
fashion,
software development,
user experience,
writing