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The AARP Foundation Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) helps job seekers improved their skills, obtain training and find a job. The goal of the program is for participants to gain the skills they need to find and sustain employments in the workforce. SCSEP is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor with support from AARP and the AARP Foundation, and provides comprehensive training and support that helps individuals to:
- Obtain new job knowledge;
- Enhance their skills;
- Gain a competitive edge in today's job market; and
- Feel confident in their newfound abilities.
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To be eligible for SCSEP, applicants must be 55 or over, meet income guidelines and be interested in bettering their current employment circumstances. If you meet these criteria, AARP Foundation can help you enter or re-enter the job market by obtaining new job knowledge, enhancing your skills and gaining a competitive edge.
To learn if you are qualified, contact your nearest AARP Foundation WorkSearch office.
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SCSEP participants are placed in temporary assignments with federal, state, county, city, or nonprofit community organizations where they have an opportunity to sharpen and develop skills while searching for a permanent job. While working in these temporary training assignments participants are paid the prevailing Federal or State minimum wage whichever is higher.
Participants also benefit from SCSEP's ability to allow potential employers to try SCSEP participants in their vacant positions for two to four weeks at no cost to the employer. While in this trial-employment phase, SCSEP will pay participants the prevailing wage for that job position. At the same time that you are improving your job skills, SCSEP offers workshops and advice to prepare you to apply for a job.
Most participants are enrolled in the program for only a few months. While on the program, participants are in a temporary training status and are not employees of AARP or the host agency. The goal of SCSEP is for you to find employment off the program as soon as you are ready.
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Participants benefit in many ways:
- Participating in on-the-job training (minimum 18 hours per week)
- Earning at least current minimum wage while training
- Developing job search skills
- Improving job skills and developing new ones
- Establishing a current work history and an up-to-date resumé
- Receiving workers compensation insurance
- The opportunity for a yearly physical examination
- Receiving a one-year complimentary AARP membership
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AARP first began operating SCSEP in 1969. At that time, there were six project sites and 313 people served. Currently AARP SCSEP has 73 project sites in 28 states. About 10,000 job seekers are enrolled at any one time. The AARP Foundation is one of 13 national sponsors of SCSEP.
During its sponsorship of the program, the AARP Foundation SCSEP initiative has served more than 400,000 people across the country. In just the last year, we served more than 23,000 low-income older workers and have the highest job placement and service rate of any national sponsor in history (56 percent - far exceeding the 20 percent required by the Department of Labor grant).
As importantly, we served 225 percent of our authorized service level, 62 percent higher than any other national sponsor. Participants in the AARP Foundation SCSEP contribute over 8 million hours of service in local communities annually, valued at over $135 million. Eighty-five percent of our participants were still in their jobs six months after leaving our program – the highest rate of any state or national sponsor.
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To learn how you can participate in SCSEP, contact the closest AARP Foundation WorkSearch office.
Learn more about the SCSEP program »