To join our team of Putney Student Travel or Pre-College staff, you must be able to motivate and engage students in a wide range of situations and settings. Leadership on all programs requires extensive interaction with and mentoring of students from 6th through 12th grade, and some college age students as well. Leaders are granted a high degree of independence and responsibility. Excellent personal leadership skills and the ability to handle multiple ongoing tasks are crucial. Successful candidates have the ability to inspire, lead, mentor, educate, set limits, and enforce rules. In most scenarios programs are led by a two-person leadership team composed of one male and one female identifying leader, however larger programs may have a leadership trio, and our Pre-College programs are led by larger teams of instructors with an on-site Program Director.Putney has a clear code of conduct that our students read and sign in order to participate. We expect our leaders to enforce these rules throughout the program, and live by them as well.Our veteran leaders agree that some of the most important skills necessary to lead a successful program include endless energy, good judgment, flexibility, passion for and knowledge about the destination and program themes, patience, and a deep desire to work with youth.

Leaders received a stipend for the duration of their contract. On top of the stipend, travel, room, board, entertainment, and reasonable expenses are also covered for the term of employment.

It is impossible for all candidates to embody everything on this list, which is why we hire holistic leadership teams. Our most successful candidates meet some combination of the following criteria:• A deep desire to work with, educate, and lead youth from a wide range of backgrounds.• Specific in-country experience in the destinations we visit.• Advanced proficiency or fluency in the language specific to the destination.• Significant experience working with students both in and out of the classroom.• Patience, flexibility, and adaptability in a highly dynamic work environment.• An ability to assess risk and make smart decisions regarding the health, safety, and overall well-being of the group.• A passion for travel, exploration, and the program theme.• For seminar and workshop instructors, ideal candidates are enthusiastic about creating their own hands-on and field-based curriculum.• The ability to be ‘on’ 24 hours a day for the duration of the program.Career leaders should have experience working professionally in the field of the program theme.Most Pre-College instructors hold advanced degrees or have professional experience with the topic in addition to teaching experience.