Support as a Staff Advisor | Adele H. Stamp Student Union

Join us as a Staff Advisor for the 2025-2026 Alternative Breaks Program!

Staff/Faculty Advisors are an integral part of the AB program. They are the main support system for our student Experience Leaders (ELs), who coordinate the logistics for the experience, facilitate team activities and reflections and serve as the main contact for community partners.

Staff/Faculty Advisors serve as advisors and mentors for the Experience Leaders by providing guidance and resources through the whole planning process & the experience itself.

Fill out the application form - open now through July 31, 2025.
- Full-time UMD Faculty/Staff members are eligible to apply
Review the Staff Advisor Position Description for information about specific responsibilities and requirements.
Review the Current Alternative Break Experiences
Upon completing the application an AB Staff Member will reach out to you to schedule a conversation to get to know you! Staff Advisors will be selected & confirmed on a rolling basis.

Alternative Break Experiences will take place during the university's Spring Break:
- Spring Experiences: March 14 - 21, 2026
Staff Advisors will be paired with experiences in early Fall 2025 after applying and meeting with AB Staff.
As staff advisors your commitment will begin several months before your assigned experience. This will include:
- Staff advisor specific trainings, trainings alongside the co-Experience Leaders, planning/pre-experience meetings with the rest of your AB team, and AB events that are scheduled throughout the year.
All Staff Advisors' experience expenses are covered in full, including transportation, lodging, and food.
Pending eligibility to receive overload pay, and dependent on current and evolving university hiring restrictions & approval, AB is able to offer a small overload stipend for taking on this role outside of typical work responsibilities.

For more information, flip through our Quick Guide below:

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Do you Love visiting and learning about new places? How about taking action against some of our world's grand challenges? What if you could ALSO mentor students at the same time? Click through for a quick guide to being a Staff Advisor with Alternative Breaks?

What are Alternative Breaks? Alternative Breaks (AB) are week-long service-learning immersion experiences during the university's breaks that address social issues in local, national, and international communities.

The Staff Advisor Role: Staff Advisors (SAs) are an integral part of the AB program. Staff Advisors serve as learning partners for the student team and as advisors for Experience Leaders by providing support, guidance, and resources throughout planning educational and experiential activities before, during, and after the experience.

as staff advisors your commitment will begin 2-3 months before your assigned experience. expect to attend staff advisor specific trainings, as well as trainings alongside your co-ELs, planning/pre-experience meetings with the rest of your ab team, and ab events that are scattered throughout the year. Trainings with experience leaders will take place in-person on friday afternoons from 4:00-5:30. Staff advisor specific trainings will be held virtually.

Expectations for Staff Advisors before, during, and after the experience involve supporting the Experience Leaders in the planning process, participating in the full experience, and completing any paperwork necessary.

Benefits of being a Staff Advisor include: personal development, professional development, and the opportunity to share personal expertise & research interests.

Next steps: Reach out to alternativebreaks@umd.edu if you're interested in applying!