Frequently Asked Questions

As a mentor, you will be assigned a tutorial day and site. Every week, you will meet at the Downtown Berkeley BART with a group of other mentors, lead by one of our OASES coordinators, who will take care of the transportation logistics. Once at site, you will usually be assigned to either tutor students one-on-one or facilitate a classroom of ~20 students, depending on your day and site. Classrooms will always have an EBAYC staff member present. As mentors, we help the students with homework, supervise during recess, and occasionally help facilitate activities designed by EBAYC staff.

Joining OASES is a semester-long commitment. When you join OASES, you will be mentoring once a week for 10 weeks. Our program officially starts during the 5th week of the semester, and goes until the week the classes end.

We leave campus around 3:00pm and will all be back in Berkeley by 6:00pm at the latest.

Your OASES coordinator will take care of all the transportation logistics for you! After meeting at your designated spot, you will BART/Uber/Lyft to the school site together.

Of course! Many of our new mentors have not had prior experience working with youth. We will also provide training before tutorial starts.

Yes!

We currently serve two schools in the Oakland Unified School District: Lincoln Elementary and Franklin Elementary. Previously, we served Cleveland Elementary, and Bella Vista Elementary. We are always looking to add more sites, so be on the lookout for any updates!

EBAYC is a nonprofit organization located in Oakland whose mission is to support all youth to be safe, smart, and socially responsible. OASES and EBAYC merged in 2012, and we have since been working together toward our shared vision.

Some time in the first few weeks of the semester, you should receive an email with instructions about how to sign up again. If you want to be extra sure, you can fill out the form that we send out at the beginning of each semester via email. Thanks for returning!

See Units.

All mentors need documentation of TB test (skin/blood) results from past 3 years or Chest X-ray results from past 2 years. Risk Assessment is also an option. If you have a TB vaccine, please contact us at oases@ebayc.org for additional information. It is your responsibility to bring your results to/before your first day of tutorial or you will not be allowed on site and will be marked absent. This can be done with your personal health provider, at the Tang Center (~$60 with SHIP), or at the Berkeley Free Clinic (2339 Durant Ave; donation of $5-$15 highly encouraged).

To complete your Independent DOJ Clearance and Fingerprinting, you will need a valid government-issued photo ID (such as a driver's license, Real ID, or passport) and your SSN or ITIN. Please email us so that we can send you the required live scan form. You can visit any of the approved fingerprinting locations listed on this website: https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints/locations, and present your completed form and ID.

The fees typically start at $50, although this may vary. The most convenient location near campus is the UPS Store at 2512 Telegraph Ave, which accepts walk-ins and charges around $50 (as of 2025). Please note that reimbursement for the fingerprinting fee may be possible, depending on club policies for the current semester, and decisions are made by the finance agents and FUND committee. If you wish to request reimbursement, please email us directly.