Encourage your students to pursue a career in STEM by bringing an Amazon professional to the classroom. Our Class Chat volunteers will share their personal career story and insight into work in tech and answer your students' career questions. Class Chats are free, live, interactive, and available to everyone.
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Option 1: Career Panels - open to public
Come hear a panel of Amazon professionals share their experience around a certain topic. Panels are one hour long, live, interactive, and open to everyone – teacher, classroom, or public viewer. Panels last 1 hour.
- Day in the Life of Software Development Engineer
Meet several of Amazon’s software development engineers (SDE’s). They’ll share their career journey into computer science, and give you a glimpse into their daily work life. (60 min)
Tuesday 9/21 at 12:30 PM ET or Wednesday 10/6 at 2:00 ET
Register Now- Day in the Life of a User Experience (UX) Designer
Learn all about what UX (User Experience) Designers do at Amazon! On this panel you’ll meet some of our most creative and artistic employees, who use their design skills to enable Amazon technology and create great customer experiences. (60 min)
Tuesday 9/28 at 3:00 PM ET or Thursday 10/7 at 12:30 PM ET
Register Now- Reflections from Amazon Student Interns
Meet our Amazon Future Engineer Scholar Interns who each received scholarship to pursue computer science degrees and just completed their first paid summer at Amazon. Scholars will share about their personal journey from high school to college, and a bit about what it is like to enter the tech industry. (60 min)
Wednesday 9/22 at 1:00 PM ET or Thursday 9/30 at 12:00 PM ET
Register Now- FIRST Transportation Panels:
Amazon Future Engineer is the Global Sponsor of FIRST LEGO League for the 2021-22 season. The following panels are open to all and are designed to assist FIRST teams with their research for this competition season. (60 min)
Amazon Transportation 101
Students will meet experts from each part of our transportation process (“Global, First, Middle and Last Mile") and discover what each speaker and their team do each day to make sure customer orders are delivered safely and correctly. (60 min)
Wednesday 9/29 at 3:00 PM ETTransportation for Good
Students will meet Amazonians who lead work to help communities by leveraging Amazon’s transportation networks. Each speaker will present who they are, what they do, and a bit about the logistics that enable them to do good with transportation. (60 min)
Wednesday 10/13 at 6:00 PM ETOption 2: Individual Class Chat - for teachers
Looking for a more intimate and customized classroom experience? Teachers can request to connect their class directly with an Amazon Professional for a career talk and Q&A.
During the Individual Classroom Chat, your guest speaker will present their career journey and work experience (~20 minute presentation) and will then open the floor for of Q&A. (~40 minutes total).
- InstaBook:
Teachers can instantly book an Individual Class Chat today at our currently available dates and times. Select your date and time, download your calendar invite, and we will see you on GoToWebinar when show time arrives! You'll be joined by only 1-2 other classrooms to ensure an intimate experience that answers all your students questions.
- Custom Class Chat:
If the provided dates/times do not work for your schedule, request a Custom Class Chat using the button below. We will pair your class with a volunteer at your requested time and coordinate with you via email.
Request a Custom Class ChatFor all Class Chats (Panel, Instabook, and Custom), be sure to utilize the Teacher Toolkit for lesson plans, worksheets, and slide decks to prepare your class for the best experience possible!
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Natalie, Enterprise Solutions Architect
Fun Fact About Me: "I’m a certified open water scuba diver"
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "My first experience with coding was writing BASIC to control LEGO lights and motion in middle school. I was hooked."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "Always learning new things and collaborating with really smart people."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "I love encouraging kids to choose STEM careers, and they ask really good questions!"
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Matt, Area Sales Leader for Central US
Fun Fact About Me: "They call me the “Cat Whisperer."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "As a young adult, I knew that I wanted to be a part of something that was ever evolving."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "I am a problem solver, I love having the opportunity to solve business problems leveraging technology."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "Inspiring students to explore new opportunities and watching them light up as they engage with questions."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Michael, Software Development Engineer
Fun Fact About Me: "I can solve a Rubik's Cube in under 30 seconds."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "When I could source, build, and configure my own computer, and saw that it worked!"
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "The people you work with are the brightest people in the world."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "Answering all of the awesome, tough, and insightful questions from students!"
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Zené, Software Development Engineer
Fun Fact About Me: "I’m always looking for new activities to try. My most recent endeavors have been roller skating and gardening."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "After my first tech internship. Seeing all the ways I could use tech to make a positive impact, even just a small one, in people’s lives confirmed that this was the right field for me."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "There’s nothing better than the feeling you get after solving a really tough problem."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "I think that introducing children to the world of tech at a young age is super important and so seeing their engagement and helping to develop it makes me so happy."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Elisa, Program Manager II
Fun Fact About Me: "I have a minor in Special Education and a Degree in Kinesiology."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "15 years prior to getting hired at Amazon - I just kept applying!"
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "I love my job. I get to line up talks on topics that are interesting and impactful to all our employees."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "You never know when the seed you plant will become the next James Gosling or a future co-worker. It is fun to see the influence we have."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Khayla, Systems Development Engineer
Fun Fact About Me: "I collect roller coaster credits and have ridden 137 different roller coasters."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "Once I took my first web development course, that is when I knew that I had a talent and passion for computers."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "I love the opportunity to build and design the future especially when I can take what I learn and design solutions to aid underserved communities."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "I love the engaging and out-of-the-box questions that I often get asked. The students are always the coolest."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Brian, Sr. Partner Enablement Manager
Fun Fact About Me: "I referee High School Football."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "When I was working as a cable technician and installing the first cable modems."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "The flexibility of my role."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "Empowering the next generation of tech leaders and sharing my passion for Allyship and gender equality with the classes I get to speak with."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Luna, WHS Site Manager, Sortation Center
Fun Fact About Me: "I've climbed three mountains taller than 14,000 feet!"
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "I always found myself interested in learning how things worked. Tinkering and curious about systems for animals, environment, and technology."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "Continuing to tinker and be curious about making systems better and working with people to learn from their experience to build with them instead of for them."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "Getting to meet students from all over the country and learn from them!"
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Karl, Technical Program Manager
Fun Fact About Me: "I have lived in 3 countries and played a sport in 4 countries."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "11th grade after a friend showed me hacking."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "Seeing ideas comes to life from scratch."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "Showing students that all career paths are different."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Elaine, Connect Specialist Solutions Architect
Fun Fact About Me: "I'm a PSIA certified children’s specialist ski instructor."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "When I bought my first consumer grade GPS unit. For someone directionally challenged, a mobile GPS unit is a miracle! My first “wow” moment with tech like a lightbulb lighting up for the first time."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "Sharing that same “WOW’ moment with coworkers and customers alike."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "Learning what’s special or unique about the location of each school area through the eyes of the kids we speak with."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Kate, Associate Solutions Architect
Fun Fact About Me: "I’ve eaten bugs. Not on a dare. Trying new things is a hobby."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "As an artsy-person looking for jobs to support my family, I discovered not only do careers in tech provide, but also allows me to be creative."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "Technology is changing rapidly, and with that I’m never bored and able to continuously learn new things."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "The questions part! I love hearing about students’ current interests and goals, and encouraging them to pursue them."
Meet a few Class Chat Volunteers:
Bill, Principal UX Designer Pharmacy
Fun Fact About Me: "I once won a Halloween costume contest by wearing a sticker that said, “Hello. My name is Macklemore."
When I knew I wanted to pursue STEM: "Shortly after graduating from art school, I was working at a design agency and I volunteered to build a website for a client. I had no idea what I was doing but once I realized I could use my design skill and work within technology, I was hooked."
My favorite thing about working in STEM: "Being able to solve incredibly complex problems on a daily basis.."
My favorite thing about Class Chats: "Class Chats allows be to be able to help influence young minds, which to me that is one of the most important things I can do in my career."
Sign up for a fun, free, three-hour virtual challenege where students can code an Amazon Hercules robot.
From our online store to your doorstep, discover how computer science, state-of-the-art engineering, and incredible people deliver customer orders at Amazon.
Explore the intersections between music, coding, entrepreneurship, and racial equality.
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How can I register for a Class Chat?Scroll up and sign up for a Public Panel or Individual Chat using the registration links above!
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Can anyone sign up for a Class Chat?Public panel chats are open to anyone - teachers, students, public viewers, and anyone interested in tuning in! At this time, the Individual Class Chats are only available to classrooms/schools in the United States. Any US teacher may request a Class Chat for their classroom. If you are a nonprofit, after school program, or other entity serving students, please reach out to us directly at classchats@amazon.com.
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Will my employee volunteer be a computer science professional or could they have a non-tech role at Amazon?In an effort to show students the wide variety of roles in tech, we have recruited a diverse range of employees to participate in Class Chats. Some volunteers may be a software development engineer while others may be more focused on marketing or program support. Computer science impacts all jobs here at Amazon, so we hope your volunteer can illuminate the vast array of opportunities that exist in the tech sector.
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What grade-levels can participate?We recommend Class Chats for grades 5 and above. We will explore elementary Class Chats later this year, but think that the current model is best for middle and high school students.
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How much does this cost?All Class Chats are provided at no cost.
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I teach multiple sections. Can I request multiple Individual Class Chats?Yes! You can request a Class Chat for as many sections as you need. It’s possible that a volunteer may sign up to fulfill all your requests, or you may be paired with different volunteers for each one.
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What conference platform do I need to use?For the Public Panel Class Chats, we utilize GoToWebinar. It runs in browser, so you will not need to download anything prior to the chat. Use this system check to make sure GoToWebinar is not blocked at your school.
For Individual Class Chats, it depends:
- If you directly booked an available chat, the meeting will take place on GoToWebinar. Use this system check to make sure GoToWebinar will work at your school.
- If you submitted a custom request, you can choose the video conference system you prefer! You will own the calendar invite and can include your link. If you don’t have a conference system, your volunteer can set a meeting up for your class on Amazon Chime. -
My friend works at Amazon. Can I request them as our Class Chat volunteer?You can let your friend know about Class Chats. If they are already involved, they can look for your request in our volunteer system. If they are not yet involved, they will need to complete training and can then search for your request. We cannot hold sections for specific requests at the moment.
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I requested a custom Individual Class Chat, but never heard back. What should I do?Please reach out to classchats@amazon.com and let us know! This is a new program, so while we will try our best to fulfill all requests, its possible that something went wrong on our end. Please email us and we will try our best to fix the situation.
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Who can I contact for help?Reach out to classchats@amazon.com for any additional support.