Reasons to Volunteer

Gain Valuable Life Experiences and Skills

Whether you build houses for the homeless or mail flyers for a local politician, you'll experience the real world through hands-on work. You can use this experience to explore your major or career interests.

Meet Interesting People

Volunteering brings together a variety of people. Both the recipients of your volunteer efforts and other volunteers can be rich sources of insight. For example, maybe you'll learn about the legal aspects of running a not for profit from the president of the organization.

Get Academic Credit

Some schools offer  credit for volunteer work through "service-learning." This is a teaching method that integrates hands-on learning (through service to the community) into the school curriculum. It's available in high schools and colleges, as well as in earlier grades. To find out if your school offers service-learning, visit OR consult your guidance counselor.

Send a Message to Colleges

Colleges pay attention to your life inside and outside the classroom. Your extracurricular activities reveal a great deal about you, such as what your interests are, whether you can manage your priorities and maintain a long-term commitment, what diversity you'd bring to the student body, and how you've made a meaningful contribution to something.

Volunteering has many other intangible benefits. It can help you give back to society, break down barriers of misunderstanding or fear, explore personal issues, and even have fun.