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Volunteering while you are a student or recent graduate If you are a student at one of the local universities you may be interested to know that Newcastle University, Northumbria University and the University of Sunderland have their own sections which encourage student volunteering. In our experience many students are interested in building up experience that may help their future career prospects. If you are a student, and improving your career prospects is one of the reasons you are interested in volunteering, then we would recommend you have a chat with your careers service in the first instance. They can help you identify the key skills you need to build up, and the sort of volunteering roles that might give you that experience. Many students are open to volunteering as a group activity, and again the local universities can cater for this type of volunteering. Below are some details of local student volunteering organisations with their own descriptions of who they are and what they are about. - SCAN (Student Community Action Newcastle) "SCAN today is a vibrant and lively young person led charity based at Newcastle University that aims to provide a wide variety of quality volunteering opportunities, through running our own community projects and by working with other charitable/community organisations. SCAN currently offers over 200 volunteering opportunities in the community as well as running a successful programme of young person led projects, and one-off/taster volunteering opportunities." - Volunteer Northumbria (Northumbria University Students' Union). "Volunteer Northumbria" is the Unions' community volunteering programme. Last year their volunteers: - Helped 700+ members of the local community through volunteering projects - Won regional and national awards - Appeared in newspapers, on radio AND television - Made friends. Gained skills. Had fun! VN is "student led" - and open to all Northumbria students, that means Northumbria students decide what happens and ALL their exciting projects are led by students. To find out more about VN click this link to see a video made by our volunteers! Please email Stacy Hoare, Volunteer Northumbria's Volunteer Co-ordinator, or ring her on 0191 243 7736 for more information. - - Newcastle College Students' Union The Students’ Union also values the act of volunteering, believing it to be rewarding and fulfilling to both the volunteer and the wider community. They have many exciting volunteering opportunities available, including being a member of the publicity team or a member of the Student Advice and Support Team. - Student Volunteering - University of Sunderland Students' Union "Want to get more out of your experience here at uni…fancy doing something different? Why not try volunteering. You may discover hidden talents or further develop the skills you already have whilst helping local organisations, charities and community groups at the same time." Graduates If you have recently graduated from one of the local universities or colleges you may still be able to volunteer through your institution's volunteering scheme. Volunteering can be an effective way of building up experience if you are unemployed or 'underemployed' - please see information on employability. |
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