Volunteer Opportunities

You’ve got the grades. You’ve got the activities. You’ve got the wide array of interests, the killer essay, and the teacher and neighbor who will tell every college in earshot how great you are. But, if you’re like a lot of students, when it comes time to fill out that “Volunteer” section of your scholarship and college applications, you may be stretching to come up with a few good examples. Well, don’t worry – not only is volunteering a painless way to help out in your community, it’s also easier than ever to find volunteer opportunities that you can do today, tomorrow, or anytime.

Scholarship America’s Dollars for Scholars program is just one organization that’s always looking for student volunteers. Many of our chapters, led by adult volunteers, need student help for events, awards nights, and general chapter business, and a lot of them even give scholarship consideration to their student volunteers. And they’re not the only ones; check out volunteermatch.org or createthegood.org to find volunteer opportunities that are tailor-made for your interest and availability.

Once you get started, you may find volunteering to be addictive, too. When you find a cause you’re passionate about and start working on it, even for a few hours a week, you’ll have a wider, more worldly perspective on it almost immediately – and when your awesome application gets you into your favorite college choice, you can check out the same resources and connect with people on campus who’ll help you take the next step.

Whether it’s helping fellow students, supporting younger kids, or serving those who are less well-off, volunteering can be much more than a field to fill out on your application.