Benefits of volunteering

Volunteering can benefit you greatly and bring so many opportunities. Now that it’s summer and you’ve got more free time, we’ve come up with some of the top benefits that may tempt you to get out the house and make an impact in your local community. 

Meet new people

Whilst volunteering, you’ll meet a load of new people who you may not normally cross but could turn out to be one of your best friends. This can be an invaluable life experience.

Build confidence

Along with meeting new people and gaining new friends, your confidence will grow as you speak to more people, whether they are colleagues or customers, you’ll certainly see an increase in your confidence. Along with that, seeing what you can achieve will give you confidence in your skills and potential too, which is key for future jobs.

Develop transferable skills

As well as building confidence in your skills, you will also gain some transferable skills as a volunteer. You may develop communication skills from talking and liaising with customers. You may develop teamwork skills when working effectively with your colleagues. Any skills you gain will be beneficial in the working world.

Make a difference

It doesn’t take much to make a real impact on a project or in a community - volunteering is the perfect way to do this. It doesn’t matter whether you spend a lot of time volunteering or only a little, you’re sure to leave a memorable mark and people will certainly remember and benefit from your voluntary work!

Feel good

Of course, those who benefit from the work you do whilst volunteering will feel great from your work, but you’ll also feel an enormous sense of achievement. It is a really rewarding use of your time.

Experience for your CV

Volunteering is really valued amongst employers - it’ll stand out on your CV. It demonstrates to them many different skills and traits about you, and it shows that you are passionate, hardworking and driven!

Helps towards personal awards

At Herts, we have a range of awards that your volunteering experience will count towards. If you haven’t heard of our Go Herts Award, find out more by clicking here and prepare to take part next year! This award recognises students who take part in extra-curricular activities outside of their degree.

You can also log your hours on your Volunteer profile on the SU website, and you will receive a certificate that formally recognises all of your hard work.

There are so many opportunities to volunteer, within the University, and outside. You can volunteer to be a Freshers’ Angel, which involves helping new students to Herts. You have opportunities to do one-off volunteering, local volunteering and student-led volunteering projects. Check these out on the SU website.