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Volunteering. Hot or Not?

Volunteering.  Hot or Not?

Make your volunteer experience what you want it to be.

By Kathryn Knight

Remember Paris Hilton’s stint in jail last year?  After the fact, her first few interviews revealed that she had a new priority besides partying.  It was volunteering.  Whether or not she has fully exercised this endeavor since is debatable.  Plenty of other celebrities, however, have made a show for volunteering.  “That’s hot.”

As students begin preparing for college and scholarship applications, you’ll find that almost all will ask about volunteer experience.  For college, it is a top priority.

 

However, there are still many students out there who may have the heart but don’t put it into volunteering.  That’s not hot.

 

It’s time for you to turn over a new leaf.  And get this…you can actually help yourself while helping others.

 

Pursue a passion.  So what if your passion is Guitar Hero?  Become a Big Brother or Sister and provide some musical entertainment and engagement for an underprivileged child once or twice a month.  Or if you enjoy cooking, work at a Soup Kitchen.  It is so simple to find volunteering activities that actually interest you on a personal level.

 

Financial Benefits.  Just like you got an after-school job to finance your personal life, volunteer experience can help subsidize your education as well.  Many scholarship essay questions are volunteer-based.  Some scholarships are even exclusive to those students who have helped out others in their spare time.  Essentially, volunteering now can have a huge financial payoff later.  

 

Get results.  College admission is sometimes a game.  Like any other game, the individual or team with the most points is the winner.  If an admission officer is deciding between you and another student for admission, every point counts.  With volunteer experience, you have a slight edge on the competition.


 

 


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    sexyvet4life

    about 18 hours ago

    i would love to vallonteer anywhere where i can help animals

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    sexyvet4life

    about 18 hours ago

    these is not bad

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    lilmisspiggie123

    1 day ago

    wow i never thought of it like that ive been involved in all types of volunteer stuff cuz my church is always helping with one event or another or even running events themselves like the Big Pumkin Run and Back 2(009) School and No Home Alone or even Street Reach theres prob a list taller than me of stuff i've volunteered in and didn't even think about it helping with my college....hmmmmmm.... something to ponder!!!! lol

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    nelson214

    14 days ago

    I would like to volunteer at an animal shelter.

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    MarkP423

    23 days ago

    Anything, to step into, is a volunteery approach,
    guess,,,, by my perspective,
    how or who it suits is the goal intended.
    ROF Spend too much time looking at all these prospects, to a conformity !
    Lifes lessons are deep, how far, we step into them, are the bridge to voluntary accomplishment, thru others and need(s) to excel

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    JenniferP2400

    about 1 month ago

    Great Im looking forward to volunteering then!

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    KezzaMack

    2 months ago

    I've spent a lifetime involved in community service, beginning at the age of ten when I volunteered to do clerical work at an office to serve families of the incarcerated. From that, I went on to assist the founder of our local Christmas charity, not only doing clerical work but repairing toys, coordinating donations and even delivering the parcels myself!

    Over the years, I've worked with women, children and family charities, anti-poverty organizations, and the chronic homeless of Seattle. I've worked on statewide political campaigns and a Presidential campaign, volunteered toward literacy at schools, lobbied for social reform and even tried revive our local tenant union. At one point, I was even asked to help City Hall develop an anti-slum ordinance because of my involvement with housing issues.

    I can't emphasize enough to students out there how important it is to take the time to volunteer somewhere, not only when you're in high school so it looks good on your resume, but for the rest of your life. Even when you're working, you need to find a way to give back to your communities. You are more than the sum of your job qualifications. Give, and give generously. The rewards will come back to you a thousandfold.

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    MizzTews

    3 months ago

    Volunteering is hot!

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    MichaelS5659

    4 months ago

    I am an American Red Cross Instructor and althoug i had to pay a grip to get my certs helping people learn ho to care for others without pay is still awesome. voulenteer if it makes u feel good.

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    MykelH6

    5 months ago

    Volunteering helps many people with scholarships, jobs, and possible career choices. I personally have not volunteered in anything but I started to think about it because it can really help even if you think it won't. You gain experience in whatever it is that you volunteer in and it will help you advance in life.

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    FateniaO

    5 months ago

    I think that volunteering is beneficial to people because it gives a person experience when they don't have any experience and sometimes it is best to start from the bottom and work your way up. I accepted a job offer in 1991 that I may not have gotten otherwise if I hadn't volunteered. I held down that job for 12 years 8 months, and I look at it like this; you have to start somewhere. Some employers are willing to work with you if you have some experience in something. I know that volunteering can have a positive and huge financial payoff later on down the road, but the fact is that volunteering helps people to grow in many ways.

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    PauliusB2

    5 months ago

    yes, but searching for volunteering opportunities isn't.

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    marielena11

    5 months ago

    volunteering is great