How to Find the Right Volunteer Opportunity

Now that you have a handle on your why, when and where, let’s look at how you can actually find your great volunteer opportunity! Make sure to give yourself lots of time for research. Finding a great volunteer role is not that different from finding a paid opportunity; it takes time.

Make sure you have some idea of what you want to do based on the questions you explored in the Why, Where, Who and When articles:
- Why are you volunteering and what do you hope to gain from it? Are there specific causes, skills and interests you want to explore?
- When are you available and how long a commitment can you make?
- Where? Virtual or in-person? And if in-person, how far are you able or willing to travel?
Word-of-mouth is a great way to find volunteer opportunities. Talk to family and friends. Let people know that you are looking for an opportunity to volunteer and ask if anyone has any connections to organizations that might be a good fit for you
Talk to your teachers or guidance counsellor about local opportunities they may be aware of, based on the experiences of previous students.
Go online. You can search for: “volunteer opportunities for youth near me” or even better, “volunteer opportunity with ____ (fill in cause) near me”. For example, volunteer opportunities with animals near me.
Check out opportunities on Volunteer Success using any relevant key words including a cause or location. Once you find a specific opportunity that sounds great for you, click on “I’m interested” and the organization will get a notification and will contact you about next steps.
Contact your local Volunteer Centre if there is one in your community. Many offer on-line volunteer listings for organizations in their area. Check out this page to find one near you.
Once you find an opportunity or an organization that interests you, go to their website to learn more about the organization and the work that they do.
- Find their volunteer page (it may be under Get Involved or Support Us) and get more information about the recruitment process and eligibility requirements.
- Try to find the formal position description that lists the role qualifications and responsibilities. Email the organization to get it if you can’t find it on their website - see How-to Tips for Interviewing and Email Communications