Student volunteers or volunteers who are students?
Whichever way you look at it, people who volunteer give up their time and energy to help others. Whether they are working, looking for work, retired, students or doing other things in their lives, they want to help their community.
Volunteer West has partnered with Victoria University’s VU Vollies to connect student volunteers with more opportunities in Melbourne’s west.
Project Manager Michelle Risk at Volunteer West has been the queen of outreach events this year. She has arranged 10 outreach events at shopping centres, farmers markets and community centres around Melbourne’s west. These events are a fantastic way to reach people in the community, tell them about Volunteer West and get them involved with volunteering in their local area. With the help from other Volunteer West staff and some enthusiastic VU Vollies, Michelle has recorded:
97 volunteer referrals
423 people showing genuine interest to volunteer from outreach events since March 2021
Now that is something to celebrate!
For the outreach event at Highpoint Shopping Centre on June 25, Michelle needed a few extra hands-on-deck. VU Vollies kindly stepped up and Michelle was joined by four student volunteers from Victoria University.
We spoke with each VU Vollie who joined us that day and want to give them a big virtual clap to commend them during National Student Volunteer Week.
Suada Duradbegovic
How did you hear about volunteering with Volunteer West?
VU Vollies posts different volunteering opportunities for student volunteers to get involved with. Circling dates, time, and a description for what the event is, VU Vollies can put their hand up to join and gain new experiences.
This is my first proper volunteering experience. Michelle explained what Volunteer West does, which is to put people in contact with volunteering opportunities and be the middleman in the process.
Do you know what direction you want to go in after you complete your studies?
I’m studying Health Science and am thinking I want to go in the Public Health direction, working with Government, agencies and helping the community. So volunteering is a perfect thing to immerse myself in.
What types of volunteering roles are you interested in?
Helping the elderly, tutoring kids and helping with refugee families.
What skills do you have currently that will help with the volunteering you are helping with today?
Being outgoing, being able to approach people and engage in conversations but also not being too disheartened when people are not too interested in talking to us. Being passionate about a few of the volunteering opportunities that are available, to have that talking point when people do want to speak to us.
Mercedes Antunovic-Katinic
What skills have you learnt by volunteering with Volunteer West over the past two weekends?
Some of the skills include being able to communicate with different types of people depending on the situation. Also having more confidence to approach people, completing data entry and I learnt more about the organisation from Michelle. She said it doesn’t matter where you start, volunteering is a way in which you build upon giving back.
Have you thought about skills you want to work on to help be a great volunteer?
Communication is a big thing. It’s hard to tell sometimes how to interact with people as everyone prefers a different type of communication, especially with the masks. You can’t tell if someone is smiling as easily.
What is the best thing that has happened today whilst working at this outreach event?
The best thing was getting to meet more of the Volunteer West outreach members. Another thing was meeting someone in the community. They didn’t hear me the first time I tried to speak to them, and they came back. They are new to Australia and had someone help fill out their details for Volunteer West. Even if it’s an hour of their time, they are going to try to commit to volunteering.
What has been the most challenging part of the volunteering experience so far?
At Highpoint [shopping centre], everyone is busy doing their own thing so it's hard to get those interactions and write their details down. It’s easier to hand out these cards [flyers].
Any other comments about your experience from volunteering with Volunteer West?
Volunteer West is an amazing organisation and I feel like more people should get involved because it makes you feel really good!
Nimasha De Alwis
What would you say to someone thinking about volunteering with Volunteer West?
It’s fun!
How did you hear about the opportunity to volunteer with Volunteer West?
We have the Vollies team at Victoria University. I registered for the newsletter where I saw this opportunity and signed up.
Is this your first volunteering experience?
No - I have volunteered with the VU Vollies team at pop ups events or movie nights. Recently we had the student leadership conference. It’s all kind of events which is fun, but this is the first event for an outside organisation.
What skills can you bring to your volunteering?
Communication, because I like to communicate with people. I used to be more of an introvert, so I am trying to get better at my communication. Something that you need to constantly work on.
What skill do you want to work on through volunteering?
Approaching people. Sometimes you need to know the line between bothering them and helping them. What is the right way to go about it?
Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
Working for a company in system auditing.
Any other thoughts about volunteering?
I am trying to volunteer for anything and you meet so many multi-cultural people and learn from them as well.
In my home country of Sri-Lanka, there are not as many good sources for volunteering opportunities. So when I came to Australia, I had more opportunities.
Interested in volunteering?
Check out our For Volunteers page where you can search for opportunities in your area.
Contact Us Here to speak to someone from the Volunteer Support Services team.
Or if you are a student at Victoria University, be sure to get in touch with VU Vollies.