If you’ve recently left school, college or university and despite having a good idea of what career you want to pursue are struggling to get jobs or even interviews then a full-time volunteering position could give your prospects a boost.

A full-time voluntary opportunity is a chance to get vital work experience. It looks great on your CV and will stand you in good stead next time you have to fill in an application form or need to give a good example at a job interview.

In most voluntary placements there will be a mentor to help you get the most out of the experience. They will introduce the nature of the role to you and talk you through some of the work you will be doing; you can go to them if you have any questions or aren’t sure of something. They can also be really useful if you need an employer or character reference for a future job application.

Some examples of full-time volunteering opportunities are:

Project Scotland

Project Scotland is a national charity which connects young people with full-time volunteering in a wide range of areas such as the environment, education, youth projects, sports and the arts. Since it began in May 2005 they have placed over 2900 young people into placements with over 300 non-profit organisations across Scotland.

When taking on a Project Scotland placement you have to commit for at least 3 months but the experience can be extremely beneficial. 85% of Project Scotland volunteers go onto employment or further education and 95% would recommend Project Scotland to their friends.

To find out more about Project Scotland check out their website by using the link at the bottom of the page.

Residential volunteering & Internships

Residential volunteering

Residential volunteering involves living somewhere else whilst you volunteer. This can offer you the chance to try something, either for a week or two though it can often mean dedicating up to a year or longer to working with an organisation. There are lots of different examples of this type of volunteering though it is often most closely associated with environmental and conservation groups or care organisations. Long term volunteers living away from home can receive housing benefit, council tax benefit and income support for housing costs for a maximum of 13 weeks

Internships

A volunteering internship is a full-time placement with a charity or voluntary organisation. It’s similar to the type of work that you would get through a Project Scotland placement and in many instances would last for a similar length of time (though internships can vary quite considerably). Unlike the Project Scotland scheme you will have to search and apply for individual internships yourself. It shouldn’t be too hard to find them though - most major UK charities will offer some kind of full-time placement. If there’s a charity that you’re particularly attracted to then check out their website to see what they offer. You can also contact your local Volunteer Centre for advice on where to look and what to look for.