Throughout college, we do plenty of things to make sure we make the most of our time. Classes, internships, college and society events and what not! But there’s something we all forget to do and that is do our part in helping the less fortunate and contributing to society’s well being. As a college student, there are innumerable options available to you for volunteering and you can take your pick among different issues to find one which touches your heart.
1. NGOs
In any city, there are numerous NGOs working for making the society a better place to live in. These could be working with underprivileged children coming from poor or deprived backgrounds, for women empowerment, homeless people or animals. You can look up the NGOs that work in your city and check out their website for volunteering options. Most NGOs are always looking for volunteers to help them out and if an opportunity isn’t mentioned, you can even call them up. Meanwhile, there are several government homeless shelters across the city and you can always visit them to inquire if they need any helping hands. You’ll most probably get a certificate from the NGOs but don’t expect a stipend, except for travelling expenses and that is when the NGO is a very established one.
2. NSS
Your college most likely has an NSS club and these are usually quite active. If they aren’t that active, you can take charge! But they regularly conduct activities such as awareness programmes, donation drives and educational programmes, etc. which are quite fun to be a part of. Since it is a college club, you do not have to worry about managing the work along with your classes as the schedule will be set according to the academic timings.
3. Enactus
A campaign that runs in a lot of colleges in the country, Enactus combines social change with entrepreneurship. They seek to empower communities that are weak and deprived by offering them opportunities for making and selling their products. Enactus works on all marketing and sales strategies and all profits go to the communities themselves. But this is only one aspect of the various kind of campaigns and projects run by various Enactus groups across the country. You can be a part of different teams such as social media, marketing, sales, field work, content creation, team management. Moreover, you’ll be learning some valuable entrepreneurial skills.
4. Go Solo!
You don’t have to be associated with any particular organisation in order to contribute to society. Like mentioned earlier, there are various government run homeless shelters and you can
distribute food, clothing items or other necessities there. You could educate a small group of underprivileged children for free or distribute food at red lights and among other poor people, instead of giving money.
Working with an organisation gives you work experience of working inside a professional atmosphere and the fact that you’ve been volunteering is also a great addition to your CV. But more than that, you will be gathering a variety of experiences and stories, along with the incomparable feeling of knowing you’re helping someone. A small step towards change or even a small good deed everyday, goes a really long way and we hope you choose to be a part of the change!
