International students have much to offer as volunteers

International students come with a unique set of skills and experiences that can value add to any team. They are often highly motivated to get experience and exposure to the Australian workplace and get involved in their community. Organisations that have realised the benefits of engaging international student volunteers stated that they:

• Bring new ideas and increased cross-cultural understandings
• Improve capacity to service clients with different language needs
• Make services relevant to a wider group
• Have global networks and linkages
• Identify needs in the community
• Are tolerant of difficulties due to life experience and familiarity with overcoming challenges, e.g. moving countries
• Are professionals with high level skills

As a part of the International Student Volunteer Initiative a set of information kits, resources and workshops have been developed to help build capacity around engaging international students as volunteers and to educate international students on volunteering in Australia. This kit has been compiled to provide information, inspiration and advice to Queensland nonprofit organisations that want to start engaging and working better with international students as volunteers.

Volunteering Qld has been providing the volunteer sector with resources and up-to-date information on issues surrounding volunteering for 30 years. The content for this initiative is grounded in that knowledge and was developed after primary research and consultation with international students, education providers and Queensland nonprofit organisations.

The information kit covers:

International students as volunteers

• Who are international students
• Drivers of international student volunteerism
• Student perspectives on the benefits and challenges of volunteering
• Organisational perspectives on international students as volunteers

Working effectively with international students

• Linking and recruiting
• Selection process
• Orientation
• Retention
• Out of the box (tips and case studies)
• Cheat sheet (quick tips)

Volunteer stories

Read international student volunteer profiles. Find out about their roles, motivations, the benefits they gained from the volunteering experience and some of the challenges they faced. 

Best practice

Learn from best practice. Read insights from nonprofit organisations, UnitingCare Community and VoRTCS, on how they work with international students. View profiles of CQ University’s Community and Corporate Engagement Program and the QUT International Student Volunteering Initiative, to see how education providers are encouraging international student volunteering.

Help us promote international student volunteering

Encourage other nonprofit organisations to work more effectively with international students. Share our promotional materials and direct them to this page.

The International Student Volunteer Initiative is a Volunteering Qld initiative to increase opportunities for international students to volunteer in Queensland funded by Multicultural Affairs Queensland.