Discovery Alumni
I’m Rosa, and as a Discovery intern I’ve been reaching out to Discovery alumni to see where they are now, and how volunteering helped get them there today, and the responses were astounding. I learned so much, and I’m here to share the wisdom with you all also.
So many voiced how volunteering completely changed their career path, and this is just one of many benefits. I have always struggled in deciding what I wanted to do when I left university, and seeing how many people said volunteering helped sway them a certain way was illuminating, and only made me wish I’d volunteered in my early years of uni. In fact, for some, it opened their eyes to the possibility of working in the charity sector, with alumni Natalie currently undertaking a PhD looking at the narrative identities of volunteers. I’ve noticed since interning with a charity that working at one in the future is scarcely discussed as a career option, even though in 2022, almost one million people were working in the charity sector/third sector. For many, volunteering themselves revealed this as a possibility. It allows you to work for something you care about and feel good about yourself while you get paid!
At Discovery, there is a variety of projects available to help with, and you can tailor which ones you choose to act as experience in future interviews, or to see if it would be a good fit for you. One alumnus has stated that volunteering helped them decide to work for the NHS and become a trainee cognitive behavioural therapist. Lizzie went on to add that since trying to find a career in psychology can be tough, volunteering helped set them apart, as not only does it provide experiences to bring up in interviews, but it also demonstrates a caring, selfless character. They say that there is no doubt they would not have gained their current position without volunteering for Discovery.
For those like me, who can get nervous sometimes, our Discovery alumni have said time and time again that volunteering is a fantastic way to gain confidence, communication skills, leadership skills and more. But for some, it doesn’t stop at simply volunteering. Alumnus Declan was project coordinator, trustee, and President during his time at Discovery, giving him a range of experiences to learn from and use in the future. One of which being interview skills, as he would be interviewing volunteer recruits, allowing him to understand how best to handle it when the tables are turned, and he now says he never gets nervous for interviews.
And for those who know what career path they want to pursue and are looking for some experience to make them stand out in the crowd, volunteering can help with this too. For Chris, who volunteered back in the 90s and completed his degree in Management and Computer Science, he has been in IT since leaving university, and now works at the Bank of England. He says that volunteering gave him plenty of experience to mention in interviews, and during his tenure he was publicity officer for Discovery, which only helped him further. With Discovery being largely student-led, there are plenty of opportunities to take a more hands-on, leadership-based role and ‘broaden your horizons’ and ‘meet people from all walks of life’. Chris says some of the skills he acquired along the way included budget running, event coordinating, and acclimatising to a more professional environment. For Chris, the employability was a bonus – it’s just good fun.
Volunteering can open many doors career-wise, but more than this, it is an opportunity to grow and learn as a person. You’ll make friends you may never have met otherwise, and you’ll gain innumerable life skills. To try something new and start your volunteering journey, visit https://volunteering.discoverysvs.org/