As you know, all high school students need to have 40 hours of community service in order to graduate. Use this information to discover where your 40 hours can best be used.

Volunteer Centres work in local communities to strengthen volunteering and citizen engagement. With more than 200 in Canada, each volunteer centre’s name, size, structure and services reflect the unique characteristics of their community.

To find a volunteer centre in your area, click here.

There are so many ways you can get your 40 hours of community service completed. Besides volunteer centres, you may be able to find other alternative ways to get your mandatory service hours.

If you are living in Ontario, check out these guidelines listed on the Ministry of Education website:

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/extra/eng/ppm/124a.html

These guidelines will let you know what is considered acceptable and not acceptable volunteer activities. If you don’t live in Ontario, visit your provincial government website’s high-school volunteer guidelines.

An excellent search resource for students looking to complete their hours is charityvillage.com . This website allows you to search for volunteer listings all over Canada. It is easy to access and will give you a choice of many different volunteering opportunities.

Another great, easy, searchable resource for finding volunteer opportunities is volunteermatch.org . This website will let you search opportunities all over Canada, as well. It is easy to navigate and allows you to search by category or what you are passionate about.

What Volunteering Can Do for You

Volunteering can turn into a life-long habit. If you are passionate about helping others or a specific cause, it may follow you throughout your life. You can learn a lot about yourself, your community, and others. Even though it is a requirement in high-school, it doesn’t have to stop there. Your interests might change over time, but you can always go back to how you felt while volunteering in high-school. Do not see volunteering as a chore- see it as a chance for you to walk in someone else’s shoes.

Tip: Whatever you do, don’t leave volunteering to the last minute. If you do, you may not be able to get your diploma-you don’t want that to happen!

Tip: You don’t want to be grunting and groaning through your volunteer experience- you want to enjoy it. Remember to research and take up opportunities that you will like and have fun doing.

Tip: Mix it up! You don’t have to pick only one type of volunteer opportunity. It may be in your best interest to do some hours at one organization and finish the rest with another.

Revised by Erin Lynne Bouman