What is the recruitment process?

 

Recruitment Process

If your organisation would like to recruit volunteers from the University of Southampton, the process is as follows:

  1. Organisation reads guidance notes and registers online at the Community Volunteering Online Portal. Community Volunteering check the information submitted, and contacts the organisation for more information if necessary.

  2. When all information has been confirmed Community Volunteering approve the role and advertise it to volunteers via our website and mailing list.

  3. Community Volunteering refer interested volunteers directly to the organisation (via email wherever possible)

  4. Organisation meets with volunteer to discuss the role and the mutual suitability of the placement

  5. If both parties are happy, volunteer will begin volunteering

  6. As additional roles become available during the year the organisation registers them using the online portal.

  7. When roles are no longer needed by the organisation they should notify Community Volunteering, who will ensure the role is marked as ‘Inactive’ on the online portal, and is no longer advertised.

Community Volunteering Online Portal

Please click here to register or log into the Community Volunteering Online Portal.

Forms

Guidelines for Organisations 

Community Volunteering Online Portal User Manual 

Role Description

Please be as detailed as possible when providing Community Volunteering with a description of your volunteer role(s), including all duties that the student will be expected to undertake.  This will allow us to advertise an accurate overview of the opportunity, and will help attract potential volunteers.  For example, if there are specific times or days of the week that volunteers will be needed, please let us know so that we can ensure only students able to volunteer apply.

Timing

Community Volunteering encourage all organisations to plan ahead for opportunities, and where possible inform us of volunteer roles available with a minimum of 3 or 4 weeks prior to the start day of the opportunity.  We offer opportunities to undergraduate students, postgraduate students and University staff, and advance planning is vital when recruiting student volunteers in particular as the student academic year can move very fast.

University terms run from October to June with a break for Christmas (two weeks) and Easter (four weeks) when many students return home.  The majority of students also return home during the summer break (June to October).  Whilst it is possible to recruit both undergraduate and postgraduate volunteers, as well as staff, during vacation periods, there are far fewer students available so please bear this in mind when planning your roles.  Detailed term dates for 2010/11 academic year is available online.

Exams for undergraduate students are undertaken during January and May/June for a 3-week period, course work and practical skills are also assessed regularly.  Employment is part of student life, therefore most students participate in some type of paid work which also takes up time outside their studies.