What are the Benefits of Volunteering for Newcomers?

Volunteer opportunities provide many benefits for newcomers to Canada. While helping others, you’ll learn about and engage with your local community, increase cultural understanding, and gain Canadian experience. Discover why people volunteer and how it can help you grow, integrate into Canada, and advance your career.

Why Do People Volunteer in Canada?

Volunteering is a vital part of Canadian culture. Every day, Canadians donate their time, energy, and money to help causes they feel strongly about.

Benefits of Volunteering for Organizations

Many not-for-profit and charitable organizations have limited budgets and rely on volunteers to achieve their goals. Organizations highly value the role of their volunteers. Newcomers discover it’s an enjoyable way to contribute to Canada, meet like-minded people, and get to know fellow Canadians.

6 Valuable Benefits of Volunteering

1. Build a Professional Network

One of the greatest benefits of volunteering for newcomers is building a robust professional network. It’s also a comfortable and easy way to meet like-minded people who want to give back to society.

Building personal and professional connections can lead to job referrals, often found in the “hidden job market,” and not widely advertised. In Canada, personal recommendations play a vital role in the hiring process. Growing your network will help you gain insights and advice for your job search.

2. Develop New Skills

Volunteering can help you gain new skills and hands-on experience to add to your resume. Newcomers can develop technical, leadership, and communication skills through these roles.

For example, volunteering in a community center might involve responsibilities such as event planning or administrative tasks. These skills can refine organizational and communication skills that many professions highly value. Enhancing existing and gaining new skills will make you more attractive to employers.

3. Improve Your Language Skills

If English or French, Canada’s official languages, are not your first language, volunteering can enhance your communication skills enjoyably and effectively.

Improving your language skills will boost your self-esteem and confidence for job interviews and career prospects. Volunteering can even introduce you to job-specific language that can aid career development.

4. Gain Canadian Work Experience

Another major benefit of volunteering is that it can help you gain “Canadian experience“. You can list volunteer work experience on your Canadian-style resume and list skills and accomplishments that are relevant to your profession.

A reference check is a vital part of the recruitment process. A reference letter from the volunteer organization can vouch for your skills, knowledge, and character, which can help you land a job offer. As such, treat your role like a regular job. Deliver what you promise and show your strengths and abilities.

5. Enhance Mental and Physical Health

Giving back to the community contributes to your well-being. Volunteer work can increase your sense of belonging and purpose. It can also help you build a support system to combat depression and loneliness that you may feel as you adapt to a new country.

6. Volunteer Benefits for Your Family

It’s a great way to show children the importance of giving back to the community. Children learn through observation. As a parent, you can model how to make a difference in society.

Volunteering as a family allows your children to benefit, meet others, make new friends, and adapt to Canadian culture. Some families volunteer to observe religious traditions, as Muslims do during Eid al-Fitr.

When you move to Canada, you might want to keep expenses low and have fun as a family. Volunteering as a family is a great way to spend quality time together.

Where to Volunteer in Canada

There are many ways to get involved in the community. But you may be unsure where to volunteer.

Think about organizations and causes that matter to you, such as human rights, refugee welfare, animal welfare, healthcare, etc. Like people, every organization has values. Find one that matches your core values and you’ll perform at your best.

Consider the skills and experiences you want to share or develop. For example, do you have an exceptional and sought-after skill set? Or, are you a master of budgeting or a first-class event planner?

How to Benefit from Your Volunteer Opportunity

While volunteering helps people and communities, consider the benefits that are important to you. For example, do you want to gain specific skills or experiences? Do you want to gain an insight into the workplace culture or a snapshot of your community? Professional associations are ideal to learn about workplace culture.

Volunteering with nonprofits and neighbourhood centers will give you a better sense of your community and current needs.  

Finding Opportunities

You can contact community groups to find opportunities, or start your search at Volunteer Canada.

Applying for volunteer work is like applying for a job. You will likely have to submit a resume. Depending on your area of interest, you may have to provide references. When working with vulnerable persons, you must undergo a background and police checks.

These are just some examples of how to get involved: