Research suggests that the desire to help others (value) and learning interpersonal skills (understanding) are core reasons for student volunteerism. Interpretations of such reports often minimise the role of contextual factors in shaping volunteer motives. This study considers the policy and institutional contexts that advocate for community engagement and social impact in South African higher education as a contributing factor in shaping student perceptions on reasons for volunteering. This article draws on student volunteers’ responses to an open-ended question exploring their volunteer motives. Active student volunteers (N = 70) were recruited from six community projects across three South African universities in the Western Cape region. The findings suggest that citizenship together with the value and understanding functions are core motives for volunteering among South African university students. These accounts of student volunteer motives posit strong links to contextual factors; a phenomenon that holds significant implications for policy makers.

Despite the growing interest in student volunteerism, few students volunteer, and volunteer organisations struggle to retain those who do. We explore motivating factors, expectations, and demotivating factors as they relate to retention in student volunteerism Participants were selected from six volunteer projects associated with three South African universities in the Western Cape region. Seventy active volunteers (N = 70) responded to four open‐ended questions, analysed using thematic analysis. Volunteer leadership is central to student volunteers' expectations and demotivating factors. Good leadership fulfilled student volunteers' expectations, but student volunteers were demotivated in the face of poor leadership. Six indicators of good leadership were identified. This included efficiency, regular and effective communication, being organised, passionate, and dedicated along with being supportive and facilitating volunteer growth. We argue for the importance of including contextual factors such as volunteer leadership when designing a student volunteer retention framework.

No abstract

No abstract