Volunteer to get experience

By Thomas Pere

WHENEVER jobs are advertised, experience is among the key things that are needed. This has always left job-seekers without experience frustrated and no ground to begin from since money cannot buy the experience.

For those who have just graduated or graduated long ago but have not worked anywhere to gain experience or are going to graduate but have no work to do, taking a voluntary job could be the answer to getting into the world of employment.

According to Chambers Encyclopedic English dictionary, a voluntary job refers to working with no expectation of being paid or rewarded. However, this does not imply there are no benefits.

Benefits of volunteering
Richard Ssebaggala, the managing director of E-Z Concepts, explains: “Doing a voluntary job is working with no tangible pay. The payment is in form of experience, exposure and satisfaction derived from offering the service.”
He says the experience and exposure you get from volunteering enables you to apply for jobs since your service as a volunteer will enable you to get a recommendation letter, certificate of completion and acknowledgments among others.
Ssebaggala says it is unfortunate that most people do not know the benefits of volunteering and blindly believe it’s only a good way of assisting the church. This explains why there are many graduates without jobs because of lack of experience.

Types of voluntary jobs
“The perception that voluntary jobs and blue-collar jobs are manual is not true because they cut across all jobs and sectors. It’s for this reason that you have to apply for something where you have relevant papers or you can do. They can be short, medium and long-term,” Ssebaggala says.

How to apply
Geoffrey Akule, an administrator of Nature Uganda, says unlike paying jobs that are normally advertised, most voluntary jobs are not advertised. What you have to do is to apply to the human resource officer/manager of the institution, stating your qualifications and the area you are good at so that when it comes up, you are called. When called for professional work, your qualifications, too, will be checked and used to determine your chances of getting the job.

The contract
“There is no specific time and age to apply for a voluntary job. It depends on how free you are and what you want to gain out of it. The contract is not different from a pay contract because it spells out the same conditions like for any other job except that there is no pay,” he explains.

Benefits to employer
Akuk says: “Volunteers also help institutions save funds, accomplish tasks and exchange skills between fresh graduates who are updated and old colleagues.”

Current standing
Ssebaggala says: “The spirit of volunteering has not picked up in Uganda because everything has been commercialised. People want money for the sake of it. Unless they get something tangible, they won’t accept to settle for anything. However, fresh graduates and job-seekers who would like to strengthen their curriculum vitaes should seek voluntary opportunities to make them eligible to apply for jobs.”