🙋🏽 Why volunteer?

What's in it for me? Good question! The best people to answer this would be the students already engaged in student volunteering. So, that’s exactly what we did when we met you for the gathering in spring 2023. 

PS. The movie above is also available in article form if you'd rather read.

🗣 The recruitment process

The recruitment process itself consists of several parts. You need to know what you're looking for before you advertise the positions. The next step is to read applications and prepare for interviews. Finally, you're hopefully left with one or more suitable candidates who need to be assessed and selected, and probably some who needs to be rejected in a nice manner.

📄 The job description

Description of the position - a job description creates predictability for both you and the applicants:

• It all starts with the need. What do you need, what will the person do?

• Try not to think about who, then you start to imagine gender, appearance, background, type of person, etc. It's easy to imagine who the person is instead of who qualifies for the tasks.

• Write down the duties and responsibilities of the position.

• Write down what you think might be useful in terms of experience, education and personal qualities. Don't be too strict! If your requirements are too high, only those with high self-esteem may dare to apply. And remember that not everyone is or needs to be an extrovert.

📢 Advertise positions

Now it's time to create a job advertisement to be published. This should be based on your job description. Don't include anything that you didn't discuss in the job description. If you do so the job description wasn't done properly in the previous step.

• Write briefly about the position.

• List work tasks, responsibilities, personal qualities from the job description.

• List requirements for experience and wishes regarding personal qualities.

• Contact person to be contacted with questions.

• Deadline and how to submit an application.

• Encourage everyone to apply.

More about SDSN in Drammen.

Consider multiple recruitment channels to reach as many people as possible:

• Posters.

• The Sørøst-calendar.

• Social media posts (Facebook/Instagram).

• Other social media (LinkedIn? Discord? Yodel? TikTok? Twitter? Reddit?).

• Word of mouth.

• Speaking in lectures.

• Stands.

• Add your association (free of charge) to Frivillig.no (a portal for voluntary associations and organizations).

You can learn more about choosing channels in the course on marketing for associations.

🤓 Read CVs and applications

• Important: Thank EVERYONE for their application.

• Remember the job posting. This is still the one that applies. You need to pay attention to the job posting, otherwise your personal preferences can easily disqualify applicants because you evaluate the applications on factors irrelevant to the position. Examples involve education, handwriting/font use, language use, personal knowledge, similar hobbies, etc.

• It's useful to have different people reading through CV's and application. Diverse recruiters produce diverse candidates.

• Call in for the interview.

🤝 Interview

Preparation for the interview

• Make a list of questions that will help you find the right and suitable person for the job.

• Again, what do you need to keep in mind? Yes, that's right: the job posting.

• These questions should be asked to all candidates. This is called a structured interview and is the best way to find the best candidate.

• It's important to remind yourself that candidates MUST provide examples in their answers.

• Where should you sit? Somewhere nice and secluded.

• To avoid stress, be less interviewers. Two, maximum three interviewers are enough.

Helpful checklist during the interview. Feel free to print it out or use it from your computer during the interview.

The interview itself - structured interview

• Create a welcoming and relaxed atmosphere so that the candidates feel and comfortable, thus able to give the best possible answers.

• Introduce yourself and the position.

• Go through all the questions in a structured way. Remember to take notes and ask for examples.

• Additional questions are perfectly fine to ask in order to better understand. However, don't go completely off script.

• Remember that you are the moderator and must keep track of the time.

• Unsure about something? Ask again, for both examples and explanation.

• Remember: be open, objective and respectful to ALL candidates.

• Finish by decribing what happens next.

Assessment and selection

• Again, back to the job posting. Who qualifies best, objectively speaking?

• Call, and then send an offer to the right candidate before sending cancellations to the rest.

• When the person has accepted, remember to thank everyone for their application and explain that you've selected the best qualified candidate. Important: This should be sent to those who have and those who have not been to an interview.

How to say no

It can be really difficult saying no to someone who has applied to join a board. It's an unpleasant message to give, but it doesn't have to be very complicated. It's often best to keep it simple! Below you'll find two simple templates that can be used to "let someone down easily".

1. If there is a straight forward reason why the person was not selected, say so! We believe applicants appreciate the feedback.

2. An impersonal email is a bummer to receive. Be nice! Find something positive to say, regardless.

3. Send the message as soon as possible!

Clarifying expectations

When the recruitment is over and the board has been elected, it's time to clarify expectations. The aim of this is to ensure that everyone is "on the same page" so that you work well together from the start. We recommend starting with a chat where everyone to share a few expectations related to the job. This can be done either verbally or in writing, using the following template:

• What do YOU expect to get out of working in this organization?

• What do I expect from the others?

• What do you think is the organization's most important job on campus?

• How much time do you expect to spend working in the board?

• What are you looking forward to?

• Possible challenges?

Set aside time in the first board meeting to go through the job descriptions again. Are they clear? Does everyone know what is assigned to the various positions?

🏳️‍🌈 Diverse communication and recruitment

We tend to hire people similar to ourselves. This is a challenge when developing diverse workplaces and organizations. Pay attention to language. Remember that the choice of words, visual tools and the type of design you use in your communication can attract people, but also push them away.

Here's a few things to consider regarding diversity:

1. Have a plan for how you welcome new members/participants. Do you have a mentor/supporter for new members? How is the culture of your organization? Do you have a training program? What expectations do you have for new members and what can they expect from you?

2. What does your organization look like from the outside? Do you appeal to a diverse student group in the way you present yourself? How do you appear to outsiders? Is it easy to understand who you are? What you do? Do you share information about how to become a member? Do you seem like a group it's easy to join? What sort of values and qualities do you hold?

3. Accessibility - can everyone attend the event you have planned? Where do you stand, who can approach you?

4. International students - does language help or hinder, who do you reach?

💬 Promo with a stand

Having a stand can be one of the most useful things you do to showcase yourself on campus. However, what is a good stand? There are a few things you should think about beforehand (usually, the educational institution wants you to apply for a before you set up your stand, so check what applies where you're studying).

🎬 A to-do list: Recruiting from a stand:

REMEMBER:

1. Stand in front of the stand!

2. Have something physical to give away.

3. Body and voice: Remember that you are representing your organization/association. Think about posture, smile, be confident and last but not least ask yourself this: where is your attention? Don't have your nose in your phone.

4. Words: Use open questions, meet and greet the interested parties. Spot the contact seeker, and grab their attention.

5. Clothing: Wear a "uniform", such as a t-shirt or hoodie with a logo if the association has one. Clothes communicate before you can open your mouth.

6. Organization and order: Clean, tidy and plenty of space around the stand.

7. Eye-catching: Make sure that rollups/other materials are visible but without using too much space. Make sure that everyone can move around your stand, including wheelchairs, crutches and prams.

🤷🏾‍♂️ No time to volunteer?

Students are busy bees. They have to go to class. They have to keep up and do what it takes to study and learn. In addition, they may have a job on the side that makes it a little easier financially. On top of this, they should raise their hand to volunteer. But, how many hours do you have in a day to do everything? Students experience that they simply don't have enough time to do it all.

It's likely you'll hear similar descriptions when you reqruit from a stand. What should you reply?

Here are some tips:

All students are different with regards to both background and opportunities to get involved. Remind them that there are many ways to get involved. Both volume and content of positions vary. For example, there is a big difference between taking on a leadership position in the Student Democracy (SDSN) versus volunteering at the student house a couple of times a month. However, what they both have in common is that it is a door opener to social communities and new experiences. If it feels more appropriate to get involved in something more study-related, there are actually many study-program related associations on campus. Then you can connect your studies directly to being involved in student volunteering!

🤗 How to welcome new volunteers?

Once the recruitment of new faces to the board is complete, it's important to give them a warm welcome. Especially if they are volunteering for the first time. Think about how you were once welcomed. What was good? What could have been different?

Here's a small checklist of things to keep in mind:

1. Repeat the job description and make sure the newcomer knows what their tasks are.

2. Inform the new person about various group members responsibilities. An overview is important and creates predictability for the newcomer.

3. Share contact information. Make sure the new person is included in all shared chats and digital groups. It's easy to miss out on information when you are new, so make sure that everyone is in the loop from the start!

4. Sponsorship scheme! Have one of the experienced members of the board/working group take extra care of the newcomer in the start-up phase. It is important with a quick and easy way to access information. Many people find it easier to ask a designated sponsor than to ask newbie questions in a group chat. Make it clear that no questions are stupid!

5. Get to know each other! At the bottom of this section you'll find relationship-building activities. Some may think there's no time for silly team-building stuff, but a team that knows each other well works better together. Plus, it can be quite fun! For some..

Get-to-know-you exercises split into three categories:

The first is about getting to know the whole group. Then it's important to get to know each other formally or professionally, and finally more privately. It's entirely up to you what is most important for your particular association or organization. But a good mix is recommended!

🏅 Congratulations! You've completed the volunteer recruitment course. Now it's time to roll up your sleeves and start recruiting. We're rooting for you!

🔗 Link collection

• Frivillig.no

• TED Talk: What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness

• Take a test about your organization's inclusion work

Ready for the next course?