MobileServe analyzed millions of service events to better understand events that appeal specifically to a high school volunteer. New insights on time of year, day of the week and duration of your service event can help your nonprofit maximize attendance from high school volunteers!
When High School Students Volunteer by Month
Many nonprofits believe a high school volunteer is looking for service opportunities while they are home for the summer. Turns out, this is actually the least popular time to attend a servcie event. Others believe student service peaks at holiday times. As UT Dallas reports, volunteering increases 50% during the holidays. But, a high school volunteer is often required to fulfill service in specific timeframes (semesterly or quarterly) that do not align with the holidays. Students with semesterly service requirements cannot afford to wait until December!
So when does a high school student volunteer the most? Below is the analysis of high school service events showing when students are most likely to volunteer. Turns out, the months of March, April, October and November are the most popular times for students to volunteer. Here's the data:
When High School Students Volunteer by Day of the Week
Not surprisingly, Saturday is the most common day for a high school student to volunteer. Considering many freshmen and sophomores cannot drive, this is also when parents have the most free time to chauffeur. The surprising aspect of the data was how little the day of the week impacted a high school volunteer. The difference between the most common service day (Saturday) and the least common day to do service (Sunday) was just 3%. This may be because a high school volunteer attending faith based institutions can often submit service to a parish or church which often happens on Sunday.
When High School Students Volunteer by Length of Event
Choosing how long a service event lasts can also have an impact on interest from a high school volunteer. The most common time for a student to serve is one hour. Anything shorter may not justify driving across town to participate in your event. But, since service events aren't always perfectly 60 minutes, the graph below groups service duration by 1 hour or less, between one hour and two hours and so on. By looking at the duration in a range, between one and two hours is the most popular amount of time a high school volunteer spends doing service.
Service events are as varied as the nonprofits in our communities. But, for those nonprofits looking to attract more high school volunteers, a data driven approach may be just the insights necessary. Please let us know what considerations and successes you have when adjusting your service program to attract more high school volunteers!
