ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ

External volunteering: volunteering is unpaid work usually undertaken with not-for-profit organisations and/or co-operatives that are external to ANU. This work benefits both the volunteer and the community and is based on roles that are not replacing paid workers. It is recommended that students ensure they are volunteering with reputable organisations which must provide insurance, training and supervision for their volunteers. Best practice for volunteering dictates that a volunteer role should not exceed 16 hours per week on a long-term basis.

is the peak body for volunteering in Canberra, and has a searchable database that includes online options.

is an Australia-wide volunteering database – you can search for online or Canberra-based opportunities.

Thank you for your interest in the ANU+ Award program.

Volunteer roles internal to ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵneed to be registered through the ANU+ program. This means that the ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵstaff member who supervises the volunteer role will need to apply to register the role. Before commencing this process, please take the time to review and understand the definition of volunteering as defined in the and determine if your position is in fact a ‘volunteer’ role or an ‘internship’.

There are two steps for ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵstaff to register a volunteering role with ANU+ so that students can count hours towards their ANU+ Award:

1.ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵstaff fill in this form: , which includes information about the National Standards for Volunteer Involvement, as well as information about the requirement for volunteers to fill in a volunteer declaration form for the ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵInsurance Office. 
a.If you have more than one role, a separate form is required for each role.
b.Once you have submitted the form, you will receive an email from an ANU+ staff member within 7 business days.

2.ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵstaff create and email a position description (template attached & available on our website) for the volunteering role to the ANU+ team.
a.If you have more than one role, a separate template is required for each role.
b.In development of your volunteer position description, please utilize the ‘’ toolkit resource to guide you in best practice for engaging and empowering volunteers.

Once we have received the position description and form submission, the role will be assessed, and confirmation will be provided on whether the role may be counted towards the ANU+ Award.

The link to our updated website is and please direct students with further enquiry to email Liz at student.life@anu.edu.au. 

Please contact Liz if you have any additional questions or concerns.

*Lastly, as of 26 June 2025, the ACT Government has introduced a new $11 application fee for Working with Vulnerable People (WWVP) checks. Please consider if the volunteer role requires a WWVP card and clarify which party is responsible for payment. Obtaining a WWVP card is not a prerequisite of the ANU+ program.