SINGAPORE: More of Singapore's youths would volunteer, if their friends did so as well.

A survey by the National University of Singapore's NUS Volunteer Network and the Centre for Social Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy found that more than seven in 10 of the 3,143 undergraduates surveyed would take part in volunteering opportunities in NUS if more friends took part too.

Most volunteers also usually volunteer with friends, or with fellow volunteers they meet through the activity.

According to the survey, the "findings reveal the social dimension of volunteering and the important role that it plays in volunteerism. Many undergraduates want to volunteer but there is an initial inertia due to unfamiliarity, which can be overcome if they had the support of friends and family".

The findings also showed that three in 10 NUS undergraduates currently volunteer – a rate that is almost double the national average of 16.9 per cent.

As for the top three factors that made volunteering unsatisfying, they include a lack of organisation in the activities, inadequate training, and feeling of boredom and loss of interest in their volunteer work.

And while four in 10 supported the Community Involvement Programme in schools, a similar number (40.1 per cent) also felt the activities students engage in lacked the essence of community service.

The inaugural survey was conducted in May, and included Singapore citizens, Permanent Residents and foreign students - except those who were here on exchange programmes.


- TODAY/so