Student and staff volunteering in the community

RCSI has a long tradition of student and staff volunteering in our local, national, and international communities.

In addition to supporting others, volunteering has positive effects on volunteers’ wellbeing as well as their personal and professional development. It also supports an array of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG) contributions, including UNSDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals. 

As part of the RCSI Engage Strategy 2023-2027, we are committed to enhancing the range of volunteering opportunities available to students and staff.

In 2022, a group of student volunteers conducted the first internal student volunteering survey to learn from our students’ experiences and identify areas of interest in future volunteering. While altruistic motivation remains the primary driver, the survey found that participation in extracurricular activities and volunteering are increasingly important for the RCSI student experience. Students who volunteer identified benefits from skills development in communication and empathy; a greater understanding of their patients and insights into career progression post-graduation.

The RCSI International Citizenship Award encourages our students to reflect on and demonstrate an international outlook in the areas of:

• Education: leadership and peer engagement
• RCSI life: social engagement and leadership
• Local community: social engagement and leadership
• International engagement
• Research

A culture of mentoring

Students are tasked with building a portfolio to document their extracurricular journey at RCSI and demonstrate personal development and learning from your interactions with others. This programme motivates students to seek volunteering opportunities.

In addition, our clinical, academic and professional services staff volunteer to mentor students on their reflective journeys.

Examples of our staff and student volunteering and altruistic activities include:

• Christina Noble Children’s Foundation Sunshine Social and Medical Centre
• RCSI Christmas in the Community
• The Olive Branch for Children