Brandeis University
PAE-22: Community Service Participation

A best estimate of the total number of Brandeis students who volunteered at some point during spring semester 2010 is 1,209 out of our undergrad student body of 3,296. This number was generated based on statistics provided by 15 Waltham Group programs , all experiential learning courses , and through New Student Orientation . These are the major outlets through which Brandeis students volunteer. Although Brandeis students do volunteer in other ways, these numbers are much harder to pin down. According to the listed statistics, 37% of Brandeis undergraduate students volunteer in a given semester. According to an exit survey given to seniors at the end of spring semester 2010, 44% of seniors reported having participated in community service at some point during their Brandeis experience. To generate the closest possible guess as to how many Brandeis students engage in community service, these two percentages can be averaged to get 40.1%. Part of the success of Brandeis’s community service initiatives is due to their institutionalization. The Waltham Group, our premier community service organization, enjoys the support and constant guidance of staff members. We have a unique set up in which the coordinators from 18 different programs meet weekly to discuss best practices and brainstorm solutions to problems we encounter. Our experiential-community engaged learning program is also strong, with impressive staff support.