Ways to get involved - Los Angeles
There are many different ways to get involved in your community. By getting involved in and taking advantage of local opportunities, you can make a positive impact in the lives of others, explore possible career choices, and build up your resume for college admissions and/or jobs in the future. When applying to colleges, you can demonstrate your passion for a certain cause (helping children, for example) by having significant community service experience within your field of interest. College admissions committees want students who will contribute their skills and experiences to their campus.
If you (like many other students) are confused on how and where to start, here are some different opportunities for getting involved in and around Los Angeles. These are just some of the ways you can get involved. We encourage you to do your own research to find more opportunities.
Know about an opportunity to get involved in the community? Let us know here!
Volunteer online (can be done anywhere)▾
- United Nations: Help the UN with human rights projects | Website
- Food Oasis Los Angeles (FOLA): Help research food sources for communities in Los Angeles and contribute to the launch of a website | Website
- Translators Without Borders: Help translate for human rights projects | Website
- Catch A Fire: Find different ways to support non-profits & community organizations | Website
- Do Something: Find ways to support the causes you care about | Website
- Points of Flight: Find different ways to support non-profits & community organizations | Website
- Teens Give: Tutor children | Website
- Idealist.org: Find volunteering opportunities with non-profits and community organizations. | Website
- VolunteerMatch Virtual Volunteering Opportunities: Find virtual volunteering opportunities with non-profits. | Website
Animal welfare▾
- The Dog Cafe | Website
- KItty Bungalow | Website
- Los Angeles City East Valley Animal Shelter | Website
Coding/Programming▾
- EmpowerHer Institute STEM Program | Website
- Girls Who Code | Website
- USC Computer Science K-12 Outreach | Website
Education▾
- Reading to Kids | http://readingtokids.org/RSVP/VolRSVPConnect.php
- Los Angeles Public Library | https://www.lapl.org/get-involved/volunteer
Environment▾
Tree People: https://www.treepeople.org/volunteer
Surfrider Foundation: https://la.surfrider.org/events/2020-04/
Food & housing▾
- Project Angel Food | https://www.angelfood.org/volunteer/
- Food on Foot | https://www.foodonfoot.org/volunteer/
- The Midnight Mission | https://www.midnightmission.org/get-involved/volunteer/
- APLA Health | https://aplahealth.org/get-involved/volunteer/
Medicine/Health▾
- Keck School of Medicine of USC
- Valley Presbyterian Hospital
- Kaiser Permanente
- RedCross | https://www.redcross.org/local/california/los-angeles/volunteer/youth-services-program.html
Women's empowerment▾
- Downtown Women’s Center | https://www.downtownwomenscenter.org/volunteer/
- EmpowerHer Institute | http://empowher.org/
Immigrants advocacy▾
Coming soon!
LGBTQ advocacy▾
Coming soon!
Law/Politics▾
Coming soon!
Websites to find volunteering/internship opportunities▾
- Idealist.org
- VolunteerMatch.org
- L.A. Works | www.laworks.com
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