Volunteers are often given a level of responsibility to plan and accomplish tasks that is higher than what they might be given in other job experiences. This is an opportunity for a young volunteer to demonstrate managerial skills and gain valuable supervisory experiences. Increasingly, employers and university admissions officers are focusing on quality volunteer experiences in their evaluation of applications. Tangible support for volunteers is a reduction in the net value of the volunteer's donation to the charity. Resources are always less than the needs of the charity's service community.
Most volunteers donate funds as well as their time.
That said, if you have badly needed skills and can volunteer for enough time, you can move from a pure volunteer to a supported or stipended volunteer. These types of volunteers are those working for less than a full wage. The line between a volunteer and a professional salaried staff person is a very broad one. Even salaried staff are expected to be donors to their charity employers. See the section on jobs for more information.