Working Adult Undergraduate Students’ Interest and Motivation in Service Learning and Volunteering

Abstract

This article focuses on incorporating service learning activities and college-organized volunteering in the teaching of working adult undergraduate students. Ninety-one adult students (ranging in age from 27 to 61) participated in a mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative) survey. The majority of participants (94.4%) reported that they were interested in service learning activities in general, and that rate increased to 95.5% if a service learning activity replaced a course requirement, such as a paper or examination. Per qualitative responses, most participants believe that service learning and volunteer opportunities should be increased, but college/university faculty and staff who wish to promote service learning and college-organized volunteering should focus on scheduling activities at convenient times and locations. More implications, as well as limitations of these findings, are addressed.