Frequently asked questions

How does it work?

After your application is accepted, you may undertake volunteer activity, and log hours, which will be submitted to your Volunteer Organization for review. Upon approval, those hours will be translated into scholarship credit at a rate of $20 per hour. You may also request new Volunteer Organizations to join the platform.

How do I receive the scholarship?

After June 30th of your graduating year and assuming you have accumulated at least 25 approved volunteer hours over the course of your Altruition membership, you may submit documentation to Altruition to activate disbursement of scholarship funding, which will be undertaken between Altruition and the post-secondary school to which you have been accepted.

Which high schools are eligible?

Public secondary schools in British Columbia. Click here for a list of eligible schools.

Which post-secondary schools are eligible?

Only public post-secondary institutions located within BC are eligible. Click here for a list of schools.

Is there a maximum scholarship amount available?

Yes, you may earn credit for no more than 150 volunteer hours (equal to a scholarship grant credit of $3000.00) in any one academic year. Therefore, you may earn credit for up to 450 volunteer hours (equal to a total scholarship grant credit of $9000.00) over your high school career, should you be accepted to Altruition in your grade 10 year.

Is there a minimum number of hours I must volunteer?

Yes, to qualify for scholarship credit, you must volunteer at least 25 hours over the life of your Altruition account. Further, a minimum of 5 hours must be volunteered in any 3 month period.

The reference I would like to use on my Altruition application isn’t associated with a Volunteer Organization currently registered with Altruition. Can I still apply?

Yes. You are able to submit a letter of reference attesting to your financial need that is authored or cosigned by a Volunteer Organization not currently registered with Altruition. We will review your application as well as the eligibility of the organization and contact you and/or the organization if further information is required.

What happens if I transfer high schools during my time with Altruition?

Upon transfer of high schools, please update your profile to reflect the high school to which you have transferred. Only students attending public secondary schools within British Columbia are eligible to earn scholarship credit on Altruition. If you transfer to an out-of-province or private secondary school, your account will become inactive.

Students with inactive accounts are not eligible to log new hours, but you are able to use previously approved hours for scholarship funding with an eligible post-secondary school upon graduation if 25 volunteer hours were approved while the account was active.

My application did not get approved. Am I able to apply again, when?

Yes, you are able to re-apply should your application not be approved. We recommend students consider re-applying the following academic year, particularly if your financial situation changes materially over the course of the year.

Why am I not able to join a Volunteer Organization that is listed on the platform?

Volunteer Organizations have the sole ability to accept or reject new student volunteers. Further, Altruition may limit the number of active student volunteers associated with a Volunteer Organization to encourage geographic and organizational diversity.

I volunteer at my school. Does that count towards Altruition credits?

No. Eligible Volunteer Organization must be registered Canadian charities, not-for-profits or community support organizations which operate within British Columbia. See our Terms and Conditions for additional information on how we prioritize the VOs with which we partner.

Why are student applications closed? I would like to apply but am unable.

Altruition accepts a limited number of students per intake period. When full, the application page will allow you to join a waitlist. By entering your information to the waitlist form, you will be notified when we re-open for applications.

Do I need parental approval to apply to Altruition?

No, however Altruition recommends that students discuss with their parents which volunteer organizations they wish to join.

Why does Altruition ask for a Letter of Reference to be included with a student application?

The content of a student’s letter of reference is a critical aspect of the Altruition application process. The individual who authors or co-signs the letter of reference must attest that without scholarship credit (including from Altruition), the student applicant and their family are expected to face significant hurdles in funding post-secondary tuition costs.

Who can author or co-sign a letter of reference included with a student application?

A professional in social work or family services, a school principal or counsellor, or a representative from a volunteer organization can author or co-sign a letter of reference.

I am an international student. Am I still eligible to apply to Altruition?

Yes. Altruition does not take into consideration citizenship, permanent residency, or other visa status when reviewing student applications and/or disbursing scholarship funds.

My account has been closed. Am I able to reapply?

A student volunteer who has not logged any hours within the first 6 months from their acceptance into Altruition will have their account closed. This means that you will no longer have a valid account on Altruition and are no longer able to login to the platform. An entirely new student application must be submitted should you wish to reapply, and the application will generally be deprioritized.

Are all organizations who work with volunteers eligible for membership?

While we will consider a variety of charities and community groups, applicants may not be engaged in commercial for-profit activity or religious promotion and proselytization. Generally, Altruition favours organizations assisting people in need, the environment, and the arts. Altruition places a lesser priority on organizations focused on issue-based advocacy. Altruition reserves the right to reject any application.

What is required of me if a student has asked for a letter of reference?

• If you are providing or co-signing a Letter of Reference attesting to the financial need of a student applicant, please state the length of time of and the capacity in which you know the applicant.
• The purpose of the letter of reference is to provide Altruition with additional insights on the level of financial need of the applicant, which is the primary determinant by which applicants are accepted. The description of financial need must include factors beyond general unaffordability, inflation and increasing tuition costs, all of which affect most families in BC.
• In a maximum of one page, describe or confirm your knowledge of the student and their family’s ability to pay post-secondary education costs. We are looking for an overview of your understanding of any financial constraints or difficulties that may inhibit the applicant's ability to fulfill his or her post-secondary goals.

My application was rejected. Am I able to reapply with a different organizational description?

While there is no formal mechanism preventing volunteer organizations from re-applying to Altruition, we i) conduct a review of each new applicant to ensure its primary activities and mandate are aligned with our Terms and Conditions and ii) maintain record of all previously rejected volunteer organization applications.

What is the process for changing primary contacts of my Volunteer Organizations with Altruition?

Once logged in, Volunteer Organizations are able to “Request Transfer of Ownership” under Your Profile. Should your organization’s Altruition contact depart prior to requesting a transfer of ownership, please contact us to update your Volunteer Organization’s primary contact.

I have received a request to approve volunteer hours for more hours than were actually volunteered. What do I do?

Any student requests for approval of volunteer hours should be rejected if they do not accurately reflect the hours volunteered by the student with your organization. It is critical that Volunteer Organizations uphold this standard of truth to ensure that Altruition properly functions and all student volunteers are treated fairly.

I have received a request to approve volunteer hours for activities at another organization or at a student’s school. What do I do?

Any hours submitted by a student that are not related to activities directly overseen or administered by your organization must be rejected. Altruition asks that you pay particular attention to instances of submissions related to school-based activities, which are ineligible.

How do I know that my commentary about a student applicant’s financial need will be kept confidential? / Who sees it?

Altruition hosts all personal information on encryption protected servers located within Canada. We do not share any personal information about student members with any third parties except as described in our Privacy Policy. Student applications, including Letters of Reference that attest to financial need, are only viewable to Altruition personnel, as necessary to provide a decision regarding students’ acceptance to Altruition.

Am I able to share my VO account with another person from my organization?

Yes. Altruition provides a feature granting permission for a secondary VO contact to access your VO dashboard, receive email notifications, and review student requests.

Once logged in to Altruition, by selecting “Your Profile” you can enter an additional name and email address as a VO contact. Upon doing so (and clicking “update”), an automatic email notification will be sent to the new email address entered, prompting the account owner to speak with you directly to obtain the password. Please note that the dual accounts will share one password, and the alternate contact will have the same permissions as you.

The option is also available to determine whether one or both contacts receive email notifications. We encourage both VO contacts to receive Altruition email notifications to ensure timely reviews of student submissions.

I submitted my application but did not receive email confirmation that it went through. What do I do?

Check your junk and spam folders. If this occurred, ensure that you mark Altruition as a Safe Sender so that you receive notice of your application decision and other important emails. If you are unable to find email confirmation of your application, please contact us.

What Volunteer Organizations are currently registered on Altruition?

Alexandra Neighbourhood House
BGCBC - Fraserview
BGCBC - Kimount
BGCBC - Potlatch
BGCBC-Langley
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern BC
Black Creek Community Association
Boys Who RISE (Face of Today)
Britannia Community Education
Burnaby Neighbourhood House
Captain Scott Legacy Society
Children First Canada
Code Brew Cafe / Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation
Collingwood Neighbourhood House
Comox Community Centre
Cowichan Green Community Foundation
Cowichan Valley Arts Council
DIVERSEcity Community Resources Society
Dunbar Community Centre
Edmonds Community Centre
Fishing for Plastic Environmental Society
Frog Hollow Neighbourhood House
Girls Who LEAP: Lead to Empower & Act with Purpose Society
Greater Victoria Green Team
Harvest Project
Hastings Community Association
Hillcrest Community Centre
Island Health - Step Up Youth Program
Island Health - Victoria General and Saanich Peninsula Hospitals (not Step Up Youth)
JA British Columbia
Kelowna General Hospital
Kitsilano Neighbourhood House
Learning Buddies Network
Little Mountain Neighbourhood House
Marpole Neighbourhood House
Marpole-Oakridge Community Centre
Moresports BC - Tri-Cities
Moresports BC - Vancouver
Mount Pleasant Neighbourhood House
Nanaimo Volunteer & Information Centre Society
Ocean Wise - Vancouver
OceanWise Youth to Sea - Victoria
Parents Support Services society of BC
Pender Island Recreation and Agricultural Hall Association
Physical and Health Education Canada
PRC Youth Services - City of Maple Ridge
RayCam Cooperative Centre
Red Fox Healthy Living Society
South Vancouver Neighbourhood House
Strathcona Community Centre Association
Thunderbird Community Centre
Trout Lake Community Centre Association
Village Vancouver Transition Society
Volunteer Cowichan
Volunteer Powell River (Powell River & District United Way)
Writers' Exchange
YWCA Metro Vancouver
YWCA Metro Vancouver - Youth Education Programs
YWCA Metro Vancouver – Crabtree Corner