How to hire a youth volunteer

How to hire a youth volunteer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step youth volunteer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a youth volunteer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new youth volunteer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a youth volunteer, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A youth volunteer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, youth volunteers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of youth volunteers.

   Type of Youth Volunteer	Description	Hourly rate
   Youth Volunteer	Social and community service managers coordinate and supervise social service programs and community organizations. They manage staff who provide social services to the public.	$12-20
   Residential Manager	A residential manager coordinates and oversees all activities that happen in a residential building. They work with their employers to market their apartments and ensure all the occupants qualify to be in the building... Show more	$13-25
   Program Officer	A program officer is an essential part of a foundation or charitable organization. It is up to program officers to supervise program progress and proposals, seek grants, manage projects, and oversee budgets... Show more	$25-56

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Youth Development
   • Community Outreach
   • Community Services
   • at-Risk Youth
   • Youth Program
   • Soccer
   • Mathematics
   • Role Model
   • CPR
   • Local Community
   • Local Youth
   • Community Events
   • PowerPoint
   • Health Education

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Assist in achieving and maintaining DoD certification and national accreditation or equivalent compliance.
   • Attend training courses and maintain CPR certification.
   • Tutor homeless young children and those from at-risk families with their reading skills and mathematics
   • Create billboards with lesson information, plan and create PowerPoint presentations for special music and lesson use.
   • Serve as a mentor to incarcerate juveniles and tutor in mathematics.
   • Participate and target in leadership programs to develop communication and team building skills.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your youth volunteer job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A youth volunteer salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, youth volunteers' average salary in idaho is 41% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level youth volunteers earn 36% less than senior-level youth volunteers.
   • Certifications. A youth volunteer with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a youth volunteer's salary.

   Average youth volunteer salary

   $16.36hourly

   $34,031 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level youth volunteer salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

4. Writing a youth volunteer job description

   A youth volunteer job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a youth volunteer job description:

   Youth volunteer job description example

   The Youth Outdoors program connects Twin Cities youth, ages 15-18, to the natural environment through paid conservation and community improvement projects while they gain job experience and college/career skills for the future. Young adults, ages 18-25, serve as AmeriCorps members who lead the youth in educational and service-learning activities and complete challenging, but impactful conservation projects as part of a field crew when not leading youth. Youth Outdoors AmeriCorps members grow personally and professionally during their service term while gaining hands-on conservation skills in the field and receiving youth development training. In the spring and fall AmeriCorps members supervise, motivate, direct, and coordinate youth in a rigorous program of work, education, and training during after-school and weekend hours. Members develop technical skills throughout their term while completing challenging and impactful conservation projects. Natural resources projects vary by region and crew location, but may include: • Invasive species management • Stream bank stabilization, erosion control • Prescribed burning • Trail construction & maintenance • Tree planting • Basic carpentry • Wild land fire suppression • Emergency response Further help on this page can be found by clicking here.
   
   Member Duties : • Complete natural resources service projects in cooperation with fellow members safely, effectively and efficiently and to the satisfaction and specifications of the project host • Lead and support youth. During fall and spring school semesters, AmeriCorps members will lead youth in education, training and conservation projects. • Contribute actively to the team to complete projects, demonstrating a commitment to the Corps values of safety, service, respect, equity and community, as well as justice, diversity, and inclusion.
   
   Program Benefits : Training , Childcare assistance if eligible , Rental Assistance , Health Coverage , Education award upon successful completion of service , Stipend .
   Terms :
   
   Uniforms provided and required , Car recommended , Permits working at another job during off hours .
   
   Service Areas :
   
   Environment .
   
   Skills :
   
   General Skills , Environment .

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right youth volunteer for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your youth volunteer job on Zippia to find and recruit youth volunteer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting youth volunteers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new youth volunteer

   Once you've selected the best youth volunteer candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new youth volunteer. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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