Welcome on the ValCoVol project website!

What is it about? Volunteers often have the difficulty of communicating an employer what knowledge and key qualifications they have acquired. Employers, in turn, often find it difficult to identify the knowledge gained when reading credentials of volunteer organizations, since these certificates usually describe the activities done, but not the acquired competencies.

ValCoVol brings the needs of volunteers and the interests of employers together by offering examples and best practice for the meaningful valiation of competences for both sides.  Browse through our collection of best practice and get inspired!

ValCoVol offers

  • an overview of projects, initiatives and methods for the validation of non-formal and informal learning achieved through volunteering. At the same time, instruments, models and systems are identified that validate the key competencies acquired in an honorary post. You will find these projects, initiatives and methods for validation in a collection 39 good practices here.
  • an online interactive forum for networking, exchange of experience and good practice, and supporting ideas, foster exchange and assist initiatives that contribute to the European society as a whole. Here you have access to several online interactive fora. Additionally, the ValCoVol team recommends to make use of other electronic tools: On the right you will find access to two communication tools – Google Translate and  Skype Translator – including a video with a guided tour to one of these instruments. Please feel free to use it for getting in touch with any of the best practices identified on our project page.
  • an easily adaptable template (“Key Competences Template”) in six European languages for volunteer organisations to identify competences of volunteers rather than describe volunteer work. This template gives employers meaningful information on competences of job applicants gained in voluntary work.
  • a summary of findings in a White Book for recognition of competences acquired through volunteering that gives an overview about the current situation of the specific project environment in the partners’ countries, and presents the initiatives, projects and materials with explanations in all languages of the partnership.

ValCoVol targets

  • volunteers who need a meaningful document about their expertise for entering the paid employment market
  • organisations which work with volunteers and have to issue certificates on their activities
  • employers who want to learn what kind of expertise job applicants have gained in voluntary environments and tasks

The methodology focuses on bringing together most relevant instruments on one platform and developing instruments for quick access in order to make the best use for volunteers of their gained knowledge in the application stage for paid jobs. Herewith ValCoVol follows experiences with the high number of volunteers working in refugee organisations at the time being: many of them left their jobs to support those organisations and will need meaningful proof of their newly gained qualification for future employment.

Interested in German information on the ValCoVol project? Click the coordinator’s website here!

ValCoVol in Italian

ValCoVol in Slovene

ValCoVol in Slovak

ValCoVol in Czech (under revision, coming soon)

 

Project number: 2016-1-DE02-KA202-003260

The European Commission’s support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsi­ble for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.