Volunteering vs. Service Learning vs. Internships: Beyond Confusion lies Partnership Opportunities

Christine sits in a white armchair, leaning forward with hands clasped, smiling. She wears an olive green top and black pants against a navy blue wall.

Christine Martin and I have known each other for well over a decade. Early in my career as a leader of volunteers, I looked to her example and advice in many instances, and I can honestly say she’s one of the people who inspired me to pursue this profession seriously.

Christine went back to school for a Master in Design, Strategic Foresight and Innovation degree in 2017, while continuing to lead volunteer engagement at Evergreen Canada. She now operates a human-centered design consulting practice but continues to follow conversations about volunteer engagement.

When I shared a YouTube Short about avoiding the consequences of treating volunteers as interns, Christine reached out. This video reminded her of a role map she created for Evergreen Canada that helped colleagues differentiate between volunteer contributions, service learning, and paid work (and all the other nuances in between!)

In this conversation, we unpack a question that comes up constantly in nonprofit spaces, yet rarely gets clear answers: What actually distinguishes volunteering, service learning, and internships?

The short answer: it’s complicated. The more useful answer: it depends on intent, structure, and accountability.

JPP: Are volunteering, service learning, and internships actually distinct… or are we just inconsistent in how we use the terms?

CM: Honestly, it’s both. There’s a real lack of consistency in language across organizations and institutions. One nonprofit might call something an internship, while another would call the exact same thing volunteering.

We’re working with a whole plethora of terms, and they’re not used in standardized ways.

JPP: So part of the issue isn’t just definitions. It’s that we don’t have shared definitions.

CM: Exactly. And that creates confusion, mismatched expectations, and sometimes unintended consequences for both organizations and the people who participate in this work.

JPP: We often try to put these into neat boxes. Volunteer. Intern. Service learner. Does that actually help?

CM: Not always. It’s more like a continuum or even a Venn diagram. There’s overlap.

JPP: I like that framing. Because when we force categories, we can miss what’s actually happening in practice.

CM: Right. It’s more useful to ask where something sits in terms of purpose, structure, and expectations rather than trying to label it too quickly.

JPP: Let’s ground this. When we say “volunteering,” what do we actually mean?

CM: At its core, volunteering is about advancing the mission of the organization. It starts with organizational need.

JPP: That’s such an important anchor. Because yes, volunteers benefit. They build skills, they find meaning, they connect.

But the role itself should exist because it contributes to something real.

CM: Exactly. Otherwise, you end up with roles that are more about keeping people busy than actually creating impact.

JPP: So if volunteering is driven by organizational need, what shifts when we’re talking about service learning?

CM: The primary driver becomes learning. There needs to be explicit learning outcomes.

There has to be intention behind what they’re learning, how they’re being supported, and how that learning is reflected on or evaluated.

JPP: And if those elements aren’t there?

CM: Then we need to be honest. It’s not service learning. It’s volunteering.

JPP: Internships feel like the most confusing category. Where do they sit?

CM: Internships are tricky because they intersect with employment standards and legal considerations.

Paid internships are essentially jobs. Unpaid internships are typically only appropriate when they’re part of a formal education program.

JPP: And that’s where organizations can unintentionally cross a line. Replacing paid work with unpaid roles or mislabeling something to make it seem more legitimate.

One tension I see all the time is this: a student needs a placement… but the organization doesn’t really have the capacity to support a meaningful learning experience.

CM: Yes, and there’s often pressure to just say yes anyway.

JPP: Because it feels like the “right” thing to do.

CM: But not every organization is in a position to offer service learning well. You can’t expect every charity to convert volunteer roles into structured learning experiences.

JPP: Can you say more about that? Because I think a lot of organizations feel pressure to just say yes.

CM: Yes, exactly. There’s this assumption that if a student or institution asks, the answer should be yes. But service learning isn’t just “letting someone volunteer who happens to be a student.” It requires structure, supervision, and intentional learning design.

You don’t have to offer service learning if you don’t have the capacity to do it well. In fact, saying yes without that capacity can create a poor experience for the student and extra strain on your team.

JPP: That’s a big reframe. Because often it’s framed as an opportunity you shouldn’t turn down.

CM: And it can be a great opportunity, but only when it’s aligned. If the student doesn’t have learning outcomes aligned to their program of study, if no one has time to supervise, if the role hasn’t been designed with learning in mind… then it’s not really service learning.

JPP: It’s just volunteering, but with more expectations attached.

CM: Exactly. And that mismatch is where frustration happens, on all sides.

JPP: So what I’m hearing is: the more responsible choice might actually be to say no, or not yet.

CM: Yes. Or to be honest about what you can offer. Maybe it’s a volunteer role, not a service learning placement. That clarity is better for everyone.

JPP: It feels like what we’re talking about isn’t just a terminology issue.

CM: It’s not. It’s really a systems issue. Right now, nonprofits, post-secondary institutions, and funders are often operating in parallel. They’re connected, but not always truly working in partnership.

JPP: So everyone’s playing a role in this ecosystem, but not necessarily aligned.

CM: Exactly. And that’s where a lot of the confusion comes from. Different expectations, different definitions, different pressures.

There’s a real opportunity to bring people together. Volunteer engagement leaders, service learning coordinators, program staff, educators. To actually align on language, expectations, and capacity.

Until we start solving it together, we’re going to keep recreating the same challenges, just calling them different things.

JPP: Ok, if a nonprofit leader is reading, and trying to make sense of all this, where should they start?

CM: They should begin with clarity of purpose. Ask: What is this role actually trying to achieve?

JPP: I love that. Before assigning a label or a title, ask about purpose. Because when we’re clear on purpose, the structure becomes much easier to design.

When addressing how a non-employment relationship is defined between a worker and a charity, what should people in the sector consider?

CM: I would advise that they ask these questions:

• Where does your organization draw the line between volunteering, service learning, and internships?

• Who defines that line… and is it consistent?

• Are you designing roles based on need, learning, or convenience?

• And perhaps most importantly: Who benefits most from the way your roles are currently structured?

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JPP: Thanks Christine! Those are great questions to take away. Before we wrap up, where can people find you? 

CM: They can check out my website www.christinemvmartin.com. I’m on LinkedIn, too. 

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