Volunteer service in higher education institutions is an effective means and important channel for cultivating students' ideals and beliefs. It serves as an effective pathway for the comprehensive development of college students and a significant platform for universities to engage in social service and involve students in societal development. A certain number of universities in Shenzhen of China have established a "Ten Transformations" mechanism for volunteer service, which includes institutional leadership, brand building, the establishment of volunteer bases, digital management, curriculum integration, modular training, professional development, media promotion, scientific incentives, and human-centered support. The spirit of volunteerism has become an inherent characteristic of the institution's young students, and volunteer service has emerged as a crucial driver for cultural and educational development, as well as an integral component of the institutional culture. Based on practical experience, we have proposed practical strategies to advance and optimize volunteer service in higher education institutions, including enhancing top-level design and strengthening system coordination, exploring mechanisms to enhance the evaluation and incentive systems for volunteer service, establishing platforms to deepen the essence of volunteer service activities, and fostering volunteer service as an intrinsic spiritual need and value pursuit for contemporary college students. By implementing these strategies, higher education institutions can enhance volunteer service and make it a valuable experience for college students.

Peng Lili, Niu Jialin. Practices and Reflections on Volunteer Service in Higher Education Institutions: A Case Study of a Certain University in Shenzhen, China. Frontiers in Educational Research (2023) Vol. 6, Issue 19: 119-124. https://doi.org/10.25236/FER.2023.061921.

[1] Bode, L. (2017). Feeling the pressure: Attitudes about volunteering and their effect on civic and political behaviors. Journal of Adolescence, 57, 23–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2017.03.004

[2] Chang Rui . On the Influencing Factors and Path Selection of College Students' Participation in Volunteer Services.Journal of Jilin Normal University, 2013, 02: 76-78.

[3] Cui, Changshu. "Volunteer Activities in Japanese Universities and Their Implications for Us." Heilongjiang Higher Education Research, 2001, 02: 74-75. 

[4] De Clerck, T., Willem, A., Aelterman, N., & Haerens, L. (2019). Volunteers managing volunteers: The role of volunteer board members’ motivating and demotivating style in relation to volunteers’ motives to stay volunteer. VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s11266-019-00177-6

[5] Guo, M., Liu, H., & Yao, M. (2021). The Confucian value of  benevolence and volunteering among Chinese college students: The mediating role of functional motives. Sage Open, 11(1), 215824402110066. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440 211006683

[6] Green, P. (2018). Volunteering in the higher education curriculum: The politics of policy, practice and participation. University of Wolverhampton.

[7] Holdsworth, C. (2010). Why volunteer? Understanding motivations for student volunteering. British Journal of Educational Studies, 58(4), 421–437. https://doi.org/10.1 080/00071005.2010.527666

[8] Holdsworth, C., & Brewis, G. (2014). Volunteering, choice and control: A case study of higher education student volunteering. Journal of Youth Studies, 17(2), 204–219. https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2013.815702

[9] Long, Yonghong. "Comparative Study on Incentive Mechanisms for Volunteer Services of College Students in China and the United States." Journal of Shandong Youth Political College, 2011, 05: 46-50. 

[10] Lili, L., & Yingjin, C. (2020). An empirical investigation of Chinese  college students in volunteer teaching activities: Dilemmas, challenges, and solutions. Sage Open, 10(2), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020931923

[11] Wang Minzhong&Di Tao. On the Construction of Long-term Mechanisms for College Students' Volunteer Service.Journal of Ideological & Theoretical Education, 2013, 10: 126-128.

[12] Wang Hong ,& Deng Qinghua.College Students' Volunteer Service Activities: Participation Status and Construction of Long-term Mechanisms - Reflections Based on a National Large-scale Survey. Chinese Youth Research, 2012, 08: 46-50.

[13] Wang, Weizheng. "Reflections on the Construction of Long-term Mechanisms for College Student Volunteer Service Activities." Journal of Ideological and Theoretical Education, 2011, 02: 106-110.

[14] Wu Yingqiang, Social research on the institutionalization of volunteer work in higher education, Ideological and theoretical education, 2009,11:88-92.

[15]  Zhao Shuguang.Research on the Current Situation and Countermeasures of Volunteer Service among College Students.Journal of Nanchang Institute of Education,2011,10:46+48.

[16] Zheng, Yongsen. "Analysis of Factors Influencing College Students' Participation in Volunteer Services: A Questionnaire Survey of Three Universities in Shenzhen." People's Forum, 2013, 17: 168-169. 

[17] Zhou, X., Tang, J., Zhao, Y., & Wang, T. (2020). Effects of feedback design and dispositional goal orientations on volunteer performance in citizen science projects. Computers in Human Behavior, 107, 106266. https://doi.org/10.1016 /j.chb.2020.106266.