Guidelines

The Service requirement at NCSSM has been a staple since the school's beginning, allowing students to give back to their home community and the state of North Carolina. Students are able to being volunteering the day following NCSSM commemencement of the academic year they were accepted (Class of 2025 may begin volunteering May 28, 2023). Students can volunteer at any point from the date above until the last day of Thanksgiving Break of their senior year to complete the 60 hour requirement. Please carefully read the FAQ below and email servicelearning@ncssm.edu with any questions or concerns you may have.

• • What do I need to do in order to complete the NCSSM Service Requirement?
    To complete the NCSSM Service Requirement, students must complete all 3 parts of the requirement. 

• Students must complete a minimum of 60 hours of service.

• Must attend a presentation session during their junior year to learn about opportunities 

• Present their service to a faculty/staff member and their peers during presentation week of their senior year.

• • I forgot my password. How do I reset it?
    Complete THIS form to have your password reset. It does not autmatically occur and will required the service learning coordinator to reset it. You will receive an email from the service learning email address when this occurs.

  • When can my service begin? When should my service be completed?
    The incoming junior class may begin their service the day following NCSSM Commencement of the year they were accepted (Class of 2025 - May 28, 2023). All hours must be completed by the last day of Thanksgiving Break senior year.

  • How many hours do I have to complete?
    Students must complete a total of 60 hours of service to fulfill the NCSSM Service Requirement.  

  • Does my service hours have to be completed during the summer?
    Students may complete any hours at any point up until last day of Thanksgiving Break of their senior year.

  • Do my hours of service have to take place in NC?

Due to the original philosophy behind the Service Requirement (giving back to North Carolina residents) all service must have some content in NC. The only exceptions are circumstances where the student resides with a second parent out-of-state during the time of the service opportunity; or if the student resides in a community bordering Virginia, South Carolina, Tennessee, or Georgia and the service opportunity is more accessible in the neighboring state. If a student is traveling to another country, they can request volunteer hours be allowed in advance by contacting the Service Learning Coordinator. The Service Learning Coordinator should be informed of these special circumstances ahead of time, so that they can be a factor in considering final service approval. You can explain these instances in an email to the Service Learning Coordinator at servicelearning@ncssm.edu.

• • How do I record my service hours?

Students must record all hours through the LetServe volunteer tracking system. Organizations will need to register their organization, if not already registered, with LetServe and approve student volunteer hours. NCSSM chartered clubs must have the NCSSM faculty/staff sponsor register the club through LetServe using the following format for the club name, “NCSSM - Club Name”. Hours must be approved by the faculty/staff sponsor. Faculty/staff sponsors may not share LetServe permissions with the NCSSM student president or any member of the club to approve club hours and must pre-approve all service projects to ensure they meet the service requirement.

• • What types of service hours count towards my NCSSM Service Requirement?

Volunteering at nonprofit organizations, hopsitals through the volunteer program (Shadowing doctors/nurses does not qualify), schools, NC local government programs (please email the service learning coordinator to make sure your program will count), and qualifying  NCSSM opportunies.

• • What qualifies as service at NCSSM?

NCSSM opportunities include: volunteering through official NCSSM Service Learning opportunities, volunteering through a chartered NCSSM club, a service opportunity offered by a residence hall or NCSSM faculty/staff member.

• • What DOES NOT qualify as service?

Students cannot “double dip” service hours, meaning students cannot receive credit for their service academically, as an award, or receive any recognition and for the service requirement. Therefore, students may not use NCSSM summer research or mentorship hours to complete the service requirement as students are already receiving academic credit for the research experience. An example of double dipping outside of NCSSM would be hours for the Eagle and Gold Awards. In addition, students may not tutor NCSSM students in any capacity (through campus service or otherwise) for NCSSM Service Requirement hours.

1. The NCSSM Service Requirement hours must be separate from any type of award or recognition except the Durham Mayor’s Award, the Presidential Service Award, or the NCSSM Outstanding Service Award (awarded to students who complete more than 150 hours of service). NCSSM is NOT a qualifying organization for the Presidential Award. Students interested in the Presidential or Durham Mayor's Award should look at the websites for information about how to receive the award.

2. The classes of 2023 and 2024 have been granted permission to use Eagle Scout and Gold Award hours towards their service due to COVID-19.

3. Students are allowed and encouraged to use their NCSSM Service Requirement experiences in college and scholarship applications. Students can generate a Service Resume in LetServe to submit with college applications or scholarships.

• • What club service would qualify as service for the NCSSM Service Requirement?

NCSSM clubs can receive NCSSM Service Requirement credit for service hours completed should the following guidelines be met: 1) the hours are not also being counted for membership or other club requirements (no double dipping), 2) club meetings, tutoring NCSSM students, regular club activities, etc. cannot count for service hours, 3) service opportunity involves in-person interaction with non-NCSSM members of the community, 4) donation drives cannot count for service hours,  5) service must be pre approved prior to service by NCSSM faculty/staff sponsor to ensure the service activity qualifies for NCSSM Service Credit, 6) Faculty/staff sponsor must approve hours in the service platform to receive credit.

• • Can my hours on Martin Luther King Jr Day count towards my NCSSM Service Requirement?

Yes! Those who volunteer on MLK Day through the NCSSM Service Learning opportunities or NCSSM club opportunities may register their hours through LetServe to count for the Service Requirement. Do note that students would only be able to use hours from MLK Day during their junior year as MLK Day during senior year is after the deadline to complete all hours.

• • Can I use hours working with a research opportunity to fulfill my NCSSM Service Requirement hours?

Students can use research opportunities to fulfill their NCSSM Service Requirement if the agency is a nonprofit and located in NC. The NCSSM summer research and mentorship experiences do not fulfill this requirement as the student is already receiving credit for the course. If a student plans to volunteer at a nonprofit research laboratory, there are a few stipulations: the students work cannot be published and/or credited with any findings that will lead to financial gain, awards, or recognition and the student cannot use this type of service to fulfill assignments and/or requirements set forth by NCSSM or another organization.

• • May I use a service trip through a nonprofit organization to fulfil my service requirement hours?

Service trips to other states or abroad may be used to fulfil service requirement hours as long as: 1) the organization is a nonprofit organization based in NC and 2) a minimum of 20 hours are completed with the organization prior to or following the trip at the organization in NC. If a student participates in a service trip, the student may not include the following hours: time spent traveling, sightseeing, sleeping, etc. Students may only count time spent actively engaged in volunteer efforts.

• • Can I tutor with a virtual tutoring organization to fulfill my service hours? 

Online tutoring platforms must serve residents of NC and be located in NC. At this time, the only approved online tutoring platforms are SMath Tutors and NC Virtual Public Schools Peer Tutoring.

• • Can I accept a form of monetary compensation for my service?

Students cannot accept any form of monetary compensation (cash, checks, gift cards, etc.). NCSSM Service hours are strictly voluntary and must be unpaid. Any student who receives monetary compensation for their NCSSM Service Requirement hours will be subject to disciplinary action as determined by the Service Learning Coordinator and Director of Student Services.

• • Can students count prior service towards their NCSSM Service Requirement hours?

Service hours may not begin for a student until the day following NCSSM Commencement during their sophomore year. Students have from that date until the end of Thanksgiving Break of their senior year to complete the required hours.