Join Us

LEAPS promotes Higher Education while supporting young people in secondary schools in South East Scotland.

Many of the events we deliver in schools and on university campuses are designed around the valuable input of university student volunteers. These events include school-based workshops and campus visits. As a LEAPS volunteer you would play a vital role, working with small groups of pupils in structured workshops led by LEAPS staff. Please note, students in second year and above from these institutions are eligible to contribute as LEAPS volunteers.

This academic year, the LEAPS volunteering programme will take place between November 2022 and April 2023 with all our workshops and events taking place in local secondary schools and on campus.  If you are interested in becoming a LEAPS volunteer, finding out more and getting started is really easy. All you have to do is:

1. Complete our online LEAPS Volunteer Training Module 

Complete our interactive online LEAPS Volunteer Training Module to find out more about: LEAPS as a widening participation programme, the type of events volunteers typically get involved in, who the pupils are you would be working with, and what your role as a volunteer would be. The module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.

This doesn’t commit you to becoming a LEAPS volunteer – it’s more a case of completing the module to see if you think it’s the volunteering opportunity you are looking for.

Complete the form at the bottom of this page to register to receive access to the online module. Please bear with us, as creating your account is a manual process and may take a little time. Thanks! 

If you require the training in an alternative format (by which we mean not as an online module), please contact leapsvolunteers@ed.ac.uk and we will be happy to discuss alternative arrangements with you.

2. Register as a LEAPS Volunteer

If, after completing the online LEAPS Volunteer Training Module, you decide you might like to get involved as a LEAPS volunteer, then we will ask you to complete an online volunteer registration form and provide details of one academic referee from your university. More information on this will be given following completion of the module.

3. Try out a LEAPS workshop and see for yourself!

Shortly after taking part in our training, we would encourage registered volunteers to try out a few workshops on dates that suits you. Workshops will be well staffed by the LEAPS team, and we hope that new volunteers will have the opportunity to volunteer alongside more experienced LEAPS volunteers which can help you settle into your new role as a volunteer.  Workshops and events for local schools are posted regularly on our online Volunteer Noticeboard. There is no pressure to sign up for a set number of workshops per semester - you can decide how much you get involved. 

4. Already a LEAPS Volunteer?

If you are already a registered LEAPS volunteer and would like to get involved with our workshops from November 2022 to April 2023 we would love to welcome you back!  You will receive an email in September 2022 to ask you to re-register as a volunteer for academic year 2022-23 by completing a quick online 'volunteer registration form'.  Following your re-registration with LEAPS, we'll then keep you updated by posting any forthcoming workshops and events on the online Volunteer Noticeboard from November to April. We'll alert you by email when we post any new events and keep you updated with briefings on any new workshop formats. If you want to sign up for any events you would just email us in the normal way at leapsvolunteers@ed.ac.uk. We look forward to welcoming you back to volunteering soon but if you have any queries in the meantime please get in touch.

Returning volunteers are also very welcome to complete the new online LEAPS Volunteer Training Module if you would like a refresher - if so, please email us on leapsvolunteers@ed.ac.uk and we can give you access to the module.