Purpose
The Honours College Volunteer Programme (HVP) of the University of Macau, in cooperation with the Macau Pou Tai Integrated Service Centre, aims to provide Honours College (HC) students with opportunities to engage in volunteer services—particularly in-depth communication with the elderly. As Macao’s aging population becomes an increasingly important issue, the programme seeks to help students learn how to connect with and care for the elderly.
Programme Description
Volunteers begin by attending a Briefing Session hosted by the Honours College (HC) to familiarize themselves with the programme. They then participate in a three-hour Orientation Session at the Pou Tai Integrated Service Centre, where social workers cover volunteerism concepts, training on communicating with the elderly, and basic knowledge of using wheelchairs and other medical equipment. After completing these two mandatory sessions, volunteers are ready to start their service, which requires a minimum of 18 hours over approximately three months. Their primary tasks involve engaging in meaningful communication with the elderly and spending quality time with them. The programme emphasizes building friendships with elderly, ie. the “life mentors”, learning from their experiences, and serving as reliable companions.
In order to offer students a diversified community service experience, HC, in cooperation with the Macau Pou Tai Integrated Service Centre, added a youth community service opportunity for HC students starting from March 2025, the 5th HC Volunteer Programme. Volunteers could choose to serve at either the Pou Tai Elderly Centre or the Youth Centre.
At the Youth Centre, volunteers will work in groups to plan activities suitable for the children and youngsters in the community. Through planning and executing these activities, they will enhance their communication, problem-solving, and collaboration skills, and most importantly, their social awareness.
Programme Schedule
