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Volunteer Impact Academy

Be part of the next generation of Volunteers through the Volunteer Impact Academy, a program that provides students with the platform to impact our community by creating sustainable change through leadership and service.

Volunteer Impact Academy is an immersive four-year cohort experience designed for students that truly embody what it means to be a volunteer. As a member of the Volunteer Impact Academy, scholars will be equipped with the foundational skills to build on their personal strengths and improve our campus, local communities, and beyond. The program includes an annual scholarship, which automatically renews each year provided requirements are met. 

 

Year 1: Self Reflection

Create your own definition of what it means to be a Vol 

Year 2: Campus Impact

Learn how to work with other Volunteers and make an impact on campus

  • 25 hour Service Requirement
  • Team Building/Excursion (Spring)
  • ELPS 310 Course (Fall or Spring)
  • CliftonStrengths 34 Report Seminar (Spring)

Year 3: Community Engagement

Exemplify what it means to be a Vol in the community

  • 25 hour Service Requirement
  • Elevated Service Requirement/Position
  • Community Partner/Non-Profit Workshop Series (Fall)
  • Team Building/Excursion (Spring)

Year 4: Global Transformation

Empowered by the connections and experience you have gained, prepare to make a global impact, and leave a lasting legacy at UT

  

Program Requirements & Information

To be eligible to apply, applicants must meet the following requirements:

  • Be a high school senior
  • Have a completed admissions application on file to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville for the upcoming fall semester
  • Have 3.0 core-weighted GPA or higher
  • Be actively engaged with the community through service projects, clubs, athletics, work, etc.
  • Be interested in personal leadership development and community service engagement

  • Eligible students will be able to apply through their VIP (Vol-In-Progress) Portal
  • Application includes three essay questions
  • Application deadline is January 15, 2024 for Cohort 2028 starting Fall 2024

When will admission decisions be released for the incoming cohort?

  • Decisions will be sent out to applicants in Mid-March every year.

  

Leadership Positions

Peer Mentors are second and third year VIA students who:

  • Meet one-on-one with first-year VIA students
  • Mentor and support all VIA cohort members
  • Aid in the community-centered culture cultivated at various VIA service trips and excursions
  • Be interested in personal leadership development and community service engagement

Peer Mentor Job Description

  • Must have previously served as a VIA Peer Mentor
  • Must be in good standing within the Volunteer Impact Academy — meeting all GPA and service requirements
  • Enrolled full-time (12 credit hours) at UT next Fall and Spring semesters

Please Review the VIA Student Director Job Description

2025 – 2026 Student Director Applications will open February, 2025

VIA Cohorts by Class Year

The flagship campus of the University of Tennessee System and partner in the Tennessee Transfer Pathway.