Introducing Quaker Voluntary Service
- Are you a young adult aged 21-30?
- Are you inspired by social justice activism but don’t know how
- to live your values in everyday life?
- Are you at a crossroads and longing for community to help you discern
- your next steps?
Quaker Voluntary Service (QVS) could be a great next step for you!
QVS is an 11-month service program where young adults live in community, work at social justice oriented nonprofits, and engage in spiritual growth while being supported by community. QVS currently has houses in Boston, Philadelphia, Minneapolis and Portland, OR.
Our Fellows receive a package of benefits including room, board, a monthly stipend, transportation allowance, assistance with student loan deferment and health insurance, readjustment allowance, and more. QVS Fellows are placed in full time professional-level positions with social justice nonprofit organizations. Fellows also learn about intentional community as they live in shared housing during their service year.
Many QVS alums reflect that when they were graduating, they had no idea how to get into the justice work they wanted to do. Participating in the QVS service year opened up countless doors for them.
Who is a good fit?
Young adults who have benefited from doing our program are interested in social justice work. They come to our program ready to explore the intersection of work, spiritual life, and community. They are self-aware, interested in spiritual exploration, and wanting to build friendships with their housemates.
Here are some stories from QVS alumni:
Gabe, a 2024-25 Fellow who served in Portland, OR says: At the start of my Quaker Voluntary Service year, I found myself feeling disillusioned with the prospect of joining the capitalist and American workforce and the world in general. This feeling was making me struggle to get excited about the prospect of progressing my life forward after college and finding new experiences…Quaker Voluntary Service has helped me rediscover my power to affect the world around me and to make it that much better of a world for all of those who come in contact with me.
Madison, a 2017-18 Fellow who served in Portland, OR says: I’m grateful I followed this spark of inspiration and became a Quaker Voluntary Service fellow in Portland, Oregon myself. I cannot overstate how transformational that year was for me, in every aspect of my life. I learned how to live in an intentional community with new friends, how to stay spiritually grounded while organizing and advocating on existential threats, and how to put my new-found Quaker values into practice.
For more alumni stories, check out the Fellow Testimonials on our blog.
Applications are now open for the 2026-27 QVS cohort. The deadline to apply is March 1, 2026. Visit the QVS website to learn more: www.quakervoluntaryservice.org
About Quaker Voluntary Service: Quaker Voluntary Service offers young adults a year of professional service in community organizations in several U.S. cities, combining social justice work with spiritual & personal growth. Fellows live in shared housing, receive support from local Quakers, and participate in retreats & learning days.
