Half-way through the summer holidays is an ideal time to think about what students of a certain age could be learning outside the lecture room.

Voluntary work is one such activity which the European Commission has described as a "kind of 'non-formal education' - learning outside the classroom - [which] can improve young people's employability and career prospects while at the same time strengthen their sense of solidarity with, and active citizenship of the society of which they are a part."

There are several opportunities for youth to engage in voluntary work and since a couple of years ago this activity was brought in the limelight even among university students through the voluntary work unit under the DegreePlus programme.

Yet, since "young people who wish to volunteer in another member state currently do not have enough opportunities to do so", the European Commission is in the process of devising an initiative that will create more opportunities for young people to engage in voluntary work in another EU country.

Thus, volunteering is being taken one step ahead as a cross-border opportunity to offer "young people a special experience that can have strong beneficial effects on their personal development."

In fact, earlier this month the European Commission launched a proposal with the aim of "encouraging member states to improve the interoperability of national youth volunteering schemes in order to make it easier for a volunteer from one country to participate in the volunteering schemes of another."

The initiative targets people under the age of 30 who wish to carry out voluntary work in another country rather than in their home country.

"Such voluntary activities differ from formal employment, since they are usually unpaid (except for some pocket money and expenses) and cover a limited period of time, typically several months. Volunteers are active in a whole range of areas, from civil protection and social inclusion to cultural preservation and the environment."

Thus, member states are being asked to encourage the gathering of knowledge on existing schemes in their countries, disseminate information about available opportunities, increase the number of cross-border volunteering opportunities under different national schemes, provide a reasonable level of quality assurance of volunteering activities, ensure appropriate recognition of the learning outcomes from volunteering, and provide targeted support to socio-educational instructors specialised in youth and young people with fewer opportunities.

The Commission stressed that the proposal does not seek to bring about radical change, but rather to improve what already exists in different member states.

There are already several mechanisms at a European level that support voluntary work, such as the European Voluntary Service, which allows young people to do voluntary work for up to one year in another country, and the Youth In Action programme, offering young people the opportunity to carry out voluntary work in their home country.