How It Works

Four moves that turn service into access.

Volunteer with a Philadelphia nonprofit. Log your hours. Earn Philly Service Bucks. Trade them for time with the professionals building the city.

01

Show up for your city.

Sign up for free, then volunteer with a Philadelphia nonprofit doing work you care about. Serve meals at a food bank. Tutor kids. Help elderly neighbors. Clean up parks. Choose the cause. Choose the schedule.

  • Volunteer with any recognized Philly-area nonprofit
  • Serve on your own schedule, at any location
  • Every hour counts equally
02

Log the hours.

Submit your hours through your dashboard. Include the organization, the date, the hours you served, a short description of what you did, and contact info for someone at the organization who can verify. We may reach out to confirm before crediting your balance.

  • Log hours anytime through your dashboard
  • Every submission is verified before it counts
  • Provide a verifier contact (name, email, role)
Volunteered in person? Use the paper form. For orgs that would rather sign a physical form than reply to an email.
Preview PDF → Download Form
Have your organization contact fill it out and sign it, then email it to jbloom@phillyserviceexchange.com. Not required if you already provided verifier contact info on the dashboard.
03

Earn your credits.

Every verified hour becomes one Philly Service Buck. Watch your balance grow as your service adds up. Save credits toward the opportunities that matter to you.

  • 1 hour of verified service equals 1 Philly Service Buck
  • Credits never expire while your account is active
  • Save up for a bigger opportunity, or spend as you go
04

Trade for real access.

Browse the Opportunity Hub. Spend your credits on real time with real professionals. Zoom with a producer. Shadow a surgeon. Get college counseling. Book a mentorship with an attorney.

  • Choose from mentorship, shadow days, and internships
  • Request an opportunity anytime through your dashboard
  • We coordinate with you and the professional
The Currency

How Philly Service Bucks work.

1
Hour of Service
=
1
Philly Service Buck

Opportunities range from short mentorship calls to full shadow days. Every teen starts with a zero balance and builds up through their own service.

20 PSB
30-min mentorship
60 PSB
Shadow day
100+ PSB
Internship
Common Questions

Everything you might be wondering.

Is this really free?+
Yes. Free to sign up. Free to log hours. Free to redeem opportunities. Philly Service Exchange is a nonprofit-model platform built by teens for teens. There will never be a fee.
Who can join?+
Any Philadelphia-area teen in high school. We currently focus on the Philadelphia metropolitan region and are working to expand to other cities.
What counts as volunteer service?+
Any unpaid work with a recognized nonprofit, school program, faith organization, or community group. Serving food, tutoring, park cleanups, event volunteering, and more. If you have a question about eligibility, contact us before you serve.
How do you verify hours?+
You provide a contact at your volunteer organization when you log hours. We reach out to confirm the hours before they count toward your balance. Verification usually takes a few days.
Where do the professionals come from?+
Professionals across Philadelphia sign up to offer time to teens. Doctors, lawyers, executives, producers, and more. All opportunities are voluntary on the professional side. All access is free on the teen side.
What if I already volunteered somewhere?+
Log the hours anyway. As long as you can provide a contact at the organization who can verify them, they count.
Are you expanding beyond Philadelphia?+
Yes. We are building the model in Philadelphia first. Long term, we hope teens across the country will be building their own chapters the same way, one connection at a time.
Ready?

Make your service count.

Get Started → Browse Opportunities