Put your expertise to work for the public good
Put your expertise to work for the public good
USDR volunteers have helped reduce benefit application times from hours to minutes, built emergency response tools for cities, and supported election systems serving 30 million voters. Bring your professional skills to projects that modernize how government serves communities.
Skilled professionals ready to serve
USDR volunteers don't just solve problems, they ensure government partners can sustain and scale solutions independently.
Practitioners needed who
- Execute while educating
- Facilitate collaboration across diverse government stakeholders
- Navigate ambiguity with patience and adaptability
- A service mindset, you're here to support, not to "fix"
- Balance expertise with humility
Core skills we need
- Product and project management
- User experience design and research
- Applying gen Al to real-world use cases
- Software engineering and data analysis
- Content strategy and communications
- People operations and talent acquisition
- Bilingual expertise (especially Spanish)
Your commitment
- ~10+ hours per week with some business hours availability
- 2-3 month typical project duration
Where technologists volunteer to create actual impact
You've honed your skills over years of practice. Now channel them toward strengthening the foundation of our democracy through the governments that serve our communities every day. Work on projects with clear scope, meaningful impact, and direct connection to the people you're helping.
"I can trace a direct line from my code to millions of people finding their polling place. That's the kind of impact I was looking for."
Meaningful work with every project
Clear expectations from day one
- Detailed project briefs
- Defined timelines
- Direct access to government partners who need your help
- Support from USDR staff throughout your engagement
Your journey as a volunteer
- Sign up: Share your skills and availability
- Get matched: We reach out when we have the right project for you
- Create impact: Work directly with government partners
"As someone exploring the public sector, volunteering with USDR introduced me to incredible people and showed me how my skills could contribute to civic tech."
Of volunteers say they’d like to volunteer again
Of our volunteers go on to do more than one project
Of volunteers have transitioned to civic tech careers
Volunteers on volunteering
Learn more about volunteering at USDR
Curious about our projects? Want to understand the time commitment? Join our monthly info session to hear from our team about the real experience of volunteering with USDR.
Read our Community Oath and join one of our information sessions (all sessions are at 11 AM PT / 2 PM):
- Jan 16
- Feb 20
- Mar 20
- Apr 17
- May 22
- Jun 12
- Jul 10
- Aug 14
- Sep 11
- Oct 2
- Nov 6,
- Dec 4
You can register for any of these sessions or watch a recording of a past Volunteer Info Session.
Frequently Asked Questions
USDR partners include state, local, and tribal governments. We work with election offices, innovation officers, workforce agencies, and more. You might help a city modernize permit applications or assist a state through improved content updates for their website.
Volunteers submit an interest form that is reviewed by the USDR team for skills, experience level, and availability. If we believe you could be a good fit for an open project role, we’ll reach out to arrange a screening call to discuss your specific qualifications, interest, availability, and overall fit for USDR volunteering. Our Community Oath is a guiding document that helps people know if USDR is the right place for their volunteer efforts. Our Volunteer Agreement helps create a safe and productive environment for everyone volunteering with USDR so we can stay focused on delivering for governments who need support in this time of crisis.
We carefully assess the needs of our partners and match handraisers with projects based on their availability, experience, and skill. No news doesn't mean no—we keep your profile active and reach out when the right project appears.
We will reach out to volunteers as we find matching projects. Since you've signed up to volunteer, you're automatically subscribed to our monthly newsletter with the latest updates. You can also follow us on USDR’s social channels to stay connected with the USDR community.
We’ll connect you to projects that could be a great fit. You’ll be able to confirm your interest in the project before jumping in to help.
Individual projects can last from two weeks to several months, though you may have the opportunity to volunteer for a longer stint or additional projects. Typically projects last about 3 months. When we reach out about a particular project, we’ll share information about the expected duration.
You'll have a dedicated USDR project advisor access to our volunteer community for questions, and regular check-ins. We provide project scopes, stakeholder introductions, access to resources compiled from our 600+ projects, and any context you need to succeed.
USDR prioritizes work that addresses critical community-facing needs and delivers direct impact to the people our partners serve. We align our work with our program focus areas and work directly with partners to scope out projects we’re confident we’ll be able to deliver on.
In addition to opportunities to volunteer on government-facing projects, there are internal volunteer roles that help support USDR operations and program strategy. Internal volunteers might put their skills to use scoping partner projects, interviewing fellow volunteers, or telling impact stories about the work being delivered.
We invite any interested team members to volunteer as individuals. Please indicate your organization affiliation on the signup form. Interested in chatting more from an organizational standpoint? Reach out to us at volunteering@usdigitalresponse.org.
No. This is a volunteer opportunity. Your status as a volunteer is not a step toward obtaining employment with USDR or the organization you’re partnering with.
Your data will only be shared with team members and project partners when required to facilitate placement on a project. Read more in our Privacy Policy.
If you are assigned to a project, you’ll work remotely with a state or local government agency, a public interest organization, or the USDR team. Occasionally, we do have in-person opportunities and will match volunteers accordingly.
No! Many volunteers come from the private sector. We provide context about government operations and pair you with teammates who understand the landscape. Your fresh perspective is valuable.
