Four types of volunteer experience were examined and compared in order to get some picture of the range of activities open to women within the general category of volunteering and to learn about the array of opportunities and satisfactions open to women who volunteer within the different structural contexts. Data were analyzed from studies of a family planning agency, a hospital volunteer service, a national feminist organization, and a loosely affiliated network of women community leaders. The volunteer career was examined as a serious commitment, as a stepping stone or interim to a paid career, and as a time-filler. Findings showed that socioeconomic status was important in creating options for volunteers as well as salaried careers. The hospital service volunteers were mostly lower-middle-class whereas the other volunteers were upper-middle to upper class. There were differences in expectations of the volunteers in the four programs. The women who participated in the network emphasized challenging tasks requiring leadership and were more likely to mention opportunities for professional growth or to affect social change than the family planning or hospital service volunteers. Generally, community leaders and family planners expressed more satisfaction than the other women in finding opportunity for learning new job skills, whereas the hospital service women were by far the most satisfied with their opportunity to help others. (BB)