The Global Social Impact Fellowship contrasts with typical community service organizations in a couple of distinct ways. First, GSIF has a more global outreach compared to community service organizations. For instance, the various GSIF projects work directly with people from different places around the world and their work will directly impact the lives of people around the world. In comparison, a community service organization such as the CSO (Community Service Office) at Lehigh works locally and their work impacts the locals of the Bethlehem area. Furthermore, GSIF is more structured compared to community service organizations. This is because students are selected systematically to contribute to the project. In contrast, people often simply volunteer for service projects. What is gotten out of GSIF and community service also differs by quite a bit. In community service projects, people who volunteer leave with a sense of self-growth. On the other hand, GSIF allows people to not only grow as a student but also provides them with opportunities to sharpen their leadership, communication, and time management skills amongst other things. Further, students can get a chance to network with people from various backgrounds. and can get their research papers published in recognized scientific journals. GSIF essentially sets students up for success in the long run whereas community service organizations allow students to gain self-satisfaction in the short term.