Since 1982, volunteer  has been placing thousands of volunteers in international voluntary service projects across the globe!Through our large networks of partner organizations, we can set you up with a project that meets your needs and helps fulfill a need in the local community where the project is housed. Projects typically take place over 2-3 weeks but can last up to a year. Each short-term project includes volunteers from at least four other countries working alongside members of the local community to accomplish a specific goal. Simultaneously, volunteers are building life-long friendships and developing cultural understanding across borders of nationality, race, religion and beliefs while contributing to a tangible project outcome!

How Volunteering Works

The Volunteer Abroad program is based on the foundation that in order to truly make a positive difference with a short term placement, we need make certain that work is done in advance to ensure the placement is a good fit for the volunteer, and that the volunteer is adequately prepared for their placement.

One of the first steps in accomplishing this is our placement assessment process.  Prior to placing a volunteer with any placement, our staff visits with the organization to fully understand the work being done, and conduct a placement assessment.  Basically we are looking at two critical factors when beginning a new organizational partnership:

• Is the organization addressing a real need in the community?
• Could the contributions of a volunteer help the organization achieve their short and long term goals?

Once it has been determined that an organization is providing for a genuine need in the community, and that volunteer labour could be of assistance, we begin the next phase of the placement assessment process, which is the needs assessment.

The needs assessment really starts with spending some time with the organization and getting a solid understanding of the work they are doing and the issues they are addressing.  We look at their current projects and learn from them what needs they have that could be met with volunteer assistance.  We gather information regarding any specific skills or experience that the organization would be looking for to assist them with any current or future projects they may have.

Once we have a good understanding of the organizational needs, and the roles to be filled by volunteers; and have made accommodation arrangements for this placement, we create a placement profile and enter it into our placement database.  It now becomes an option made available to potential volunteers whose skills and experience match the needs of the organization and placement.

Volunteers have the option to review the placement options available to them and select their top three preferences.  The final placement confirmation will come from your country coordinator, and ultimately your acceptance to a specific placement is approved by the placement organization in country.

i like it

How choosing a voluntary ?

About finding balance in your life, connecting with who you are, and creating a lifestyle where you wake up each morning eagerly anticipating the day ahead.

What’s your favorite charity?

• Christian Children’s Fund
• Save The Earth
• Other
• I don’t know
• I can’t pick just one! ALL OF THEM!!!
• ASPCA (American society for prevention of cruelty to animals)

• 2

  Which of these chores doesn’t seem like a chore to you?

  • Gardening
  • Walking the dog
  • Chores are chores are chores. They’re all boring to me.
  • Babysitting my little sibs
   
• 3

  Which of these would make you the most angry?

  • Someone telling me that my personal passion is stupid
  • Having to do a BORING monotonous job every day for a year
  • A billionaire refusing to give a dollar to a homeless man on the street begging for money
  • Someone throwing trash all over the parking lot and not caring
  • Someone abusing their pet
   
• 4

  You’re on a graduation trip to Africa! On your free day, you can be found-

  • Hanging with kids at a nearby village.
  • In a village, helping people with their daily needs
  • On a rainforest tour
  • Wandering around, looking for cool things to do.
  • On a safari, watching exotic animals. So fascinating!
   
• 5

  If you could only save one thing, what would it be?

  • A homeless puppy
  • A 500-year-old tree that people want to cut down
  • A great charity that’s going out of business
  • A starving person
  • An awesome after-school program that’s been truly inspiring hundreds of kids for years. Someone wants to close it down!
   
• 6

  What do you want to be when you grow up?

  • I can’t decide- I want to be everything, so many jobs sound so cool!!!
  • Environmental Biologist
  • Social Worker
  • A teacher
  • A vet
  • None of these
   
• 7

  Your passion is:

  • Planning and attending fun events!!!
  • My hobbies, like music, writing, sports, etc…I like doing hobbies with friends, it makes it so fun!
  • The environment. We need to take better care of our earth!
  • Animals, all the way!
  • Helping those with less than me.
   
• 8

  What bugs you the most about the world today?

  • Normal people like us who never get the opportunity to try so many beneficial things
  • Global warming
  • Animal cruelty
  • There are so many awesome causes out there that never get any support! The list goes on and on….
  • The starving kids in Africa
   
• 9

  A great fieldtrip would be-

  • Tour New Orleans, then help rebuild cities still destroyed from Hurricane Katrina
  • Someplace related to my personal hobbies
  • A fair or carnival!
  • A nature walk
  • The zoo or a wildlife center
   
• 10

  You want a volunteer job that…

  • Helps the needy all around the world, not just people in my community who have all they need
  • Is really fun, unpredictable, and lets me do something different every day!
  • Lets me enjoy my personal interests, and share them with others
  • Helps animals as well as people
  • Improves the environment, and preserves our planet for generations to come

What is voluntary work

To volunteer, means simply, to be motivated and give one’s time or energies to work towards a project or cause that you are interested in. Voluntary work falls mainly in three broad categories: (a) long term, paid positions; (b) short, medium and long term, unpaid positions; and (c) short term expeditionary conservation projects where volunteers are self-funding, which are described in further detail below.

(a) Long term, paid: In this category, volunteers are usually sent to work on long term projects lasting for over a year in which the volunteer may almost lose contact with his or her old way of life. For these positions, professionals with qualifications, specific skills and relevant work experience are usually recruited, for example doctors, nurses, engineers etc., and they can receive benefits including a monthly salary based on the local rate, air tickets, insurance, lodging etc.

(b) Short, medium and long term, unpaid: These positions can last from anything between a couple of weeks to one year, that are suitable for many people, including students taking a year off, professionals taking sabbaticals to work on a specific project, individuals wishing to gain further “hands-on” practical field experience and so on. Usually, they must pay for their transportation to and from the project.  In most cases, volunteers pay a monthly fee which covers living costs, project materials etc, which cannot be paid by the volunteer organisation. Costs depend upon country and so on, but as a general indicator, volunteers may be asked to contribute between 100 to 500 GB pounds per month.

(c) Short term expeditionary eco-conservation projects: There are also opportunities for people who are limited by time, and wish to take part in conservation and wildlife surveying projects as an alternative to a holiday. Such projects are usually located in tropical and remote areas and volunteers are expected to be self-funding and to pay for the costs of the expedition.

The above, is only a guideline to some of the vast range of opportunities that are available through WorkingAbroad.

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