Volunteering overseas can be an amazing experience where you can learn new skills, do something different and also have a positive impact.

Check out our top reasons why you should travel and volunteer overseas.

 

1. Get Immersed In A New Culture

Choosing a volunteer program abroad is a great excuse to travel and see a new country. There are so many worldwide projects in literally hundreds of destinations and this is your chance to do more than your average tourist. By actually living among a local community you will get a much more natural experience than just staying at a hotel or beach resort, a lot of projects also provide home stays which can be a really enjoyable experience.

 

2. Meet New People

Why volunteer abroad

Usually when you join a volunteer project you will not be the only one helping. You will get guidance from local staff and also work alongside other international volunteers from all over the world. Most volunteering organisations accept applications from all over the world and also the people applying to help are usually really nice / outgoing people so you are certainly bound to meet a diverse range of people.

 

3. Gain Experience

Volunteering, like interning abroad is a great way to build new personal / professional skills. Maybe you are looking to gain experience for a future career, build up your CV or resume or just learn new skills there are plenty of opportunities to learn whilst volunteering.

You will gain an insight into a new working environment and be guided by experienced staff, you might even learn a few new things about yourself and challenge yourself to do new things. No previous skills are usually required for non-professional placements and training will be provided so you can learn new things.

 

4. Make Your Friends and Family Jealous

Travel is becoming more and more accessible which was not possible a few decades ago when flights were really expensive. This is your chance to do something your parents might not have been able to do for example, they will all love to hear your experiences and see your pictures.

With modern options you really can visit anywhere in the world and there are so many inspirational projects where you can do things you might not of dreamed of, this will be in stark contrast to the life you might have back home. Hopefully when other people see you have had an amazing time you will inspire others to apply too.

 

5. Escape Your World

Have a break from normal life and take time out to refresh and do something rewarding. Most of the time in 'normal life' people are so focused on problems / careers that sometimes this takes the fun out of living, doing something like volunteering can have such an amazing effect on you and your life going forward.

Life is not all about work and money, sometimes gap year programs like volunteering can make you realise the important things in life and bring perspective.

There are so many destinations including:

 

6. You Only Live Once

Some people put of travelling and doing something different like volunteering but we recommend doing it soon or else you might forever put it off forever. Even if you sign up and don't enjoy the experience you should be take something positive away and you will get to experience living in a new country. If you never sign up you will never know!

 

7. Support Local Organisations & Charities

By signing up you can help keep local organisations and projects running, a lot of volunteer projects will require you to pay a fee to participate, this could be if you go through a large international sending agency or apply direct to a local NGO. A lot of the time the money goes towards keeping really worthwhile projects running and also employs local people, with donations these organisations would struggle as they get no help or government funding.

 

8. Improve Your Language Skills

Learn a new language, if you choose to volunteer in a country in Latin America for example, the chances are you will be working with Spanish speaking natives. To get the most out of any trip learning the language is highly recommended even if this is just the basics, when volunteering you will get lots of free time to learn or interact with local people. You should also be able to organise lessons and classes in your spare time. Popular languages to learn include Spanish, Portuguese and French.

 

9. Get The Feel Good Factor

Feel good about yourself and have fun, don't forget doing something like volunteering isn't all work, it's also a great way to create amazing memories and go to bed everyday after an exciting day unlike any other. There are so many amazing volunteer projects with wildlife or helping communities and you should get the feel good factor when helping and there is nothing wrong with this!

 

10. Make A Difference

By signing up to give your time and effort you will really be able to make a genuine difference. Without volunteers a lot of projects would struggle to survive. A lot of programs need help all year round and most can't afford to employ people so this is where you can help. Even if you only stay a short time, you will be able to help out as long as you have the desire to help out. 


Hopefully this article will inspire you to want to volunteer abroad with One World 365. If reading our reasons why you should consider applying. You can view all of our projects in countries all around the world by the links below:

 

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