How to be an international volunteer

by Rebecca Hardy

If you're looking for an adventure with a feel-good factor, volunteering overseas might be perfect for you. Here's how to get started

Perhaps one of the greatest travel booms in recent years has been the rise of the international volunteer. Gap years are increasingly popular, and it's not hard to see why - what other type of travelling combines the exoticism of travel with the feel-good factor that comes from helping others?

For those in search of the much-vaunted 'authentic experience', volunteering overseas could be the key to transforming your life. Tales abound of people who've changed direction through taking time out to get involved in an international community project.

Voluntary work is a two-way street, where you stand to gain as much as the people you are supposedly 'helping'. Like what? How about increased confidence, the chance to learn new skills, make new friends, live in a different culture and gain nothing short of a fresh perspective on the world.

So what opportunities exist? Literally hundreds. Whether it's conservation work, community projects, teaching children to write, working in the jungle or renovating old buildings, there's a staggering array of possibilities.

Use the web for inspiration
First stop for the prospective volunteer should be the Internet. The web is literally teeming with websites that can help make your dreams of far-flung experiences into a tantalising reality. Try gapwork.com or Action Without Borders, which lists numerous volunteer opportunities around the world.

Hopefully, just a brief foray on the web will be enough to trigger your imagination. From then on you can narrow down your choice by deciding what kind of work you want to do, where you want to go, and what you want to get out of it.

Choosing a project
Broadly speaking, most voluntary projects fall into two categories - long-term assignments (one to five years) working for the large NGOs (non-governmental organisations associated with the United Nations), often in developing countries, and medium-term or short-term work for smaller NGOs or dedicated-sending agencies (such as gap year organisations) where you often pay for the privilege.

The large NGOs such as VSO, Red Cross, Oxfam, Tearfund, Medecins Sans Frontieres and Greenpeace tend to recruit professionals with solid vocational skills and experience (think medical professionals, teachers, engineers, journalists, technicians and a whole range of other professionals), while the smaller NGOs and agencies expect little in the way of previous experience. Work for these agencies is usually residential and can include conservation, renovation, health, teaching, special needs or archaeology.

Of course, braver souls can turn up in their chosen destination, and try to find volunteer projects once they have arrived. The best thing is to build some contacts over there - head for the library for local information, check the newspapers and get in touch with local volunteer groups.