Sup peeps, I’m a student nurse and I want to work for MSF once I qualify but to work for them you need to have 3 months volunteer experience in a developing country and a basic grasp of a foreign language (French being the most useful). I’m not really from a ‘gap year in the developing world living off daddies wallet’ kind of family and it seems like all the companies that do foreign aid work are aimed at that market. So does anyone have any experience with companies maybe aimed at more mature/normal people. As much as I realise it’s not about who you’re with it’s about what you do, I think I’d end up killing someone if I was stuck with 40 Etonians in khakis. Also, these companies charge an absolute fortune.
Hi,
I volunteered for 6 weeks in Madagascar afew years ago, and will be doing some more in Africa soon hopefully. If you choose a smaller group with an active publication record, that welcomes all ages and professions you’re more likely to avoid the “Etonians”. That said, they do get everywhere, but the one we had was very nice.
Try charities that don’t advertise as gap year projects. Most of them will require you to do some some fundraising, some will have better guidelines and help in place for you to get this done.
Are you qualified as a nurse/doctor/first aider? If so, many projects may be willing to take you on for less, or even for free. You should email some project coordinators. Same may apply if you are a teacher/TEFL qualified etc… Most applicants they get say they want to volunteer but don’t offer any specific skills.
If you’re trying to get in the “back door” this way, you need to impress and have a CV I imagine.
Whatever you end up doing you will love it. You make great friends and it is a good way to get some perspective on how the rest of the world lives.
It is likely to be expensive though. the costs that companies advertise are usually as streamlined as they can be while keeping the volunteers safe and fed.
Some companies are crap, simple as. Go for an ambitious one. Also the “I had a great time! Made great friends! Chundered Everywhaaare!” testament might be something to avoid.
Thanks for the advice man, I’ll be a registered nurse in just over a year, hopefully.
Don’t know much about volunteering, but I am a fan of this NGO:
likewise!
i know about volunteering, but not abroad. all i know is if you do something you love you won’t feel the need to make money doing it as long as you can make a decent living.