In this series:

1. How to Volunteer Abroad for Less
2. How to Save Thousands by Organizing your Volunteer Trip on your own
3. 6 Steps to Organizing your own Volunteer Trip

Organizing our own volunteer trip isn’t difficult, but it does take time. You’ll need to do a fair amount of researching and contacting people, to figure out what all is out there. You will likely be volunteering in some part of the developing world, where, unfortunately, things are much less organized than many of us Westerners are accustomed to. Finding a volunteer abroad position WILL NOT be as easy as just looking up some websites and deciding on a project that interests you. 90% of these organizations just don’t have the man-power, experience, and/or resources to maintain an informative, up-to-date website. You will need to contact these organizations by email, and ask them tons of questions to figure out exactly what they do. The following 6-steps should help get you on track when organizing your own volunteer abroad experience.

1. Figure out what you want to do, and where you want to go: Before you do anything else, you should think about what you would like do and where you want to volunteer. Volunteers commonly work in educational, ecological, health, business, administrative, and technological fields, so it is just a matter of deciding what you are most interested in. When deciding WHERE you want to volunteer, the world is your playground, where do you really want to go?

2. Find local volunteer organizations that sound interesting to you: Once you have decided on a country or region, and the type of work you would like to do, begin searching for local organizations that offering volunteer positions in the areas that interest you. As I said above, this can be quite difficult. Many of these organizations do not operate websites, and even if they do, they are not well maintained. Your best bet will be to search the internet relentlessly, and to talk to people who have experience volunteering in that part of the world.
3. Contact all local volunteer organizations, and ask them every question you can think of: Once you have a list of local organizations that sound interesting, contact them and ask them every question you can think of. This will probably be a slow and drawn out process, but is absolutely necessary in assuring you know EXACTLY what you are getting yourself into. Do not assume anything, ASK! The following is a sample of questions to get you started:
   • What is the overall goal of your organization?
   • Can you describe the type of communities that volunteers work in?
   • What is an average volunteer’s day like
   • How many foreign volunteers work in your projects?
   • Will I be the only foreign volunteer in my project, or will there be others?
   • What kind of resources are available to volunteers and workers in your organization
   • What kind of responsibilities will I have as a volunteer?
   • Will I be able to make changes within the program, or will I just fit in with a predefined system or work?
   • How much time will I have for vacation/travel
   • How safe is it for volunteers in the communities your organization works in
4. Decide on the one volunteer project that most interests you, but don’t over commit: Once you have contacted every organization that interests you, it is time to make a decision, but don’t over commit. Many projects only accept volunteers that make an extended time commitment. This is fine, but make sure anything that you pay will be refundable if you decide you do not like the program, or even better do not pay everything up front. Instead work with the organization to setup a 2 week trial period, where you feel out the program and promise to extend if it meets your expectations. Be sure you protect yourself and do not end up in a program you hate simply because you already paid for it.
5. Ask your volunteer organization for help finding accommodation: Once you have committed to one volunteer organization, they should be able to help you set up accommodation. Ask them what other volunteers have done in the past, who you can contact, and how much it should cost. Most volunteer organizations will be able to put you in contact with people offering a variety of different accommodation options such as homestays, private apartments, shared apartments, or hotels/hostels.
6. Go with an open-mind, and have a great time: You volunteer experience will be what you make of it. Think of it as an adventure, and enjoy yourself!

Enjoy this post?

Subscribe to more great free content from Go Budget Travel through my RSS Feed or by Email!