FAQ

If you wish to volunteer with a friend most projects would encourage this, however, each volunteer is interviewed and accepted based on their own merits

There are NO fees of any kind charged by Just Volunteers! or other charities we work with.

Projects provide free accommodation and cover most food costs. (However, not for the shortest volunteering periods. Lotus charges about US$20 per day for food and lodging for those volunteering for 3-8 weeks over the summer. At GETCH volunteers pay for their own hotel rooms.)

Volunteers pay their own airfare to the country

All volunteers must buy their own insurance and pay the cost of the criminal background checks and vaccinations.

Other costs depend on the country. In most places volunteers will spend between GBP 150 to 300 per month depending on their own tastes and interests.

Volunteers should also consider how much local travel they wish to do after their assignment (or over weekends).

ALSO, PLEASE…

remember that while we are looking for your talent and not your money, many of the projects we work with are desperately short of funding and many of our volunteers raise money for their projects after they go home.

We encourage everyone to consider doing this!

• Most projects need commitments of at least 3 months
• GETCH and Lotus take people for periods as short as 3 weeks
• SPICE in HK needs people for about 2 months but requires undergraduates or recent graduates of British or HK universities
• Mother’s Choice in HK needs people for 6-12 months
• Lotus takes people with certain professional backgrounds for up to one year

• The first step is to decide which project is most interesting to you
  – Look at the ‘Project’ pages on this website, look at their own websites if applicable
• Then contact us with questions
• Or just send us your CV and  apply.
• We interview interested applicants on skype
• Successful interviewees have a second skype interview with the project
• Applicants who are accepted will then receive instructions on what to do next (applying for visas, getting necessary injections, requesting criminal background checks, buying insurance etc.)

The risks differ slightly from project to project but we do not send volunteers to anywhere considered dangerous.

All volunteers should do research on the country they are applying to and be sure that they are comfortable with their decision.

The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office website gives guidance on travel to all countries. Go to https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice and type in the relevant country. You can also subscribe to any updates issued for the country you are going to.

All volunteers should ensure that they have the information for their Embassy/consulate/High Commission so that they can make contact in case of need.

All volunteers must buy full insurance cover.

All volunteers should be aware of their surroundings, act appropriately and ask advice if unsure.

We take people with a variety of academic qualifications and different work experience.

Most volunteers are graduates or undergraduates, but by no means all!

We have placed volunteers with work experience across a broad range of professional and vocational fields from motorbike technicians to teachers and lawyers. (If you are interested in asking more, get in touch.)

All volunteers must be over 18. Our oldest volunteer was in his 50s.

We require full background and criminal checks.

Nearly all the projects we work with help disadvantaged, vulnerable or abandoned children or young people.

So we are looking for people who enjoy working with children and who are willing to teach English and other subjects.

We expect all our volunteers to be good mentors and to be able to provide support and encouragement.

Some projects involve running summer schools and teaching sports; arts and crafts and music.

Some projects need professionals to help with administration or other non child related work.

At most projects volunteers work around 35 hours per week.

Successful volunteers……..

• Have a wish for adventure;
• Are independent and able to cope without the immediate physical support of family and friends;
• Are able to get on with others, including those from very different backgrounds;
• Are interested in learning about other cultures;
• Are flexible and interested in trying new experiences and able to be flexible about things like food!
• Are REALLY interested in helping others;
• Willing to try and communicate even when there is a language barrier;
• Are self disciplined and committed, because these projects are doing serious work for the children and young people they are helping. They need their volunteers to provide support and not to need too much of it!

Our volunteers come from almost all backgrounds including: American, Australian, British, Caribbean, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Ghanaian, Indian, Malaysian, New Zealand, Nigerian, Pakistani, Singaporean, Somali, Sri Lankan. However, due to visa constraints not all passports can be accepted.

While most volunteers are international, every year we place a few volunteers in their own country!