Medium-term Voluntary Service - Benefits

As you can imagine, the structures in Africa, Latin America or Asia are different than what we might be used to in Europe. On some days your project doesn't take place, there are power cuts, the car is broken and you don't even come to the project, or a public holiday just got in the way. These unfamiliar processes and the completely new environment are a challenge for you: Because if you stay abroad for several months, you really have to settle in and learn to cope with this different standard of living. You will develop the ability to integrate into a new culture and communicate in a foreign language.

In a new environment you will experience different challenges: for example you have to master difficult situations in a foreign language. This promotes your communication skills, since you have to make yourself understood, for example to ask for directions. Everyday life, for example going shopping in a culture you have never experienced before, requires patience and independence. The mentality on site will seem unfamiliar to you at first - you adapt to it and thus develop flexibility. You will also learn how to act responsibly through the social differences, for example a socially disadvantaged environment. You will quickly notice that you are developing a new awareness for this. The longer your voluntary service, the more confident you will be in these soft skills.

In addition, you deepen your linguistic proficiencyif you live abroad for a longer period of time. Here is also a minimum period of two months of advantage, because you really dive into the language. We also offer language Courses so that you can optimally accompany your volunteer work with individual lessons. Your language skills will improve quickly as you use them in your host family and in your project, as well as in everyday life. Communicating with the locals will soon be much easier for you!

A medium-term voluntary service is not only advantageous for you - your project will also benefit if you stay longer. Above all, social or educational assignments are happy about longer stays. Especially in kindergartens or schools, the children get used to you quickly and they find it difficult to say goodbye after just a few weeks. The very frequent change of "reference persons" can also have a negative effect on their development. A commitment lasting several months offers the children more stability and security.

Because of the cultural and language differences, it will take about four weeks until you really have settled in and worked into your project. Only then do you really know your colleagues and the processes. You can start to take on more responsibility and complete tasks independently. So that you can really make a difference in your project, a medium-term voluntary service is a good option. After all, it takes time to make a difference.

Rainbow Garden Village is particularly happy about participants who would like to get involved for several months. We enable you to work longer in all target countries in the form of Volunteering or subject-related Internships abroad. Not only can you set your starting time as you wish, but you can also flexibly choose the length of your stay. However, is in social projects, such as kindergartens or schools where you work intensively with children, recommend a longer stay. It takes the kids a few weeks to get used to you, and then they don't want to let you go anytime soon! Also at animal welfare projects, where you work with big cats, for example, you will be trained very intensively over a longer period of time for safety reasons - this is where a medium-term voluntary service makes more sense for you. And of course, more help is always welcome!

For these reasons, volunteering is generally recommended for more than two months. You can better develop your personal skills and abilities with a stay abroad of several months. In addition, your assignment location will benefit more from a longer stay. The projects invest time in you and want to be able to count on you for as long as possible. But of course the following applies: even if you only have four or six weeks - every day that you get involved counts!