How to apply for a project abroad

Applying for project abroad could not be simpler – you either apply online or by post. The majority of our volunteers apply online by searching through our database of projects.

It’s no problem to find a project in our database, and fill out the application form by hand.

By using our searchable project database you can add different criteria to your search.  All our projects are on a first come first served basis, so the sooner you apply the more likely it is that you’ll be placed on your first choice.

5 steps to applying

1. Giving your search criteria:
  • Country – our list only shows countries that have projects available
  • Project type - the main kind of work on the project (see our Types of Projects section for more information)
  • Keyword - put in any word here and search the project description (e.g. putting "festival" in Keyword will bring up all projects involving festivals).
  • Gender - our partners try to keep gender balance on projects and sometimes places are only available for either female or male volunteers.
  • Age - Most projects are available for anyone over 18. However, there are many projects running for volunteers aged 16/17. There is usually no upper age limit.
  • Dates you are available - by putting dates in the search you will select only those projects that have a start or end date falling within the range you give.
2. Reading the project descriptions:

Once you’ve given your criteria and pressed the Search button you’ll be given a list of projects. To find out more about a project you can either:

  • Hover your cursor over the project for a pop up box to appear containing a summary of the work
  • or you can click the project for more details of the project

The information on each project has been provided to us by our partner organisation running the project. As English isn't the first language of any of our partners, you might come across some grammar or wording peculiarities!

3. Adding a project to your shopping basket

If you’ve seen a project you want to apply for, add it to your shopping basket by clicking ‘Add to Project Basket’ in the Project Details page. You can add up to 5 projects to your basket.

You can also put them in order of preference during the application process.

4. Applying for a project

Once you have your short list ready you can either click on Apply Online or Apply by post.  Apply online will take you though our online application process. Apply by post will download an application form which you can fill out and return to us by post.

The online application process will take about 5 minutes to complete.

5. Payment of volunteer contribution

This is the final step and will confirm your application to us. Our payment system is with PayPal but you don’t need a PayPal account to use it.  See our project cost section for more details of volunteer contributions.

Once we have received your payment we will start processing your application. We will do our best to get you placed on your first choice project. If you have put more than one choice down in your application and your first choice isn't available, we will work our way through your choices until you are placed.