10 Impactful Ways to Volunteer Abroad for a Year
You’ve been thinking about taking a gap year for a while now. You’ve talked it over with some of your closest friends and family. You even made a pro/con list to really weigh the options. And finally, you’ve decided to do it! You’re going to take a gap year to travel the world. Great!
What now?
Just imagine the places you’ll go!
This is the time to ask yourself that all important question: what am I going to do during my gap year? From interning to working odd jobs to just simply traveling, the options are endless.
But one of the best options for a gap year travel program is volunteering. You’ll get to feel good about contributing your time and talents to a cause while getting to see the world. It’s a win-win!
But what are the most impactful gap year volunteering programs? We’ve picked out some of our favorites, just for you.
Why should I spend my gap year volunteering abroad?
You might be taking a gap year to explore the world before you settle into school or a career. Perhaps you want to discover more about yourself and who you are as a person. Maybe you just want the adventure! People take gap years for a variety of reasons, all of which can only be improved by spending your gap year volunteering.
You want to explore the world? You could easily just tour the big attractions and breeze your way through. You could also volunteer with the community instead, working side by side with the locals to gain a true understanding of a different culture and country.
There are tons of ways to volunteer, even helping out on a ranch!
You want to discover more about yourself? There’s no better way to reveal your true character than challenging yourself. You’ll be amazed by the kindness, understanding, and patience you discover within yourself while volunteering abroad during your gap year.
You want an adventure? You could travel to foreign countries and observe turtles or lions, or you could volunteer and get up close and personal with these exotic animals. What better gap year adventure than feeding lions?! Gap years can be incredible experiences of exploring the world and discovering yourself along the way, and volunteering is just the way to do it!
10 high-impact gap year volunteer programs
Feel good about your gap year volunteering when you sign up for programs with these top-notch providers.
1. Teaching & Community Support in Zanzibar by African Impact
Out of all the volunteer gap year travel programs, this awesome program by African Impact has a bit of everything. You’ll interact with many different parts of the local community, sometimes by caring for and playing with children.
This program focuses on empowering women in particular, using volunteers like you to teach them English. When you’re not interacting with the people, you’ll be helping the environment through beach clean-ups and tree-planting.
If all this isn’t enough to convince you, the location alone makes this program worthwhile. Not only will you feel fulfillment through your work as a volunteer, you’ll also love exploring dreamy white sandy beaches and swimming with dolphins.
2. Volunteer in Ukraine Orphanages with Love Volunteers
Love Volunteers is a great volunteer program provider with tons of great gap year programs abroad. Their volunteer program in Ukraine with children in particular pulls at our heartstrings and is a heck of a deal.
You’ll go for a minimum of two weeks and have housing and meals provided. During the day you work with adorable children, many of them orphans and all of them impoverished. You’ll help with feeding and caring for the children but also with singing and playing with them!
After your volunteer duties are done for the day, you’ll have all evening to explore the local area and have crazy awesome Ukraine adventures.
3. Volunteer as a Teacher in Nepal with Oyster Worldwide
Treks, rafting trips and yoga retreats, oh my! You’ll get all three experiences abroad when you volunteer as a teacher with this program.
Oyster Worldwide’s gap year teaching program abroad in Nepal will provide support and training for you while you work with kids ages 8-12 in small groups at local schools. This program provides accommodation with homestays, so you’ll get a true taste of local life.
The family you live with will also provide two meals for you each day. You’ll get to try all the yummiest Nepalese dishes. If volunteering with cute kids in Nepal sounds like your cup of tea, then give this awesome program a try.
4. Shark Conservation Volunteering in Fiji with Volunteer Abroad
Volunteer Abroad is one of our top providers and for good reason! They have over one-hundred different gap year travel programs with volunteer opportunities in forty different countries for ages sixteen and up.
With so many options, you’re bound to find one that suits your interests. This program, shark conservation volunteering in Fiji, is especially neat. You’ll train as a dive master while interacting with sharks, feeding, tagging, and caring for them daily.
Overall, the important thing about Volunteer Abroad gap year is that their opportunities are safe and sustainable. You’ll be impacting the community or environment for good in the long term.
5. Gap Year Volunteering in Nepal by Volunteering Solutions
This program in Nepal focuses around teaching children. However, the skills you teach will be beyond English language. You’ll also teach math, computer skills, and general knowledge.
There is even a possible small monthly stipend for this volunteer program. The program itself includes housing and meals and is still only $150 per week.
The low price plus the possible stipend makes this program one of the most affordable on our list! Volunteering Solutions will also help organize weekend trips around Nepal, helping you to see the country and make the most out of your time there.
6. Volunteer Abroad in Ecuador with United Planet
Do you dream of visiting the Galápagos Islands to see giant tortoises or the Amazon forest? United Planet’s volunteer program in Ecuador places opportunities like those at your fingertips!
United Planet is a great volunteer organization, especially because they provide a training weekend to prepare you for your gap year. They’ll help you with the local language and other relevant volunteer skills.
Volunteer with them in Ecuador for a variety of causes, including education, social work, environment, and community development. Plus, they call their gap year programs abroad “quests” and that sounds pretty awesome.
7. Volunteer in Brazil on a Unique Carnaval Project from IVHQ
Spend your gap year volunteering in the land of samba! Teaching and environmental volunteer programs are pretty abundant, making this unique program one of the best gap year volunteer programs.
You’ll be involved with Brazil’s famous annual Carnaval, creating floats, making costumes, and assisting with dances! This program is perfect for travelers with a flair for decoration and crafts, but no experience is necessary.
Preparations for Carnaval are ongoing, year-round projects, so you’ll be sure to have a wonderful time no matter when you go.
8. Dolphin Conservation Assistant in Australia with Volunteer World
If Flipper was your favorite movie growing up, this gap year volunteer program is perfect! You’ll be learning about and caring for bottlenose dolphins in Australia.
Duties include maintaining the aquariums, assisting with research, and acting as a tour guide for visitors. Plus, the beach is minutes away, practically making this volunteer opportunity into a beach getaway.
You’ll have tons of free time to explore Australia, so grab your scuba mask and get going!
9. Construction Volunteer Program in Peru by MAXIMO NIVEL
Got a knack for construction and manual labor? Maximo Nivel’s volunteer program in Peru is all about building and repairing homes, schools, and clinics.
Mixing cement, working with brick, and preparing adobe are just a few of the possible tasks for volunteers. It’s hard work, but you’ll get to see concrete results (pun intended ;) ) that positively affect the community.
Plus, Peru is home to the lush Amazon jungle, the massive Andes mountains, the Atacama Desert, the gorgeous Pacific coastline, and tons of Incan ruins (like Machu Picchu!). You’ll have no shortage of exciting adventures while volunteering during your gap year in Peru.
10. Volunteer at the Lion and Cheetah Sanctuary in South Africa
The Lion and Cheetah Sanctuary in South Africa works with animals that cannot be released back into the wild for a variety of reasons. Volunteer work with them ranges from maintaining enclosures to feeding the animals.
How many other chances will you have to get up close and personal with a lion or cheetah?! The Sanctuary offers cute onsite lodges for accommodation. They’ll also help plan excursions to nearby South African attractions including the Kruger National Park, Pilanesburg (a national wildlife park), the City of Pretoria (South Africa’s Capital City), Gold Reef City, and the Apartheid Museum.
Choose this program and spend your volunteer abroad gap year working with awesome animals!
[Browse ALL Gap Year Volunteer Programs Abroad on GoAbroad.com]
Have an awesome time volunteering abroad during your gap year!
No matter where you go, you’ll have a blast!
Gap year volunteering is a truly excellent way to travel the world. Whether you volunteer for a part of your gap year or fill the entire year with volunteer work, your contributions to the community and/or environment will be appreciated by people everywhere. And whether you go to South Africa or Ecuador, you’re sure to have adventures of a lifetime.
So get applying! Your perfect volunteer program gap year is out there waiting for you. You got this :)
Use MyGoAbroad to Compare Gap Year Volunteers Programs with Confidence
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qLvAm6momZRjsLC5jpqpraGTobK0e8aap2axlZa%2FcMPAsqpmn5GlerqxwKtkr6ecqru1scSroKef