Description

What is a volunteer?

Volunteering in Africa, Latin America and Asia is a fantastic opportunity to see foreign countries and their people by engaging in a non for profit project. Doing this, you are neither a development worker nor a tourist. You are a volunteer!

What is the difference?

As a development worker you are a specialist. You are a medical doctor, an engineer or a missionary. You will be sent to crisis regions around the globe, to refugee camps in Sudan or hospitals in the Hindukush. You rebuild cities and battle epidemics. You treat trauma patients in war-torn countries. In addition to your academic and professional education you have received special training to cope with the demands, stresses and strains of your assignment.

As a tourist, you are a consumer. In the worst case, you let yourself "being travelled" by your travel agent. They ship you from one tourist attraction to the next or from beach to beach. You have invested your money, sometimes a lot of money, depending on your demands and the star-categories. In the countries you visit you remain a passive onlooker.

As a volunteer you are en route to get to know a country and its people. You are not an onlooker, but you are actively involved and engaged in a social project. You meet people with different faces and biographies, from all social classes and age groups: young, old, poor, rich - and not only the head waiter in your hotel or the folklore dance group.

When you engage in a social project in a foreign country, you gain experiences which go far beyond a tourist's photo album. You get an inside view into your host country. You get to know the culture and the social structure of a country. You see all facets of life there, the good sides and also the sad sides. Prerequisites for this experience are: You must show tolerance, openness, flexibiliy, initiative and a serious interest in your host country.

Volunteering is sharing. Volunteering is learning. Volunteering is growing. Volunteering is beautiful, because you can give back some of your good luck in life to others. Volunteering means that you give your time and your enthusiasm and receive experience, language training, knowledge of human nature, and knowledge of this world.

Highlights

Ein Home away from Home für unsere Gastschüler

weltweitblick Experiment Switzerland bietet Schülern und Schülerinnen ab 14 bis 18 Jahren die Möglichkeit, für einen Zeitraum von drei Monaten bis zu einem Schuljahr in einer Gastfamilie im Ausland zu leben und dort die Schule zu besuchen. Wir bieten den interessierten Schülern und Schülerinnenund ihren Eltern momentan ein Angebot aus zehn verschiedenen Ländern an, aus der sie auswählen können.

Schüleraustauschprogramme mit der Federation EIL haben eine lange Tradition. Seit fast 80 Jahren werden junge Menschen in Gastfamilien willkommen geheissen.

Ein Schulbesuch im Ausland und damit verbunden ein Aufenthalt in einer Gastfamilie ist ein Meilenstein in der Entwicklung junger Menschen. Die Austauschschüler stehen von Anfang an mitten im Leben in ihrem Gastland und lernen eine neue Kultur (auch eine neue Schulkultur) hautnah kennen. Mitten im Leben im Gastland, konfrontiert mit neuen Sitten und Gebräuchen, die ganz anders sind als in der Schweiz.

Im Gastland mit der Gastfamilie und in der Gastschule mit den Kollegen den Alltag teilen, zusammen leben, lernen, diskutieren und lachen: das bedeutet, die Welt aus einer neuen Perspektive zu sehen. Die persönliche Atmosphäre erleichtert den Einstieg ins Gastland.

Intern Types

Type of Programs

• Community Service / Volunteerism
• Cultural Exploration
• High School Study Abroad
• Language Immersion
• Student Tours

Languages

• Afrikaans
• Albanian
• Arabic
• Bengali
• Cantonese
• Catalan
• Chinese
• English
• French
• German
• Hebrew
• Hindi
• Irish
• Italian
• Korean
• Spanish
• Turkish
• Xhosa
• Yiddish

Languages Used as a Medium of Teaching

• Arabic
• Cantonese
• Catalan
• English
• French
• German
• Irish
• Italian

Cost in US$:

Cost Includes:

• Housing
• In-country orientation/Training
• In-country staff support
• Language instruction
• Pre-departure orientation/Training
• Registration fees

Program Fees Include:

Cost varies in different programs!check website to find out.

Experience Required

no

Volunteer Types

Typical Volunteer

Curious, interested in the world, young at heart in all age groups (but off age).

Age Range

18 - 80

This Program is open to

European and Worldwide Participants. This Program is also open to Families, Couples and Individuals.

Typical Living Arrangements

• Apartment/Flat
• Dormitory
• Group living
• Guest House
• Home-stays
• Independent living

Participants Travel

Independently or in Groups

Typically Participants Work

Independently or in Groups

Application Process Involves

• Disciplinary Clearance Form
• Essay
• In-Person Interview Required
• In-Person Interview when Feasible
• Letters of Reference
• Other
• Phone/Video Interview
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Resume
• Transcript
• Written Application

Typically The Application Process Time is

1 to 4 weeks

Post Services Include

• Alumni Network
• Exit Debriefing Abroad
• Job and Internship Network
• Re-Entry Debriefing at Home

weltweitblick Experiment Switzerland's Mission Statement

Weltweitblick Experiment Switzerland presents volunteering projects in over 15 countries on four continents. We will help you to find the perfect project for you. We will take your personal and language skills, your professional background and your travel experiences into consideration. Longstanding contacts with our partners abroad help us to counsel you individually and find just the right project for you. Switzerland is a multicultural and multilingual country in the heart of Europe. Sometimes, though, we feel like on an island. We consider this a chance and challenge: we want to give students, professionals, young people and grown ups alike the chance to leave this island temporarily and to meet the world and its people. Not as a tourist, but as a volunteer, in an active exchange with other nations, cultures and ways of life.

Year Founded

2009