Skip to content
When you make the decision to volunteer abroad – choosing the right organisation and projects can be difficult. Some organisations are charities, some are for-profits…but what is the difference between all of the providers out there? And how do you choose the right organisation to achieve your goals?
The most common reason for volunteering abroad is to make a difference and have a positive impact, with the added bonus of travel opportunities – but it can be so daunting and repetitive reading ‘About Us’ pages over and over, trying your best to do right by yourself and the people you are working with.
We’re here to help to make it simpler – volunteering abroad with a charity is most likely to have the positive impact you are striving for. Read on to learn the difference and what to look out for.
The Challenge At Hand
Volunteering abroad is an amazing opportunity that we truly believe everyone should try. You get to learn new skills, develop your global perspective, experience new cultures, see new places and have a positive impact. However, some providers of these experiences do so for profit.
This could mean many things. Money and resources may be spent on volunteers rather than locals (not that you aren’t worth it!), prioritising their experience rather than the development and sustainability of the community in which they are operating. In some cases, volunteers visit projects where they carry out work that does not align with their skills – thus taking jobs of local people. Sometimes, large groups of volunteers are sent to projects – which increases profits for the organisation, but minimises hands-on experiences for volunteers and overwhelms communities.
And when work is done for-profit, the biggest concern is of course – where is the money actually going?
The difference between charities and for-profit organisations
Now this is, of course, not to say that all for-profit organisations are money gobbling monstrosities! So many of them really do want to make a difference and do invest back into local communities – putting a portion of their money towards development and support in the communities in which they work. However, there are still many differences between for-profit and charity organisations.
Charities and for-profits principally differ in their goals. Charities focus on a benefit or social cause, while for-profits ultimately aim to generate profits for owners or shareholders. They may have a mission statement, but it is often secondary to their primary goal of profit.
Charities and for-profit organisations are also governed differently. Charities must meet specific legal requirements. Largely, they must be registered with a government department responsible for regulating charities. In the UK, we have the Charity Commission. It ensures charities are run properly and held accountable. These bodies also break down and publish how a charity is spending its money, so you can be sure that the funds go where the charity says they do.
In addition, this helps with the transparency of the charity. Charities tend to be subject to more scrutiny in this way – due to the public nature of their funding and operations. For-profits generally have fewer disclosure requirements to the public.
What about Vocational Impact?
At Vocational Impact, we are proud to be the volunteering branch of UK Registered Charity, Arms Around The Child. Arms Around The Child’s mission is to help children living through adversity, helping to fund various projects in Ghana, India and South Africa.
At Vocational Impact, we combine skills-based volunteering with our charitable goals – to create amazing opportunities to make a genuine difference. As we are governed by the Charity Commission, we have to follow certain guidelines on spending and charitable activities – ensuring our funds and work really is having the positive impact we claim it does.
We ensure that our programmes contribute to the sustainable development of the communities in which we work – through hiring locals over expats and working with existing NGOs (also run by locals!). These folks know their communities and challenges better than anyone, so who better to team up with?! By working with local people we ensure we empower them, create sustainable resolutions, and ensure cultural immersion for our volunteers!
We also take on small groups of volunteers at a time, who are studying or have studied relevant subjects. This ensures that volunteers are versed in the field in which they are volunteering – for the maximum benefit to both the volunteer and the community they wish to help. For example, our criminology programmes are more beneficial to everyone involved if the volunteer has background knowledge of criminology! In addition, volunteers are always accompanied by local professionals – so the work as well as the training is always up to standard. By sending small groups, we ensure a better experience for the volunteers, as well as being sure not to overwhelm the communities and organisations we send them to.
Volunteer fees go towards providing a safe, secure placement – covering your accommodation, food, and in-country transport – as well as the training, placement and coordinator team itself. These are all, again, run by local people – investing directly into the communities in which we work.
Also included in your fee is a donation fee – which goes directly to the projects with which you are working, in order to ensure they can carry out their vital work. For example in Ghana – working on a psychology and mental health placement means you are directly donating to the mental health wards in local hospitals, as well as a local organisation providing holistic care and education to children. In South Africa – working on a law and human rights programme creates funds for a law clinic providing vital legal assistance to marginalised groups!
Ready To Choose Your Volunteering Placement?
While all of this feels a lot to bear in mind – it can be really helpful to be aware of whilst planning your experience. If you’re looking to volunteer abroad, it is already pretty clear that you’re the type who wants to do something good. And so by choosing a charity like Vocational Impact, you can be sure that that is exactly what you are going to do.
