Lattitude Global Volunteering

Straight out of school and out to explore the world! While completing my Year 12 I decided I wanted to ditch the norm and volunteer overseas on a gap year instead of going straight to university. I was matched with a school for Deaf children in England, UK and volunteered here in the capacity of a Care Staff Member for 12 months. I worked in the girls boarding house and everyday saw something new, challenging and exciting! Plenty of activities, trips, camps and special moments with the kids which I will remember forever. The experience of getting to know these kids is incomparable to any other opportunity you may ever have in your young life, and you will come to find that within a short amount of time these kids will steal your heart with their kindness and compassion!

The program allows for plenty of down time in between a busy work schedule, and includes a variety of school holidays which provide the perfect opportunity for adventuring around Europe! The way the program is structured is fantastic and you feel comfortable knowing that food and accommodation is covered with your program costs. Lattitude provided me with endless support pre-departure and whilst overseas, and without this experience, I would not have found my passion in life and the confidence and resilience I have gained from this program is second to none. They help you organise visas, flights, correspondence with your placement hosts and plenty of tips for your year abroad.

Putting yourself outside your comfort zone and doing an experience like this is such an amazing way for young individuals to explore the world and make an impact on young people's lives with whom they have the privilege of working with.

I spent four months in rural Sichuan, in a town called Yibin, teaching at a university. For a 21 year old, this was extremely challenging; which is where its strength lay. I taught conversational English classes and also had a fair amount of free time so was able to learn some Chinese and some martial arts, as well as travel. The accomodation and living allowance provided was highly adequate, and the working environment was friendly and fun. Overall my experience was very unique and since then I have returned to China four times for various reasons, and can recognise that my original experience was one I would be very unable to organise myself yet was absolutely life-enriching and, to be cliched, changed my life and opinion on the world.

Lattitude Global Volunteering, gave me the opportunity to live in Fiji for 7 months, a country rich with beauty and love. I had the honour of living with a Fijian host family, who I still keep in contact with to this very day. I lived on an island, in the first ever capital of Fiji Levuka. My host family absorbed me into their family just like the cultured did. I had the pleasure of eating Fijian food, wearing Fijian clothes and learning parts of the language. I taught at Marist Convent School, where I was given responsibility and had complete strangers instil their trust in me. I taught 37 grade 4's alongside a Fijian teacher who adored and treasured our grade 4's, as if they were her own. Volunteering with Lattitude Global Volunteering allowed me to embark on a journey that has opened my mind and heart up to a completely new way of life. Taking a gap year and choosing to volunteer with Lattitude Global volunteering was the best decision I could have ever made, and to be able to experience what Lattitude has to offer at such a young age has most definitely set my life on a path that I know will bring many more exciting and treasurable moments. Vinaka Vakalevu ( Thank you so much) Lattitude Global Volunteering

This placement changed the way I look at myself and the rest of the world. I worked with kids 7-16 and loved every second of it. The school I was at (STO4) was amazing. Beata will do everything in her power to hel you. The other volunteers became my best friends and family and I honestly couldn't of asked for a better experience.

At the end my host mother asked me if I could do it all again if I would and it took me no time at all to say "Yes".

I spent four months in Phan Thiet, Vietnam as an English teaching assistant. My overall experience was fantastic, and I look back at it with great fondness everyday. The most difficult part was saying goodbye to my friends and students who had now become my family.

I chose Lattitude Global Volunteering as I had found volunteer videos on YouTube talking highly of their experiences, plus I liked the idea of staying overseas for a great deal of time, and having certain things like accommodation and in-country orientation and prep.

I was given a great deal of support before leaving Australia, despite how late I had signed up. Online Webinars and briefing PowerPoint Presentations were sent weekly. The staff at Lattitude also created a Facebook group for volunteers traveling the same dates, and an Alumni group so we could contact past volunteers.

There is also a camp in which Lattitude runs for all volunteers prior to leaving, however I was too late to attend.

Once in Vietnam however, I found the support system to be less than what I expected. This was only personal to me as I fell sick in country and had no support from Lattitude in regards to my hospital visit, and the cost it had on the school I taught at. I also found certain support staff from Lattitude (Back in Australia) to be very blase, as other volunteers would agree.

This aside however, it was quite satisfactory in country, and my link teachers and in country coordinators were absolutely fantastic. My Hung was extremely helpful in helping me with the medics, and organizing pay, and later visa extensions.

If you're interested in volunteering overseas and it's your first time, rest assured Lattitude will be your best option, and value for money. However, I personally don't think I will volunteer with them again, simply because I am interested in other volunteer options.