Program Reviews

Having stayed in the VCV house for 3 months, I had a great time and so did all the people I have met here. Mrs. Hay really goes above and beyond to help you feel at home and with your first steps as an English teacher (if needed). Next to that we get delicious meals every day and are helped with everything else we might need during our stay. Thanks to this, my first real experience as an English teacher and my longest stay away from home has been a breeze and I made friends for life while doing it. I would totally recommend this to everyone!

I have spent 7 weeks here at Vcv and loved it so much!! At first I was nervous as I have never taught English or taught at all before and was worried if I would be able to, however all the staff and other volunteers are so friendly and helpful! Everyone helps with lesson planning and classroom management techniques and there is always a friendly Vietnamese teaching assistant to help throughout the class!

Vcv offers many opportunities to explore Hanoi and immerse yourself within the local culture, and Hanoi has been such a great place to be based with so many sights within the city as well as many close trips to do on days off!!

Ms Hay is so kind and helpful and will do anything to make your experience great! I have been staying with about 12 volunteers since being here and are all such great fun people and I will very much miss the bia hoi trips! I would recommend Vcv to anyone travelling to Vietnam! Have enjoyed it so much and will truly miss being here! Will definitely be back again!!

After travelling for a while, I decided it was time for me to be in one place for a bit and give back. I had volunteered in other countries before, love children and teaching. So I taught VCV might be fun for a few weeks.
I signed up to join them for a month, extended my stay to three months and ended up staying for 5!
I had the best time ever ! Not only are the children so cute and the students motivated to learn, VCV is a place where you feel home.
After only two days, I felt like I was part of the family. We all organized trips together, had fun evenings and made memories for life.
"Lion" cooks the best Vietnamese food I have ever had and he brings so much joy to everyone around him. Ms Hay and the rest of the volunteers have built a community where cultural exchange and helping others are central.
I would recommend anyone who wants to have a unique experience abroad to come here!
I have nothing but love for VCV

VCV has been more than an organization to me, it's been like a family. I had a fantastic experience during my 3-month stay, and would highly recommend VCV to anyone looking to volunteer teaching english in Ha Noi. In fact, I had such a great time that I decided to return for 2 weeks the next year to see everyone there again!
During my stay, I had the opportunity to teach a real mix of people, from young children to university students, and from disadvantaged people to businessmen and -women. But what really allows VCV to stand out from the crowd is the friendships that you make. The same students who you are teaching will take you out on day-trips, invite you for coffee or to watch football, and eat dinner with you. It is this degree of two-way cultural immersion which both allows friendships to form and increases the English proficiency of the students.
You are also given plenty of time off, which can be used to explore Northern Viet Nam. While I was there, the places I went to with students and other volunteers included Sam Son beach, Halong Bay, and the rice terraces of Mu Cang Chai.
Another selling point is that there are no hidden costs - accommodation and all your food are provided, and Ms Hay is a fantastic cook! The staff at VCV are absolutely fantastic and helped make my trip so memorable, so a massive thanks to Ms Hay, Linh, Toan, Doan, Mai Anh, and Quang.

I voluntered with VCV in Hanoi for a couple of months and thoroughly enjoyed my time and experience with Ms Hay , the rest of the staff and fellow volunteers. It was my very first time teaching English, well, teaching at all. I was very nervous when I first started, but Ms Hay was alwasy around to help and support you, along with the other experienced teaching volunteers. I feel like I gained some valuable experience in teaching children and adults English and had a wonderful time doing so. I miss everyone that I met during my experience very much, and hope to one day visit again. I thoroughly recommend teaching with VCV to anyone. 😀

I voluntered with VCV in Hanoi for a couple of months and thoroughly enjoyed my time and experience with Ms Hay , the rest of the staff and fellow volunteers. It was my very first time teaching English, well, teaching at all. I was very nervous when I first started, but Ms Hay was alwasy around to help and support you, along with the other experienced teaching volunteers. I feel like I gained some valuable experience in teaching children and adults English and had a wonderful time doing so. I miss everyone that I met during my experience very much, and hope to one day visit again. I thoroughly recommend teaching with VCV to anyone. 😀

Volunteering at VCV is highly recommended to new teachers looking to gain some experience or even existing teachers looking for a unique experience in Vietnam. I spent a total of about 5 months at VCV over two seperate stints. Ms. Hay is lovely and provides volunteers with delicious meals and accommodation. I met some great people while volunteering there, it is a highly social place with volunteers often going out together for coffee, food or drinks. The students are also friendly and there is a good level of banter. The teaching materials are provided and new teachers can feel at ease by asking fellow volunteers for teaching advice, as well as Ms. Hay. It was my first experience teaching and it helped so much, leading me to find paid teaching work in Hanoi straight after volunteering.

Mrs Hay and the crew at VCV really know how to run a great volunteer organization! I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to teach and learn in such a welcoming and relaxed setting. The accommodation provided was great and food was delicious. VCV offers a space where you can teach and connect with students of all ages and other volunteers from across the globe. The workload is relatively small which gives plenty of time to volunteers to explore the city and surrounding areas. If you want to travel with a purpose and give something back to the communities you are visiting, don't hesitate to join the VCV family.

I volunteered with vcv for a few weeks whilst i was travelling around south east asia.it was a wonderful experience and i regret that i did not get to stay longer. the team at vcv are so supportive and kind and helpful, nothing is a problem. The team are so kind george, lam and houng are there if you need any questions regarding the program or life in hanoi. every week we had four to five classes which is not a lot and with everyclass, either george or houng join in the classes and help with any translation problems as they are locals who live nearby.
miss hayley is very kind and respectful and very willing to help. I would highly recommend vcv to anyone interested in teaching english and learning about vietnamese culture as quite often we have weekends free and its a great way to visit the surrounding cultural hotspots like sappa and the island of catba.

From the minute I arrived at VCV I felt welcomed and like part of the family. Everyone at VCV is so kind and caring. The apartment we stay in is very homey, clean and spacious so you feel like you have your own space. I loved all of the classes I taught, my students were so enthusiastic about learning English which made teaching them amazing. I was lucky enough to build a good relationship with my adult class so we would often go out for dinner and drinks after class. The food provided at VCV is incredible, I would say some healthiest and delicious food I’ve ever eaten. At the weekends lots of us tended to go on little trips, I visited Sapa, Cat Ba, Ninh Binh and some of the Vietnamese helpers home towns. All in all my experience at VCV was incredible and out of my 7 months traveling teaching english in Hanoi with this amazing organisation was a huge highlight of my entire trip. I would highly recommend VCV to everyone!