Program Reviews

My experience with Projects Abroad was really incredible. I would highly recommend this program to anyone who is considering a career in medicine because it allowed me to figure out if I can handle it before I spent the thousands of dollars to attend a nursing program. It also gave me a taste of what I may want to specialize in because I experienced a variety of different environments inside the hospital. It is a very difficult process to view a surgery in the United States, so if you're interested in doing so, consider this alternative.

Essentially, each weekday morning, my roommate and I woke up, had breakfast, packed our lunches and supplies for the day, and waited to be picked up by one of the coordinators to be brought to one of the local hospitals. We would arrive, talk to the doctor who agreed to accept us for the day, and tell him or her where we wanted to go from the options given to us. In the two weeks I spent there, I was sent to pediatrics, nursing, the emergency room, and best of all, the operating room. I was able to watch three surgeries (as in, standing next to the patient, asking questions to the doctors), and it confirmed nursing as a career path for me.

If you're choosing between a medical camp at an American college or an opportunity abroad as I was, hands down choose the latter. It is not only a better experience since you are traveling the world, but it is unique and makes you stand out from the rest of the future med school applicants. This program in particular allows you to experience living with a host family, learning and practicing Spanish, traveling Argentina, and working in real hospitals with real patients. Everything that I was hoping to experience was checked off of my list before I left. I would highly recommend this program.

I went hoping for simply something to set me apart for my pre-med application and resume, but was not prepared for the amount of learning I experienced and the drastic personal change that occurred.
The raw experience was something to behold. As a first time traveller going through Projects Abroad was comforting. I was able to gain confidence to go on weekend excursions and experience enough to definitely set me apart from other graduates.
I wish I had had enough time to stay for an extra week and also travel independently after my project as by that time I felt I had enough knowledge to stay safe, have knowledge about the local culture, and have a good time.
Would 10/10 recommend to any pre-med student or a newbie traveller!

I did the High School Special Care and Community project in Cusco, Peru, with a good friend from home for four weeks this past summer, and I loved every minute of it! Prior to our departure, our parents were a little weary of allowing two teenage girls to travel to a different continent alone, but the Projects Abroad staff were extremely reassuring and provided a ton of information about not only what we were to expect in the country, but how to effectively prepare before and afterwards. Communication with the program was always timely and informative. When we landed in Cusco after a full 24 hours of traveling, we were met exactly in the way that had been described to us previously: with a Projects Abroad sign, by our first and last names, and with a friendly smile. In Cusco we always felt safe, and although the program was structured with activities like building furniture and painting games for schools in the area, we had plenty free time in the afternoons to explore various markets around the city and go to the mall.

The "care" aspect of our project was time we spent in a daycare. We were placed in a local, government-run program for anemic children. There, they were provided with two meals (breakfast and lunch) and a lot of fun toys to play with. Most of the teachers were also parents of a child in the center, so I think our help was very appreciated as they had their hands pretty full. We assisted mostly with feeding the kids and keeping them entertained during the day so their mothers and fathers could go to work nearby. They were all so cute! Around halfway through our time at the placement, my friend and I wanted to switch to helping the older children at the placement. Projects Abroad accommodated this change without hesitation. These kids were around four and five years old, and so we were able to actually help teach them in addition to playing. Their teacher had us make a lot of posters to hang up around their classroom as well as teach them the colors of the rainbow in English. We did lots of chalk drawings outside on the pavement too.

Our host family was amazing as well. We stayed in a house composed of five or so floors, each described as its own “apartment”, which ended up being pretty accurate. Each floor had around three bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen, and living space. Our bedroom even had an ensuite bathroom, which was very nice. Even though we were prepared to sacrifice the showers we usually took at home, we were pleasantly surprised by the pressure quality and the hot water available to us always. Everything in the house was also very clean and organized. Because it was winter when we arrived, it was fairly cold in the house, as none of the buildings in Peru really have indoor heating; however, with a warm blanket, socks, and a jacket, we were fine. They provided us with three meals a day, which typically consisted of pan (a sweet bread) with butter and jam for breakfast, and rice with a meat (chicken, beef, etc.) for lunch and dinner. Overall, I had an amazing experience in Peru, and I recommend the High School Care and Community special to anyone looking to make a positive difference and get a taste for a new culture/country!

This July I joined many other volunteers from around the world on a Care and Community High School Specials Project with Projects Abroad in Cambodia. During my time on this project, I got to experience many different aspects of the country including their culture and their way of life. I got to spend several days in two remote schools on Silk Island, this was truly a big eyeopener. In these schools I got to teach the kids basic English and create friendships during different activities, such as games, singing and dancing. I also got to leave my mark on the school by doing some renovation work, such as painting and plastering walls and concreting paths just outside of the schools. While working with the kids was our main priority, we also went on many cultural and historical trips to give us a better insight on the country we were working in. We visited land marks such as the Killing Fields and the S-21 Genocide Museum, Angkor Wat and its surrounding temples, The Silk Factory on Silk Island and many more. The staff had us busy every evening, be it taking us out for dinner, planning sessions at the hotel, or showing us around the beautiful city of Phnom Penh. The accommodation was very satisfactory and I experienced no issues. I have made some lifelong friends on this trip and will never forget it. There were a mix of staff from all different countries and every one of them were so friendly and helpful. They made sure we got to experience Cambodia as best we could and really made this the trip of an lifetime.

During the summer of 2018, I spent 3 weeks in Cambodia with Projects Abroad. Including weekend trips to Kampot and Siem Reap, I spent most of my time in Phnom Penh working in a school. Overall I found the trip amazing. The weekends and dinners during the week allowed me to relax and enjoy time with the other people on my trip, while the work during the day helped me to feel like I was making a difference. The hotel I stayed with was overall good but the food wasn’t amazing so our project supervisors took us out for dinner nightly. All our problems were dealt with quickly and professionally. Definetly would recommend to others ! Support was also provided afterwards as projects aboard stayed in touch.

TRANSLATION:
This summer I had the opportunity to spend 2 weeks in Rabat, the capital of Morocco and it has probably been the best experience of my life, thanks to Proyects Abroad. Before my trip you can talk to the Projecta Abroad staff from both my country, Spain both from there. Both helped me in my preparation of the trip and in everything I needed. Once there, I stayed in a Moroccan family with 2 other volunteers, the family was lovely! We live in the Medina, the oldest part, it was crazy people, smells and streets. They treated us great and we did not miss anything, they even took us to visit some places with them. During the day, we went to an association of children from broken families and at risk of social exclusion. There, we played with the children and did work like painting or hygiene workshops. The children received us from the first moment with a smile on their face and made us feel welcome and loved. They were children who had so much love to give and receive ... they did not stop giving hugs and kisses! We taught them things of our culture and they taught us things of theirs, but above all they taught us to appreciate what we have and what a simple hug can make a difference in someone's life, I, especially connected with the smallest I was 3 years old and we were inseparable those 2 weeks, I will never forget her !! The staff of Projects Abroad could not be better the truth ... they treated us great, they taught us many things about Morocco ... They were one of the group! And about the other volunteers ... they were the best. There were Americans, Italians, from India, Pakistan, Egypt, Kenya, England, Switzerland ... And we all connected from the beginning and we became very good friends, we laughed a lot together and they made the experience much better. In short, those 2 weeks I learned many things about different cultures, about life and about myself: what I really would like to do when I grow up. All this was possible thanks to Projects Abroad and its excellent organization Thank you!

My time in Thailand as a part of the Projects Abroad Diving and Marine Conservation program was amazing and I know that I will remember my first dive for the rest of my life. Knowing that I got to learn a new skill, do something I love and help the environment at the same time drew me to the program and it was everything I had imagined and more. Our trips to the dive sites were the best part; the crew was very friendly, and we got to exchange a lot of life experiences and jokes. The food at the accommodation was some of the best I'd ever had, and the program coordinators were friendly and always around planning group activities.

My month in Ghana with Projects Abroad was anything but ordinary; it was, in simplest terms, a fantastic month which changed my life. But of course, as I left my home in New York and headed to JFK airport, I was more nervous than ever before. The butterflies in my stomach disappeared, however, when I met the Projects Abroad staff member, surrounded by 7 other high school volunteers, who was waiting for me at the gate. After quite a long flight, we emerged from the Ghanaian airport to find two more smiling staff members waiting for us. They helped us load the car, and then drove us to our final destination: Cape Coast. Upon arriving at our home stay, they dropped us off, to unpack for the month ahead. After about an hour, another staff member came and gave us a quick orientation. Over the course of the weekend, we met many more staff members and the volunteers who would be staying with us for the amazing upcoming four weeks.

Throughout our time in Ghana, the Projects Abroad staff was always attentive and caring. Our group supervisor, Saeed, quickly became a friend, and we are all still in touch with him. He always helped if we had any questions or concerns, and he is the reason that we all felt so confident in our medical work. Two other staff members, Grant and Enoch, helped teach us how to take blood and blood pressure, and taught us a lot about malaria and cholera, information we later related to students in schools across the city. In our workshop sessions when we would study health issues in Ghana, they answered every question and made sure even I, who has never so much as taken a biology class, could follow along. On the weekends the staff made sure we had plenty to do, taking us to the beach and even the rain forest! We also had cultural events like bead making and drumming and dancing, which we thoroughly enjoyed.

At home, we were immediately welcomed in by our host family, and though we did not often speak with our host mother, two of our host brothers quickly befriended us. They watched TV and played video games with us, and they helped us do our laundry by hand, an endeavor which all of us were wary to complete on our own. We also went out to restaurants with our host brother, and he truly felt like part of the group.

Overall, there’s no other way to describe my time in Ghana except with a radiating smile and the simple fact that it truly was the best month of my life, and I encourage anyone and everyone to experience it for themselves.

This trip was a lot of firsts for me. I volunteered through projects abroad on a high school special for medicine. It was my first time travelling alone, it was my first time staying away from my parents and it was my first time doing any sort of program like this. The process of signing up and convincing my parents to let me go, was one of the most difficult parts. But, projects abroad made it easier by allowing me to talk and meet with people in Projects Abroad headquarters in my home country. They gave me reviews to read, and even got me in contact with other people who had signed up. The project itself was one of the most different and exciting experiences I've ever had. At the beginning, it was a total change in lifestyle, and routine, but sometimes, that sort of thing is completely necessary for self growth and to better understand the world around you. The trip was a great balance of being immersed into the culture, gaining experience in the medicine field, as well as being a tourist and seeing all of the tourist attractions. My host family was amazing, as well as the other students on the trip, and I hope I keep in touch with all of them.

Hi! I am Isabella, a 16-year-old girl from a small town in Connecticut. About three months ago I began to search for something to do over the summer. In July of 2018, I flew out of the country to Bolivia, traveling for over 24 hours, and commencing by far the greatest and most humbling experience of my short life. After traveling for a mere 24 hours, by myself, and for the first time out of the country, I anxiously awaited meeting my host family for the first time. They were some of the kindest and most genuine people I met in Bolivia, next to the Projects Abroad staff. This is a service that knows exactly how to plan and execute a trip for high schoolers from anywhere.
On my trip, though many days consisted of shadowing medical professionals, my favorite work was the hands-on volunteer work that reflected new things we learned. For example, we learned how to take the vitals in the classroom on a Wednesday and the very next day we traveled to a nursing home and took the vitals of over 30 elderly patients. In another instance, and perhaps my favorite activity of the trip, we worked alongside two vaccination nurses who helped us vaccinate dogs for free in impoverished homes where the owners would normally refuse medical care. We ended up having to hike up rocky roads where cars wouldn't normally travel to reach the residences. In doing this I witnessed the most extreme cases of poverty I would encounter in Bolivia. I left that day feeling humbled and blessed-as cheesy as that may sound. However, my emotions were most harshly tested at an orphanage that services children and adults with disabilities, all of which are given extensive physical therapy through their primary physical therapist and volunteers. My partner for the day was a 27-year-old man who had weakened muscles from the waist down. Regardless of his immobility, we were talkative and friendly and a please to have worked with. I ended up donating the majority of the trip money I had to the orphanage is that the patients were low on diapers and wipes. It was the smallest gesture but a rewarding one nonetheless.
On my final day as I loaded my luggage into the car, my host sister gave me a little angel that says “renewal” that is sitting on my bedside table as I write this. I owe all the gratitude in the world to Projects Abroad for keeping me and my roommates who I am still in constant contact with safe and happy for two weeks that were the greatest of my summer. They are an organized, safe, and knowledgeable service that truly wants to better communities worldwide. I would recommend them to anyone and everyone and have been ever since.