Program Reviews

I spent 6 weeks volunteering in the maternity unit of a public hospital in Togo's capital city Lome in 2018. The overall experience from start to finish was very smooth, with staff communicating with me from pre-departure to after my return. The staff at Projects Abroad Togo are extremely helpful and are always available to answer questions. The success of your work placements is really individual to each volunteer, and its really up to the individual to assert themselves in the workplace or else they may not have lots of work to do. I personally had an excellent placement, although due to the significant culture difference there were tasks I didn't feel comfortable completing as they didn't align with my personal training (this is not at all the fault of Projects Abroad of course). Projects Abroad organized weekly events for the volunteers to participate in- some with an "outreach" purpose and others simply for socializing among the volunteers. The only downfall would be that at times it did feel a bit overbearing as Projects Abroad closely monitors their volunteers (enforcing curfews, chaperoning trips and outings, etc) although of course this may be a very desirable quality for someone who is traveling for the first time. Overall, I would recommend the organization and feel that the price was reasonable and mainly fair for the experience you get (travel insurance, food, accommodations, airport transfers, 24/7 support). It is clear the the experience is very much what you make it, but as far as the staffs' willingness to help and always be available, this they succeeded at 100%!

A few years ago, I did some volunteer work over the course of three weeks in Rabat, Morocco. Having only been there on holiday, I was a little nervous as to what to expect. After attending a volunteer fair in Toronto, I decided to register with Projects Abroad. I have to say, their communication and organization put me at ease immediately. All my questions and concerns were addressed in full detail and I knew exactly what to expect when I arrived.

They placed me with another girl volunteering with the program. We lived with a Moroccan family in the old medina in Rabat. We ate and chatted with the host family every evening. It was also Ramadan so it was interesting to see what traditions the family celebrates during this time. Talk about getting immersed in the culture!

I volunteered at a day care centre just outside the medina with the loveliest women. We would care for children under the age of five. There were different activity centres we had for them, reading of the Quran, snack time and nap time. I work with children for a living so it was a wonderful experience being able to care for children and learn more about the day to day life in Morocco.

Representatives from Projects Abroad were always available for us. They were so helpful when it came to the smallest things (i.e. buying the right kind of "savon noir") to checking in on us when we were ill (and I got REALLY sick!). They also organized get togethers for volunteers in the city so that we were able to share our experiences with other foreigners there as well.

I traveled to Nanyuki, Kenya in June of 2017 and it has been an experience that has changed my life! Just like many first time volunteers abroad my feelings were nervousness, fear of what to expect and home sick, but all those feelings went away within the first week of my placement. I could not have been put at more ease when I walked into the Projects Abroad office the first time and meeting all the wonderful staff. Every staff member was welcoming and wanted to make sure you felt "at home" during your placement. They were there anytime you had a question or a problem. The staff as absolutely remarkable and made my volunteer experience just that much better.
I was placed at a school called Hope & Home where I was teaching Physical Education. This experience was eye opening and I was able to learn a lot about how the schooling works in Kenya and what struggles they face on a daily basis. The staff members at Hope & Home were so welcoming and kind when I first arrived. They all appreciate every little thing you are able to help with and the kids there are so amazing!! On average I would spend about 6 hours a day at my placement and was able to help with not only teaching Physical Education but teaching English as well.
In my free time I was able to explore the town of Nanyuki, go on weekend trips to other parts of Kenya and hang out with the other volunteers. The staff was great in helping you find things to do on the weekends and was able to set you up with someone that could set up safaris and day trips to other locations.
The thing that made this trip wonderful was my host family. My host family was amazing!! They were so welcoming and overjoyed we were staying with them. I loved that they had younger kids and we were able to learn some of the basic cultural traditions during my duration of my stay. Overall, My experience volunteering with Projects Abroad in Kenya was amazing. The staff, my host family and everyone at my placement were amazing. I would recommend this program to anyone that wants to experience something they never have before.

This was my first experience with Projects Abroad, and I decided to go to Fiji for a care and community project for teenagers. I can honestly say this trip was one of the best experiences of my life. There were so many things that made it as enjoyable and memorable as it was. Some of these things include; the amazing support staff during and prior to the trip, the placement and what I did at the placement, the host family and the other wonderful volunteers I was able to share this experience with.

Prior to the trip, you have a correspondence who helps you with all the necessary documents and forms that you need to fill out before you leave. My correspondent for my trip was absolutely so amazing and helpful. She was able to email me everything I needed to know from the technical documents to what my average day to day during my placement would look like. She answered all my questions and queries that I had and we sent regular emails and also phone calls once a week around 2 weeks before I left. She was so kind and willing to help which made things so much easier.

What I did during my placement was so much fun and such a great experience.
A typical day was spent with the children at a local village in Nadi, Fiji, teaching them basic english and numeracy. Bonding with these children was definitely the highlight of the trip. Then we typically spent around 2hrs redecorating the local kindergarten, repainting and drawing murals all throughout the classroom. Finally, we would either go on a fun day trip to one of the activities Projects Abroad had planned or went to our host home to chill out and rest for the rest of the night.
This was the main chunk of your day and was definitely the most fun and rewarding. Although as much fun participating in all the touristy things was, playing and teaching with the kids was 100% the best part. They are so high energy and just love life which is really so inspiring. Not only the kids but their parents and community, in general, were all so welcoming and lovely to us.

My host family made the experience so much better and it was nice as I was able to be placed with my friend. The accommodation was up to a great standard and the food they packed us for lunch and dinner was really tasty. My particular host family had 2 children whom I loved playing and spending time with. As they were on school holiday, they had a lot of energy that they needed to burn off which gave me the opportunity to play with them all afternoon which was definitely so much fun.

Being able to spend the trip with a bunch of other volunteers was really fun. There were girls from all around the world literally, Hong Kong, Australia, Japan, Canda. And interacting with people who were also invested and interested in volunteer work was such an awesome feeling.

Being given the opportunity to travel overseas to give back to a less fortunate community was so incredible and I truly couldn't recommend this trip enough. It is a jam-packed adventure which is really eye opening and gives a greater perspective on life.
Thank you to all the people who made this trip possible and a special thanks to Projects Abroad for having such incredible opportunities available to people.

The marketing for this program is slightly misleading. The descriptions portray an in-depth and first-hand experience working with doctors. Unfortunately this is not the case, most of the work was observational. To be fair, unless you are a trained medical professional, I wouldn't want you making decisions about my health either. The program does put you in the hospital, and for a go-getter personality, you can interact with the doctors; asking questions, learning about the healthcare system, and the public health concerns of the community. I found that aspect incredibly rewarding.

Everything is in Spanish, you don't need to be confident, but it helps if you can put together sentences. After spending two months there my ability to listen to Spanish increased tremendously. The Projects Abroad Staff do speak English, but why deny yourself this great opportunity. The first time I realized I was having a conversation and not 'thinking' about the words was an amazing moment!

As of the time this post is written, the medical program is not a high level of time commitment (only half day). The current coordinator is working to augment the community service component and opportunities to make more busy work. I found the people of Cordoba to be very friendly and easy to make friends. Additionally, if you have the motivation, you can find additional ways to get involved with the community (for example, I was working with AIDS Health Foundation Argentina). There is always something to do, and the night life is insane (starts at 2AM goes till 6AM)!

The program does offer housing, insurance, and guaranteed food from your host family. However, the traditional style foods or Argentina lack variety. After a few weeks, your flavor palate will crave something different, so be prepared because sometimes you may want to treat yourself to ice cream, beer, coffee, or a full-dinner.

Lastly the tourism part, it is very much doable, at your own expense. The country is HUGE and there is a lot to see. The most cost effective means of travel is bus, but expect half-a-day journey just to arrive. If you choose to fly the cost adds up, but it can be very quick. I choose to do a bus overnighter as the seats are semi-cama (half-beds) and lay flatter than an economy airplane seat. This saved on the cost of hotel for a night and mitigated travel times.

I recently just returned from volunteering abroad in Nepal with Projects Abroad. It was one of the most meaningful and amazing experiences in my life. I was able to work with a local school, repainting classrooms and teaching children, all before I was 18. We were able to provide the school with freshly painted walls and provide the children with new toothbrushes during our dental outreach. I had amazing coordinators who were with us the whole time we were in Nepal. They were always by our side and took great care of us if we felt upset. Not to mention how much they made us laugh! Not only did I have great staff present, but I met some of my very best friends on this project; we became our own little family in this short time period. Not only were we given a prime opportunity to give back and help the people of Nepal, we were able to visit cultural UNESCO heritage sights along the way. We took a weekend trip to Pokhara and were greeted with sprawling views of the Annapurna Himalayas. Projects Abroad provided us with clean hotels, delicious food (providing for all dietary preferences) and working Wi-Fi, which was great because I was able to still speak to my family at home. I would completely recommend this trip to anyone wishing to travel to Nepal. Projects Abroad truly helped us immerse in the culture of Nepal and motivated us to do our best work. Nepal is the most amazing country and I already have plans to return! I am so grateful for the opportunity to give back and experience the most beautiful country. I can guarantee that you won't regret this experience!

The two weeks I spent in Chitwan on the high school special medicine project might have been the best 2 weeks of my life. Not only did I help out at hospitals and acquire a passion for a doctors work but I also made friends from around the globe who shared the same aspiration and interests as I did. Each step of the way our coordinators made sure we felt completely safe and addressed any complaint or problem positively and made us feel completely at home. Our placements were interesting as each day we had a different hospital and were able to see surgical procedures and everyday doctor-patient interactions and all the doctors were really friendly and answered all our doubts and sometimes asked us to help out to get a hands on experience. Our project had exact mixture of free time, nepali culture and medicine, We had enough time to ourselves to strengthen friendships, enough time to learn about the country we were in, explore it and go sightseeing, along with enough time to learn about why we were on the trip.
Hands down I would recommend any this trip to anyone who wants an experience abroad.

In December 2017, I travelled to Chitwan, Nepal with Projects Abroad to undertake the High School Medicine's specials project. I first encountered Projects Abroad at a university function and from the get go, my first impression of Projects Abroad was that they were extremely helpful in preparing me for my journey; a thorough explanation was given in regards to the culture, project and Nepal itself.

My trip to Nepal was my first time travelling alone, and initially, I was incredibly nervous to be away from family for 2 weeks. My fears were put to rest in the second day, after I had enough time to settle in and adjust to the time zone changes, meet the other volunteers and staff, as well as explore the beautiful streets in Kathmandu (where we flew in from). I definitely established a family in Nepal, not just with my fellow medical volunteers, but also with some of the volunteers from the care and community project. The other volunteers definitely contributed to my love for Nepal, as they all possessed the same love for helping others and interest in medicine.

In placements, we got to witness various cool procedures in the operation theatres, and we watched procedures that we would never get an opportunity to witness in Australia. I have learnt many invaluable life lessons in the short duration of my stay in Nepal, and I am really thankful to be able to travel to Nepal with my lovely Project Abroad family :)

Projects Abroad was a helpful, informative, useful, inspiring and genuinely kind company to deal with. I was never worried that I was being scammed or taken advantage of at any point during my stay in China or during the application process. From the initial steps of signing up for the program I was well taken care of and maintained close contact to my program supervisor. Projects Abroad had all their bases covered regarding housing, cell phone usage, flat mate meetings, hospital proximity and EVERYTHING else you can think of. This program taught me a lot about, not only medicine, but also strengthened my own personal confidence when placed within a diverse and completely different culture than my own. I would strongly recommend Projects Abroad to anyone looking to expand their comfort zone while learning your desired field of study - it is one of the best decisions I have ever made.

My experience with Projects Abroad in Argentina was absolutely incredible! From my first point of contact with them, I was sure I made the right choice, and felt supported every step of the way. Upon arriving, I quickly felt at home with the Human Rights and Law team and the rest of the members in the office. The field placements were truly unique and meaningful. I wouldn't change anything about my experience, except for maybe the fact that I wish I could have stayed longer. My host family was incredibly welcoming and my coworkers made every day worth it. It isn't easy to work in Human Rights and Law; nevertheless I would recommend this to anyone willing to try. I felt as if though I was able to make a small difference every day, and gained as much back. Since returning home, I constantly refer back to my experience and have taken it forward with me every day since.