EOD Chile

From the people I have spoken to, the program has had mixed reviews and volunteers have had diverse experiences. A friend came up with the "two out of three" rule, that for most of us two out of three of the elements (the homes situation, the school situation and the town or city we lived in) we were enjoying. For me, it was my home (my host mum was amazing) and my school (elementary school kids are hilarious and so fun) but my town is super boring. Which brings my on to my first piece of advice, unless you are really, honestly not bothere about where you end up, choose carefully where you want to go (North/South, rural/urban). Not everyone got what they wanted, but most did, and remember 6 months is a long time to be living somewhere you dont want to be.

Take the program say they offer you with a pinch of salt, I never received a carnet or a visa for a year. It depends on your region. From what I've heard by and large the regional representatives leave a lot to be desired. Ours wasnt great, she rarely responded to our emails and misinformed another volunteer about a visa which lead to some problems.

Remember that this program isnt easy, and the teachers have jumped through a lot of hoops for you to be there and when a volunteer drops out, it does put out the school quite a bit. If you are not serious about it, its better not to do it.

Overall I had a positive experience of the program, it is extremely rewarding and a great opportunity to get hands on experience teaching.