To NOT pay for adult DD to go abroad?

[OllieRhys]

She's 22 and wants to do a volunteering program abroad (she's an unemployed graduate).

We can afford it (my husband and I) - it's £6,000 for 6 months.

She hasn't asked us, just expressed a huge interest. DH thinks we absolutely should pay for it. I personally think at 22 she should get a job and save.

Thanks.

If this involves a developing nation, £6000 would also buy a heck of a lot of work hours if spent locally - skilled work hours which would provide employment and be properly targeted to what's really needed

If DD truly wants to help, why not suggest she raises funds to donate to the project? She really could impress employers with that, especially if she showed understanding of the points above

If you're paying £1,000 a month to volunteer your time that means it's a dodgy organisation which is taking all the money for itself and giving fuck all to the people they're supposed to be helping.

Your daughter would be better off getting a job.

£6k is an obscene amount. Are you sure it’s not just a poverty tourism trip for rich kids? Get her to have a look at the workaway website, where you get food and board for volunteering. Even with paid for opportunities there are definitely cheaper ones which are less of a blatant scam.

Wouldn’t you rather have that £6k to put towards her wedding, first house deposit, a baby..?

If you’re totally loaded then what about giving it to her after she completes 6 months of an actually useful internship if she can’t find paid relevant jobs

Can you post a link to the scheme?

If this involves a developing nation, £6000 would also buy a heck of a lot of work hours if spent locally - skilled work hours which would provide employment and be properly targeted to what's really needed

Good point.

Scenario 1:

Your DD pays £6,000 to a "volunteering" organisation for the experience of helping to build a school.

Scenario 2:

Local builder with actual building skills gets paid a local wage to help build a school.

Which out of Scenario 1 or Scenario 2 is actually better for the local people and the school?

You can afford it just pay it.
Your daughter is lucky

I agree with you, she should get a job. Christmas (sorry) is coming up and lots of shops are looking for extra retail staff. Between now and Christmas she could easily save £3000.

Even if you can pay it you shouldn't. There are much better ways to spend 6 grand on charitable causes than sending even more flicky haired Ugg wearers to do incompetently what local people can do competently.

I'm recruiting at the moment and this stuff really doesn't look good on a CV. Give me two CVs where one candidate has got a graduate or entry-level job and worked their way up vs one where a candidate's parents have bankrolled them to go and on a voluntourism jolly, and I know which one I'm going to want to interview.

I'm recruiting at the moment and this stuff really doesn't look good on a CV. Give me two CVs where one candidate has got a graduate or entry-level job and worked their way up vs one where a candidate's parents have bankrolled them to go and on a voluntourism jolly, and I know which one I'm going to want to interview

What’s your thoughts on the view of an employer, OP?

If you can afford it, and it's relevant to future career, how about matching £ for £ what she saves via a job?

I can't believe it costs £6000 to 'volunteer'. There are lots of voluteering opportunities she can do in this country for nothing, whilst applying for jobs at the same time - and also working part time to earn some money.

There are lots of voluteering opportunities she can do in this country for nothing, whilst applying for jobs at the same time

Yes, but picking up litter or working in a charity shop in Hemel Hempstead isn't quite as glamorous as looking after orphans and getting a really great tan somewhere hot and sunny.

Your daughter needs to join the real world and get a job. I wonder if this "volunteering" thing isn't just an easy way for her to avoid reality and growing up. Not to mention this will not look good to many employers.

“Volunteering” holidays are rarely about people with actual skills teaching them to local people, who can then teach others

It's actually even worse than that, since staff in the destination will almost certainly have to spend time training the "volunteers"

Time which might be better spent on the project itself, especially when the visitors will only be there for a limited time ... and that's without allowing for time spent on phone, moaning about how different it all is and the rest

Go halves

She finds 50% and you match it?

I’m absolutely against this type of volunteer programme for privileged kids, it does the opposite of help the community in actual need. Why pay someone locally when a rich kid from overseas can get their parents to pay for it.

This smells of one of those volunteering hols where the vast majority of the benefit is felt by the volunteer and the company that hosts them.

If she’s living at home she should be able to save half the money at least in six months. I’d consider the other half if it’s a legitimate non-holiday type opportunity.

I used to work in the sector and can’t think of a single genuine volunteering scheme that would charge anything like that. I suggest you do some research into proper organisations on the ground she could volunteer for, which actually work with communities, rather than imposing rich voluntourists who do nothing but make the organisers money.

Also, £6k would go a long way to funding tuition for a masters. Or could be held over for a rental deposit and help with rent when she does secure a job.

If she got a half decent graduate job, had to pay rent on a shared house, food and bills, it’d probably take her a year of saving to get £6k. You really aren’t teaching her anything about the value of money by handing it over for what is effectively a package tour.

Fuck me, some people are really being screwed over by this volunteer crap.
Dd is desperate to volunteer here, with animals and is happy to pick up poo, and all the rubbish jobs, they won't take her as she's under 18.
The thought of her paying anything to do it is ridiculous.

If dd had exciting one off opportunity to go somewhere exciting I'd try and pay.

It's once in life time thing usually before boy friends, jibs kids mortgage takes precedent.
Being educated, travelling are all personal riches that will always be passed down to dc...

But 6 grand is a hell of a lot for it. I would look around. Look at other options. See what else she could do. It also seems strange to spend that much money sending someone with no real value when that 6 grand could go so far in poor community.

It sounds ridiculous - parents paying £6000 out for an adult child to have an overseas experience, albeit volunteering? Just so expensive. Despite it involving volunteer work, it does seem only for the very privileged. Does she know what she wants to do for a career? How about getting a job?!