Are volunteering abroad experiences ever worth it? What to do?

[yoursweetpotatoesarebland]

Dd is 16 and doing maths biology and physics a levels. She’d like to apply to Cambridge, St Andrews and possibly Warwick for natural sciences.

she’s been saving up and has about £850 and would like to do one of those travel abroad internships in marine conservation this summer when she will be (just!) 17. She thinks it will add to her ucas statement and be good experience. I’m a bit unsure - I’d need to top it up and her dad would likely contribute too as it seems you need to pay to go and cover the cost of the flight etc too.

Is it worth it? I think it would be a nice trip for her too and would help her to develop her independence so I can definitely see the value in that but I’m not sure whether it’s really just “volun-tourism”.. are there any companies that are better than others or give more valuable experiences? Any guidance or info at all would be so appreciated!

They’re usually a bit of a scam. What can a teenager offer over and above trained professionals, other than the money they pay to go?

They won’t care.

most are voluntourism but the marine bio ones are usually at least not harmful to local communities.

the unis will completely discount it.

Yes I think there has been a move away from putting too much value from anything that is unaffordable for most students

My daughter has signed up with Oyster. She is doing hers as part of Duke of Edinburgh Gold.

DCs did several of these. Mainly because they were nightmare teenagers very outgoing, couldn’t sit still and the summer holidays are long! 😳
It stood them in good stead for getting into University (being carefully non specific) and then incredibly competitive grad schemes. They were very very well advised though.
Off the top of my head I’d strongly recommend Projects Abroad, VSO, Operation Raleigh, project play (working with refugee children in Calais) Sciences Po (not volunteering but summer school, great experience living in Paris for a month, great international cohort) and BSES.
Restless Development might have improved but were not impressive. My DC also worked for some of the above once at University. Again, due diligence but it can be an amazing experience.

The world won't really benefit from it. But she will get an organised holiday and make friends. Has she been diving before? Not everyone takes to it, so worth trying before shelling out.

Yes she has her padi qualification so she can dive fairly competently..

I’m not sure my bar is quite as high as change the world but I’d like to not actively harm anyone and for it not to be a total waste of money.. she’s had a difficult time a few years ago and has only recently recovered and is more herself now. It means she’s a bit “behind” in the usual teen experiences- didn’t do d of e or anything as she just wasn’t ready for it so I do think that it could be good for her.

thanks for the recommendations they’re really appreciated I will look at all of them.

Mine has always helped me when getting jobs etc, employers tend to value the independence it shows and depending on what you do, the life skills it can give you. I did a 3 month one working at an animal sanctuary about 20 years ago and it is still one of the best experiences Ive ever had.

DD did a child care/teaching role in Africa when she was 17. She was certainly no replacement for a real teacher, but did play a part in the school life. So much so that she's been back three further times and is in constant contact with the school head, the teachers and some of the older kids. Her experience went way beyond the volunteer placement - she is welcomed as part of the village family. As a person she matured and grew, all of which helped with her move to uni. She did talk about her experience in her personal statement and it was mentioned in a personal letter she received from the Head of her uni department. Her dissertation is directly linked to her travels and the people she has met (Global Development).
DD would be the first to say that some of the volunteers she has met were there for the wrong reasons (Tik Tok videos, because it looks good on their CV) but for her, it has become part of her life and hopefully her future career.