The most meaningful and valuable way to gain experience in social work abroad is to have as diverse a cultural experience as possible. What better way to broaden your expertise than real-time fieldwork giving you hands on experience providing social services? Here are the three most common types of volunteer placements in social work abroad:
Educational social work placements allow individuals to gain experience working with children who are victims of abuse. This experience will provide social workers with insight on how to work with disadvantaged youth who have been or currently are facing abuse in some form.
Health care social workers typically work directly with patients of all ages and their families who are experiencing difficulties due to serious illness or receiving appropriate medical care. Volunteers in this realm of social services may be placed in hospitals, inpatient facilities, or community health settings.
Mental health social workers work to improve treatment and access to health care for patients or clients. Those who volunteer in this type of social work abroad will gain a new kind of cultural understanding related to mental health and therapeutic techniques, some of which may be entirely foreign in some cultures.
Length. Social work volunteer programs differ in duration, ranging from two years to two weeks, depending on the depth of the experience. For example, social work volunteer placements at a school or with children in an alternative setting tends to last a year or more, to allow volunteers to make a real impact and gain beneficial experience in youth development.
Requirements. Those who want to volunteer in social work abroad do not necessarily have to have experience in social services prior to arrival, rather just a passion for helping those in need. Most importantly, social work volunteers must have a desire to act as an advocate for disadvantaged communities. However, knowing the local language is always a plus when working in social services abroad, as a majority of the social work is accomplished through communication and with basic cultural understanding.
