Help youth and adults learn English and reach their potential. Volunteer to teach English in classrooms, offices and small groups. Vietnam is a young country, both historically and socially. An estimated 37 percent of the population is under 15. They’re hard-working, focused on the future, and poised to rise in every sector of society. As a native speaker, you teach the English language skills (specifically American English, the language of the internet) they need to succeed. In this way, you contribute to the country’s long-term development and position in the global marketplace. Make history. Be a Global Volunteer in Vietnam!
Service program fees are tax-deductible for U.S. taxpayers when you follow our itinerary. Select program options below to see upcoming service program dates for Vietnam. Then select a program date to hold your place on a team with your $350 deposit. Call a volunteer coordinator at (800) 487-1074 for help if needed. If you prefer, you may print a text application and submit it by mail or fax. Minors – under age 18 – must complete a minor application and travel with a parent or adult legal guardian.
Most partner community lodging is double-occupancy, with a single room option for an additional fee. Click for single room fees in countries where this option is available.
Pam Cromer and Warren Williams lead our teams in Vietnam. Pam first served on our Turkey Service Program in 1997, and followed the next year in China. She has since led more than 50 teams in nearly all our partner communities. Pam earned a Masters Degree in Clinical Social Work, and has been in private practice doing long-term psychotherapy for more than 40 years. She has served on boards for abused children, counseled patients with HIV, and participated in early research on death and dying. With all this, she says her “ best job in the whole world is being a grandmother to my five grandchildren…ages 5 to 16.”
Warren served on the Global Volunteers board, and has led more than 70 teams in nearly all our partner communities. He retired as a senior Colonel in the U.S. Army after more than 30 years of service; with two years as a combat leader in Vietnam; eleven years as a negotiator for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); and as Chief of Joint Strategy, Forces Command in Operation Desert Storm. He earned a Master’s Degree in Education, is a graduate of the U.S. Army War College and NATO School, and is fluent in Greek, Vietnamese and Italian.
Both leaders are skilled in managing diverse groups of individuals, are certified in first aid and CPR, and have completed our comprehensive Team Leader Training Program.
Plan your arrival in Hanoi’s Noibai International Airport (airport code HAN), before 4PM on the first Saturday of your service program. Meet your team at the airport at this time if you travel in the country before the start of the service program. Provided you send us your flight itinerary at least two weeks before the service program arrival date, you’ll be transported to the hotel with your teammates. This coordinated schedule will assist in assembling the team for in-transit transportation. Global Volunteers’ service program officially commences with the evening meal on the first Saturday. If your flight is delayed, please contact us as soon as you confirm your new arrival plans so your team leader can arrange an airport pick up for you.
For help with your flight arrangements, please visit Janbala, our travel partner’s website.
Your health, safety and security is our top priority. Your lodging, food and transportation are provided always with a mind to protect you while at the work site and in your hotel. Your team leader is trained in CPR and first aid. Read more about health and safety here.
The greatest safety risk is posed by street traffic, both when riding in a vehicle and when crossing busy streets. Your team leader will advise you on traffic safety and other precautions to protect you when walking to your work assignments and during your free time. We strongly recommend you consult your own physician, public health clinic and/or travel clinic for detailed travel health information. For general recommendations, consult the following sources:
Centers for Disease Control | Health Canada Online | Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade | Travel Health Online
Global Volunteers includes emergency medical evacuation insurance in your service program fee. We also recommend health insurance that covers you while you are outside your home country, and trip cancellation insurance in the event you must cancel your participation on the service program. Your travel agent can refer you to travel insurance providers.
Ample time is available after the work day and on the weekend to enjoy cultural, natural and educational attractions in and around Hanoi. Many volunteers enjoy shopping in unique craft markets, art galleries and “old town” shops near the hotel, which is centrally located in the historical center of the city. The area is also filled with beautiful parks and lakes just a short walk or taxi ride away. A few of the notable historical sites are:
While our non-profit status does not allow us to plan your free-time activities, our local partners and team leader can suggest many opportunities to explore the region.You can also arrange engaging weekend trips through the hotel, including: Halong Bay, a resort area; Sapa with its spectacular trekking; and Ninh Binh, featuring beautiful pagodas and rice fields.
Serving as a family in Vietnam can be a most rewarding experience! Children ages 8 to 18 can serve along with their parents or guardian in classrooms and small groups of children and teens. Your volunteer coordinator will work with you to find the ideal program schedule to meet your family volunteering goals.
For instance, pre-teens can often tutor children the same age at Nguyen Binh Khiem School – and practice English through songs, games, skits, art projects and the like. Vietnamese children are curious about volunteers of all ages – and like children worldwide – love to talk about friends, movies and family life. With nearly 2,200 students in the high school (11 to 18 years) and nearly the same number in the primary grades, it is one of the largest schools in Hanoi. Class size ranges from 24 to 40 students. Our partners readily welcome child volunteers into their classrooms! Mature teens can team-teach lessons from our English Teaching Guide along with a parent – or invent new sessions on topics of mutual interest, such as music, sports and Hollywood personalities.
Chose program dates during school breaks and summer vacations. Parents and guardians are expected to supervise their child volunteers, and collaborate with our team leader and Vietnamese teachers to maximize the service experience for everyone. Youth are invited to offer their own perspectives in team meetings and fully participate in free-time activities. In this way, your child can form a rare, personal perspective of today’s China beyond what they can find online, in school or in personal study. What’s more, they’ll gain life-long friends in one of the fastest developing countries on Earth.
Imagine your group teaching conversational English in Hanoi – the economic and cultural center celebrating 1,000 years as the capital Thăng Long founded by the emperor Lý Thái Tổ. The benefits of volunteering as a group with Global Volunteers in Vietnam are many….for you and the students you serve. Teaching English conversational skills to students and guiding young blind adults’ language understanding and capabilities acquaints you with the daily realities of life in Vietnam. Through their experiences and stories, you witness the “true Vietnam” – vibrant, hopeful and peaceful. Your skills, enthusiasm and encouragement helps them gain self-confidence and enhances their long-term professional development, and self-sufficiency. What’s more, you learn about your group members in a non-traditional way as an intact volunteer team, and know that your unique skills advance the futures of those you serve.
Opportunities for high school and college groups
The Foreign Trade University is a public university and is considered one of the top institutions of higher learning in Vietnam. A multidisciplinary university, it offers diversified and competitive training programs to 16,000 students, including a branch in Ho Chi Minh City. Blind-Link is a private, non-profit program for visually impaired young adults providing occupational training at three centers in Hanoi. Each volunteer works in a small group of three blind or visually impaired students along with a Vietnamese teaching assistant to help students improve their ability to communicate with English-speaking clients. You’ll tutor up to 15 students each day, divided into five one-hour sessions, from 9AM to 3PM.
Growing out of rural community development projects in 1995, our Vietnam partnership now focuses on teaching conversational English to students of all ages and abilities in Hanoi. Assisting primary, secondary and university students and working adults with their English learning – even for a week – propels them toward their educational and career goals. Your unique compassion and energy in a range of meaningful projects also builds a long-lasting bridge of friendship between different cultures. Review a standard Vietnam English teaching work-day schedule here.
1 & 2 weeks year-round
Fees From:
$2,495 – $2,895
Projects Include:
English Teaching
Local time:
Your health and safety are our highest priorities in Vietnam. Your secure, full-service 3-star Hanoi Legacy Hotel is an airy and quiet oasis in Hanoi’s bustling Old Quarter. Each guest room is double occupancy, with air-conditioning, in-room telephones, private baths with hot and cold water, and cable TV with CNN, BBC and other international channels.
Vietnamese food is healthy and appealing to most every palate. A buffet breakfast is served at the hotel. Lunch is at the schools or local restaurants. Dinners are enjoyed as a team at restaurants in the Old Quarter. You can expect meals based on rice and noodles such as stir fry, hot pot, vegetables, tropical fruits, fish, chicken, pork and beef. Bottled water is provided daily. Vegetarian diets can generally be accommodated.
Be The Change.
Through important, full-day volunteer English teaching assignments, cultural activities and time for personal adventures, you’ll learn about Vietnam and remain forever invested. Our time-tested and proven philosophy of service ensures your efforts help advance the host community’s development vision and goals. You contribute to genuine development projects, and in doing so, you‘re accepted as family. Our commitment to work in partnership on long-term community projects enables you, in just a short time, to serve as a critical link in a chain of volunteer support spanning three decades.
Read more about our Vietnam program though the prospective of our volunteers below or on our program blog.
