Typical Volunteer Work Schedule

Full-Day Volunteer Work Schedule

What is a “day in the life” of a Global Volunteer like? Our local partners will direct you on a daily volunteer work schedule on defined community projects, providing evenings and weekends for free time. Your assignment(s) may be in one or several locations. However, you’ll be engaged, on average, eight hours a day in work preparations and at the work site to provide maximum value to the host community. We strictly adhere to IRS requirements for eight hours per day of work, five days out of seven, to ensure you can claim this tax benefit within your volunteer work schedule. Your combined federal and state income tax savings for your tax-deductible volunteer programs, are about 33 percent of the total service program cost.

Preparing for Your Volunteer Work

A “working vacation” you’ll never forget.
A Global Volunteers service program is not just about immersing yourself in a foreign culture. Most important, it’s an opportunity to make a real impact. We put you on the ground floor of long-term development supporting local people’s vision of self-reliance. Every day, you employ your unique skills and interests toward this goal. Our standardized volunteer work schedule enables you to do good work that’ll change your worldview. This is a transformative experience.

On-site team preparation.
Structured activities begin immediately upon your arrival to help you and the other volunteers form a cohesive team. Your team leader, local staff, community partners, and project leaders gather to learn about you, orient you to the community, and explain how you can be most helpful. Proprietary team-building and goal-setting sessions prepare you to “hit the ground running.”

Typical Morning Schedule of Volunteer Work

Most community projects are conducted between 8AM and 5PM daily. However, climate or resource conditions in some communities may require some volunteers to begin work earlier, or to split their workday into morning and evening periods, with afternoons free. In general, your morning volunteer work schedule is:

7:00 – 7:30AM: Breakfast at hotel/guesthouse

7:30 – 8:00AM: Morning Meeting – Review the day’s schedule and any team concerns. The team journal is read and announcements are made. The country manager reviews the specific project assignments for each volunteer and the general schedule for the day. Several times a week, other activities, such as free-time options, lectures, special events, etc. are presented. This is the time for updates on project priorities, community news, and service program developments.

8:00 – 8:30 AM: Transportation/walk to the work site

8:30 – 12:00 AM: Work on project assignments

12:00 – 1:00 PM: Lunch break

Typical Afternoon Schedule of Volunteer Work

In general, your afternoon volunteer work schedule is:

1:00 – 5:00 PM: Work project – (if teaching, the afternoon may be used for class preparations)

5:00 – 5:30 PM: Transportation/walk to lodging

5:30 – 6:00 PM: Private time

6:00 – 7:00 PM: Team dinner and evening conversation – Review the day’s work and report on progress. Address any concerns or questions. Presentations/speakers may be scheduled after dinner.

7:00 and on: Free time

Volunteers can participate in free-time activities as a group or independently. Oftentimes, team members are invited by local people to join them at community events – weddings, parties, community celebrations, etc.

“Global Volunteers always does a good job preparing their people before they go out, so that they are well-organized and well-focused when they are out in the field. They are definitely an organization that we look up to.”

David MinichDirector of Habitat for Humanity’s Global Village work camp program

“Global Volunteers was one of about a dozen NGOs I researched. We chose Global Volunteers because they supplied excellent information, and we liked the fact that all projects are in partnership with local people.

Judi LeesSt. Lucia, Peru and India Volunteer

Typical Volunteer Work Schedule

Preparing for Your Volunteer Work

Typical Morning Schedule of Volunteer Work

Typical Afternoon Schedule of Volunteer Work

We need you! Learn more about volunteer work worldwide.

JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST!