FAQ - FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

You can do international volunteering in Africa, Asia and in South America. Social volunteer projects take place in Kenya, Uganda, Nepal, Namibia, Philippines and in Sicily. If you are interested in an environmental volunteering project, you can join a project in Namibia or in Costa Rica.

If you want advice on which international volunteering project is most suitable for you, the YearOut staff is on hand to direct you to the best destination. Make an appointment at the office or schedule a call for free advice, send an e-mail to info@yearout.it or call +39 3348606453.

Choose one of the modes available to you to get to know us,

Choose one of the ways to get to know us, once you have all the information you need we will guide you step by step both in choosing the most suitable project for you and in organising your international volunteering experience, after becoming a member of YearOut Association.

There are no particiular restrictions except from having reached the age of majority. YearOut tries to start homogeneous groups to ensure that living together is collaborative and enjoyable for all. In order for the groups to be homogeneous, we have thought of creating ad hoc departures for adults over 40 at certain times of the year, which will be agreed upon with those interested. 

A fundamental requirement for leaving as a volunteer is to be at least 18 years old. However, you can already start planning your experience in advance, or leave accompanied by an adult realtive or friend.

English is required for projects in Africa and in Asia . In Costa Rica the languages required are English or Spanish. In all cases it is not necessary to have an excellent knowledge, but it is important to have the language skills to communicate properly.

Of course! even if YearOut’s offices are located in Milan, we will be at your disposal to organise your volunteering trip. you can meet us and do the training via WhatsApp call or Skype.

No particular experience is required and the fact that you do not have any is not an obstacle to starting. Your skills will determine the work you do, e.g. volunteers with more medical expertise can organise workshops on health education, prevention and nutrition, those with artistic skills can carry out recreational and leisure activities, if you love sport you can organise tournaments and activities related to the human body…

As an indication, it is possible to leave at any time of the year. It is advisable to start planning your trip about 4 months before departure. We are also available in some cases to organise last-minute departures. The earlier you sign up and get to know us, the more confident you will be in going on your chosen project. Due to the numerous requests to go as a volunteer, YearOut cannot always guarantee a place in your chosen project.

Sometimes it seems strange to have to pay for volunteering, but one has to consider that the organisations where one serves provide accommodation, food and all kinds of logistical support for travelling and working. Moreover, without a highly specialised profession that can fully replace on-site resources and for short periods of voluntary work, the volunteer represents a cost for the organisations that have to bear additional costs to accommodate him.

In addition, with the volunteer’s donation the partner buys the material for the volunteer to work, improves and opens up new projects.

The donation you make to YearOut will cover the costs of transport to/from the airport, daily travel, food and accommodation and materials for the activities (there are variations from project to project). In addition to the amount used to support your host project, part of the donation will remain with YearOut to support the costs of maintaining the Milan office, organisation, training, selection and design.

For more details please read the page DONATION.

The donation does not cover the cost of the flight, which you can however book through Raptim, our partner that organises humanitarian trips, the visa, vaccinations, insurance policy and finally personal expenses and any tourist excursions.

We recommend our Fundraising Guide, where you will find several useful ideas. Request it by writing to info@yearout.it.You could also present the project you are going to participate in by crowdfunding, e.g. on platforms such as https://buonacausa.org.

The donation cannot be refunded under any circumstances. Should the volunteer have to give up their volunteering experience, the donation will be ‘frozen’ and used again later.

YearOut applies a 10% reduction on the donation fee to senior volunteers who decide to undertake new experiences at one of the YearOut projects.

During your stay in one of the international volunteer projects, the volunteer should first refer to the local partners, and in case of need contact YearOut at any time on the number +39 3348606453.

The required vaccinations vary depending on the country and the period you want to go. We recommend that you contact your local ASL for all relevant information. YearOut will provide you with a certificate proving your volunteer status so that you can have deductions or total exemption from the cost of vaccines.

YearOut’s priority is your safety. When choosing a partner the first criteria is the safety of the area in which the project is located and the ability of the partners to handle the volunteers (safe food and water, safe transport, safe accommodation). Should YearOut no longer judge an area to be safe it will immediately cancel the project.

See als the website Viaggiare Sicuri to stay up-to-date on the safety of each country.

Volunteering abroad will allow you to open your eyes to the world, get to know a new culture and come into direct contact with local communities. You will have the opportunity to make a concrete change for the community where you work. You will realise that you will receive so much from the community where you will work and from the children. You will also acquire new skills through exchange with people different from you.

YearOut relies on local partners rooted in the area to work together with volunteers to improve conditions for beneficiaries, always keeping the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in mind as the ultimate goal of its work. In 2015, more than 150 international leaders met at the United Nations to contribute to global development, promote human well-being and protect the environment. They then drafted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which contains 17 universally applicable Sustainable Development Goals. All countries must therefore make a contribution to achieving the goals according to their own capacities. Each YearOut project responds to different SDGs, so by carrying out an international volunteering project, volunteers contribute to one, or more, of the 17 goals.

Many universities recognise periods of voluntary work abroad with training credits. Each university follows different procedures, which is why we ask you to enquire about this possibility directly at the internship or international relations office of your university.

YearOut is available to issue documents certifying your volunteering period abroad or, should it be necessary, to enter into agreements with Universities in order to obtain validation of course credits. Agreements can be made with universities to have the period of volunteering recognised as an internship. We also support students with information material and advice in the drafting of projects to participate in tenders in order to receive scholarships with which to leave or for thesis projects.

Of course, you will have the opportunity to talk to senior volunteers, i.e. volunteers who have already taken part in an international volunteering project, and ask them all the questions you want! Our senior volunteers are very helpful and, once they have returned from their trip, they continue to volunteer, supporting YearOut and their host organisation in various ways.

YearOut is available, with due notice, to organise volunteering experiences for groups. If you are a company or would like to offer an international volunteering experience in your workplace, send an e-mail to info@yearout.it or call +39 3348606453, we will provide you with all the necessary information.

With YearOut you can experience volunteering with your family.

YearOut for family was created with the aim of giving families the opportunity to go on a special adventure by becoming part of an international volunteer programme.

For more information send an e-mail to info@yearout.it or call +39 3348606453.

Of course, children, if accompanied by their parents, can also enjoy a safe and valuable volunteering with your family. Just send an e-mail to info@yearout.it or call +39 3348606453, we will provide you with all the necessary information.

It may happen that the forms are not delivered or that it is not possible to send them due to technical problems, in this case send an e-mail to info@yearout.it or call +39 3348606453, we will provide you with all the necessary information.

For more information call +39 3348606453 or send an e-mail to info@yearout.it, we will get back to you as soon as possible!