Volunteer in Australia

Being an international volunteer placement organization we receive applications throughout the year. Volunteers usually book in advance to avoid losing the seats. Advance booking is recommended for all volunteers. Also, we abide by the first come first serve policy.

Usually, it takes around 10-12 working days for the application to be processed and placement to be confirmed. After the application is accepted, your placement document shall be updated in your account online and you can view the information in your account. The application acceptance depends on the availability of seats in the project as well as the eligibility criteria of the program (age, skills and experience etc.).

Volunteers must be 18 years or older at the beginning of the program
Volunteers need to have an open mind and flexible attitude for working in a new and different environment.
The volunteer should bring energy and enthusiasm to make a difference.
Participant must be in good health.

In Beijing, our programs start every Monday of the month (except during holidays) and volunteers need to arrive on the program start date itself. Volunteers are picked up from the Beijing International Airport by the local coordinator or representative assigned by the coordinator. Those volunteers who are arriving overland or are already in China will be picked up at a meeting point decided beforehand. Please note that pick up from Beijing Airport is only provided from 8 am – 8 pm.

Participants need to apply for the Chinese Visa on their own. Any necessary supporting documents shall be provided by VS and enrolled participants are provided with more details as well.

As in any large city around the world, general precautions need to be exercised by travelers. However, Beijing is a safe city and tourists do not face any problems. 

Carry general medicines with you, other than that consult your doctor before flying. We recommend these basic vaccinations for your safety:
Hepatitis A and B
Typhoid

Yes, for all participants it is mandatory to have a travel medical insurance. To provide the best option to our participants, we offer comprehensive insurance coverage in collaboration with a leading insurance provider.

Your country coordinator will take you to your placement and introduce you to everyone after giving you a basic orientation about the program/city/culture etc. You will be told about the transportation from the accommodation to the placement and the best places to eat and shop as well during the briefing.

We provide you with accommodation from your start date to the end of the program. Volunteers are provided accommodation in a Youth hostel in Beijing. The hostel is centrally located in the heart of Beijing. Volunteers use subway trains to commute to the project placements generally. The subway station is not very far from the hostel. The hostel has a dining room and internet facility as well. Meals are not provided to the volunteers in the program. However, your coordinator will guide you on the best and reasonable restaurants to eat. Beijing, being an international city with rapid development has also lots of restaurants around the city. Chinese cuisine is one the most popular cuisines around the world and you would love to explore the different dishes and foods available in Beijing.

Typically volunteers are required to put 5-6 volunteer hours every day, 5 times a week. They get free evenings and weekends. You can utilize this time to explore the different parts of Beijing and visit locations such as Forbidden city, National Museum of China or travel to the Great Wall of China as well. It is around 1 – 1.5 hr trip from Beijing.

Your program fee covers you for accommodation, airport pick up, Orientation, Pre-departure information, and in-country coordinator support. You will need to cover yourself for your food, local traveling, telephone, the internet, shopping, sightseeing etc. However, you should carry around $60 - $70 per week for your basic personal expenses.

Volunteers usually work for 5 to 6 hours a day depending on their program. You will have the weekend off so you can go to travel on weekends. However, some organizations will need you to work on some Saturdays as well.

You can exchange your foreign currency to Chinese Yuan at the foreign exchange counters at the airport in Beijing. There are many ATMs as well throughout the city and it is not a problem to withdraw the local currency using the ATM.

We encourage volunteers to get in touch with former Volunteering Solutions participants and also other program participants joining our projects. You are recommended to join the Volunteering Solutions Facebook Page or Facebook Group to communicate with other participants.

To read alumni interviews from past participants, visit the Meet a Volunteer section on our website.

As we have limited spots available in our programs and we facilitate on ‘first come first serve’ basis, it is recommended that potential volunteers book their programs well in advance to get confirmed placements. You can book your slot by filling out the application form online and pay the application fee of $250 + bank charges. You can pay your program fee later and also, in installments, however,  the complete payment should be made 45 days prior to the starting date of the program.  If you are volunteering in a group, you can also fill a group application form.

Are there any necessary requirements to participate in the Australian volunteer programs?
Below are the necessary requirements to participate in the Australian volunteer projects :
– The minimum age requirement for the volunteers is 18 years and above.
– Need to have an open mind and flexible attitude for working in a new and different environment.
– The volunteer should bring energy and enthusiasm to make a difference.
– Participant must be in good health.

We encourage our participants to volunteer in a group. We take special care in providing you a placement and also customize your itinerary to make sure you get exactly what you are looking for. Also, we can design special group programs for groups of 5 or more. Our programs are designed to be safe, affordable and offer a great group volunteering experience to the volunteers.
In our experience of more than 12+ years, we have enabled and facilitated volunteer program placements for student groups- college groups, university groups, high school groups, group of families, group of couples as well as a group of colleagues.

Visit Group Volunteering page for more information.

Volunteering Solutions provides placement to volunteers in different cities of Australia. The preference of the city should be specified in the application form. The available program locations are:

• Cairns
• Rural Gladstone
• Yackandandah

 

Yes – many volunteers choose to make bookings from two or more starting locations. If you choose this option, you’ll need to arrange and pay for your own travel between starting locations. You should either leave a week in between your bookings, or arrange to rejoin at your new starting location on Monday morning as we cannot accommodate volunteers arriving on weekends.

The amount of contact volunteers have with the animals is dependent upon the project. Some are very hands on and others have limited contact.

All volunteers are required to arrive at the nearest airports at their preferred location in Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Darwin, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney. The Australian programs are located near Melbourne, Sydney, Gladstone and Cairns Airports.

If you are planning to come for multiple programs in your trip, you will have to pay the application fees just once. Your application fees is valid for a year's time (from the date of application). You will not have to pay the application fees again if you come within the mentioned time frame. If you decide to volunteer in separate programs in multiple countries, you will need to fill separate applications.

Yes, we will provide you with the Certificate after successful completion of your program. The certificate is provided on request.

Volunteers traveling to Australia need to have a valid visa. We provide with the necessary supporting documents for your VISA application processing.
More information shall be provided after you become a Volunteering Solutions enrolled participant.

All the major cities in Australia have connectivity with all major airlines around the world. The recommended airlines are : 
QANTAS Airways
British Airways
Thai Airways
Emirates
Malaysian Airlines
Singapore Airlines
Air Asia

Australia is a tourist friendly destination. The country welcomes you with open arms. However, you have to use your prudence to stay out of the harm’s way. For example, stay in a group or with the fellow volunteers, especially when you want to hit the bar or go grab a drink. Inform your coordinator if you have plans to explore the city alone, keep your emergency contact details always with you. Your pre-departure booklet is a good source of information for you and you must read that diligently.

We recommend you consult your physician or travel doctor before travelling to Australia. 
Generally the following vaccinations are recommended for travellers going to Australia :
– Yellow Fever (Required if travelling from a YFV infected country)
– Hepatitis A and B
– Typhoid

Yes, for all participants it is mandatory to have a travel medical insurance.Volunteers have the option to purchase Travel and Medical Insurance at a nominal extra cost from Volunteering Solutions. To provide the best option to our participants, we offer comprehensive insurance coverage in collaboration with a leading insurance provider. 

We encourage volunteers to get in touch with former Volunteering Solutions Australia program participants and also other program participants joining our projects. You are recommended to join the Volunteering Solutions Facebook Page or Facebook Group to connect with other participants.

To read alumni interviews from past participants, visit the Meet a Volunteer section on our website.

Accommodation will vary according to each project location. Typical accommodation includes volunteer houses, caravans, hostels, and bunkhouses. Volunteers are allotted accommodation on a sharing basis.

Yes, however you must inform us in advance and also mention about any dietary requirement in your application form.

Your program fee covers your Accommodation, Food and In country Support.  You will need to cover your personal expenses, such as local transport, telephone, internet, shopping, weekend trips etc. 
However, you should carry around $70-80 per week for your basic personal expenses. This amount can vary and you would need a higher amount if you go on weekend sightseeing tours.

Plenty of money exchange counters and ATMs are available in Australia. at the airport as well in most Australian cities.

Volunteers work for 3 to 8 hours a day depending on their program. However, volunteers need to be flexible, open-minded and understand that work requirements can change as well on certain occasions.