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Focus on Volunteering Abroad

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JobMonkey.com
Volume VIII, Issue #30
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Have you ever dreamed about traveling abroad? Do you want to see the world while helping people in need? You're not alone. The number of Americans volunteering internationally is soaring. The rising number of volunteer abroad opportunities can be attributed to a number of factors, from the seized job market to the growing popularity of international living. To learn more about overseas volunteering, check out our feature article on the Benefits of Volunteering Abroad, or read up on this hot field over at the JobMonkey blog. Then, when you are ready to pack your bags, you can find the perfect volunteer job at the JobMonkey's Non-profit and Volunteer Job Board.

IN THIS NEWSLETTER:

1) Career Advisor: What Goes in a Portfolio?
2) Spotlight: 5 Reasons to Volunteering Abroad
3) Around the Monkey: Volunteering More Popular Than Ever
4) JobMonkey Job Center: International Volunteer Opportunities

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CAREER ADVISOR: What Goes in a Portfolio?
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by Amy Lindgren

If you are a graphic artist, you know all about portfolios and work samples. Portfolio reviews are a common part of the interview process for professionals in the visual arts. Likewise, people in the performing arts are used to sending a dvd or cd, or directing employers to their web sites to download their audition tapes.

These days, portfolios aren't just for artists and performers. Everyone from middle managers to baristas to school teachers can benefit from a visual presentation of their work. After all, if a picture is worth 1,000 words, isn't it better for the employer to see your work, rather than just hear about it?

To make the best use of this tool, you'll want to follow a few basic strategies.

1. Think "leave-behind." While it's tempting to make a giant notebook of original documents, it's much better to gather a handful of clean printouts into a folder or other packet to leave with the employer. This provides the opportunity for the employer to share the information and to keep it in your file. Conversely, a quick glance at a fat notebook during the interview won't provide much value.

2. Think "self-explanatory." Each page needs to stand alone, as if you weren't going to be there to explain it. For example, a manager who is showing template forms she has created might include labels on the page that explain her process or the positive results of her work.

3. Think "story." What story can you tell with the pictures and samples you choose? Help the employer imagine you in his or her workplace and you just might make the story come true.

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SPOTLIGHT: 5 Reasons to Volunteer Abroad
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Voluntourism is a growing travel niche, but long-term volunteer assignments of at least three months are truly exploding. While most of the volunteers are pre- or post-college young adults, there are also an increasing number of older Americas taking a few months off between jobs to serve some of the neediest populations around the world.

Top volunteer destinations include South America, Africa and Asia, although there are opportunities to volunteer in nearly every nation. What used to be just an isolated number of gigs for volunteer English teachers has evolved into a thriving field of non-profit service, where positions range from disaster relief to public health campaigns to community building. Previous work experience is necessary for some positions, but most opportunities are open to anyone with a willing heart and a tireless work ethic.

Volunteer abroad jobs do not typically offer financial compensation, however many assignments do provide volunteers with room and even board. Health insurance may also be provided, although most international volunteers elect to continue their U.S. health plans as well. Paying for travel is typically the responsibility of the volunteer, although some placements do offer stipends to help with the cost of flights.

If you are on the fence about volunteering, here are five reasons you should pack your bags today and head off on the adventure of a lifetime as an international volunteer:

Exchange ideas and cross-cultural awareness.
If you volunteer abroad, you will serve indigenous populations with unique racial, socioeconomic, religious and national backgrounds. You will also meet other volunteers from around the world, learning about a multitude of cultures and experiences. And you will probably make countless life-long friends.

Get out of the rat race.
Volunteering abroad is a wonderful chance to sidestep the suit-wearing workforce. Trade in your pencils and laptop for a hard hat and hammer! You are about to become an essential provider of humanitarian and environmental service, to the world's most needy people and places. No matter how fast you climb the corporate ladder, these few months of volunteering will undoubtedly be your most important!

Gain real world experience.
If you are a recent college grad, volunteering abroad is a great way to add some real work experience to your resume. And given the current state of the job market, there has never been a better time. You will learn first-hand how to develop programs and assess and address emergent needs. Depending on the program for which you volunteer, you may also develop invaluable skills in anything from fundraising and marketing to organic gardening and sustainable construction. These transferable skills will serve you well throughout your career… and your life.

Improve your foreign language skills.
The world is increasingly a global marketplace, which means that those of you with foreign language skills have a decisive advantage. If you are bilingual (or even proficient at a second language), you will be in high demand. You will be astounded at how quickly your Spanish can go from passing to fluent when you are deep in a Latin American jungle, working one-on-one with native Spanish speakers. Even if you don't come out of your volunteer experience a fluent speaker of another language, you will undoubtedly enrich not only your vocabulary, but also your character.

Earn college credit.
Why wait until you graduate to volunteer abroad? Whether you take a Service Spring Break or volunteer for a semester abroad, college is the perfect time to develop the lifelong habit of volunteerism. Most colleges offer credit for volunteer placements, either through established programs or through an independent study assignment, which can typically be arranged through your academic advisor. And regardless of how many credits you earn, you will no doubt learn more from volunteering abroad than you could in any single class.

Do you want to learn more about volunteering abroad? Please visit JobMonkey's section on international volunteers.

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AROUND THE MONKEY: Volunteering More Popular Than Ever
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The JobMonkey blog has extensively covered the field of volunteer opportunities, both abroad and here at home. If you want to learn more about this increasingly popular way to serve, here are some good posts to start with:

International Volunteering Opportunities

The Benefits of Volunteering

Volunteering Up Among College Grads

Cancun is out. Volunteer Service is in.

How Volunteering Can Help You Land a Job

Volunteering More Popular Than Ever

Americorps Volunteer Program - Gets More Federal Funding

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JOB CENTER REPORT: International Volunteer Opportunities
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Have you visited the JobMonkey Job Center recently? This comprehensive database of job openings offers thousands of opportunities around the country and the world. It's updated daily and, best of all, the Job Center is completely free for job seekers to use.

For those of you in the market for a non-profit job or volunteer placement, you will also want to check out the JobMonkey's newest resource: The Volunteer Job Board.

 

 

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