Volunteering in Thailand

Thailand is a country that has some of the most beautiful landscapes. The luscious green and yellow paddy fields have become a symbolic statement and so have the floating markets and the waterways. Whether it is the busy and over crowded beaches of Phuket or the tranquil and far from the madding crowd beaches of Koh Samui, the beaches of Thailand drives a major part of its economy. Thailand has varied natural splendor from the mountains to the statues of Buddha and from the meandering waterfalls to the Grand Palace with the
Emerald Buddha and from diving near the Similan Islands to a cruise on the Chao Phraya River. Among all this lies an opportunity for Volunteering in Thailand.

Why Volunteer In Thailand

There are different cultures and different segments of people in Thailand. Depending on the volunteer project, you can get to work with people who are living in the urban area or the people living in the rural area. As a volunteer in Thailand, you will get good amount of exposure in terms of the level of work and the cultural immersion.

Types Of Projects Available
As a part of volunteering in Thailand, you will get to choose the kind of project you are interested in. The different types if projects available include:

• Working with under-privileged children: Thailand volunteer projects include taking care of under-privileged children and teaching them.

• Teaching: There are different types of teaching work available and you can volunteer in Thailand to teach English, History, geography, tourism, Business etc. The most common type of teaching work includes teaching English to primary as well as secondary school students in the rural and urban regions.

• Working at elderly homes: The elderly need to be taken care of and this is not just in Thailand but across the globe. As a volunteer in Thailand, you can work at an elderly home that provides shelter, care and attention to old aged people. Taking care of elderly people is a serious work as the criticality can vary from one person to another.

• Public health: As a part of volunteering in Thailand under the public health project, your primary responsibility will involve taking care of impoverished people.

• Community Work with the tribal: There are different types of tribes in Thailand and as a volunteer in Thailand, you will get to concentrate your efforts towards helping the tribal children and women.

• Conservation Projects: Conservation has become a necessity today and there is a lot of natural resources and wildlife that needs to be conserved. As a volunteer in Thailand working in a conservation project, you will be required to conduct environmental research, clean up the beaches, conduct various types of conservation surveys, educate children and adults and help in fundraising.

Volunteer Requirements

There are different types of requirements for volunteering in Thailand and some of the requirements vary from project to project. If you have applied for a health care project then the basic requirement will be knowledge in health care, nursing and paramedic. If you have applied for conservation projects then the requirements are very basic and non-technical in nature.

Age: The minimum age for volunteering in Thailand should be 18 or older.

All volunteer programs in Thailand are open to participants from all over the world and to individuals, families and couples.

Fee and Other details

There is a fee attached to each of the projects that you volunteer for. The fee is charged in advance and is charged for the following:

1. Accommodation

2. Food/meals

3. Travel insurance

4. Transportation within the region

5. Emergency support

All types of training materials including books, CD’s and computers will be provided by the project co-coordinators. Most of your needs as a volunteer in Thailand will be taken care of by the project coordinator during the entire span of the project, which can vary from 7 days to 4 weeks.

Conclusion
There is a lot of volunteer work that you can do in Thailand and all the work will reflect in your curriculum vitae. Some of the programs will offer you a certificate of completion at the end and this can help you in your later life if you choose a career that needs prior experience related to the volunteer work done by you. There are different types of internship programs also available as a part of the volunteering in Thailand and these internship programs will not only offer rewarding experiences but an opportunity for field work.