Foreign Volunteering: The ‘exotic’ act of goodness that helps no one

So you’ve done it. You’ve hopped the plane to Africa and arrived there hoping to a) work with orphaned children, b) build schoolhouses and dig water wells or c) help out at an African reservation. Maybe you are there out of the goodness inside you, or maybe your parents have forced you to go, saying that colleges will be impressed.

Just how helpful is this volunteering abroad business anyway?

The truth is, while it does take a certain level of dedication to travel to another country, volunteering abroad is less beneficial than one may believe. Both the recipients of volunteering and one’s college applications gain little from journeying overseas.

These days, foreign volunteering is cliche. Former admissions officer Robbie Jefferiss said that while previously colleges were impressed by volunteering abroad, overseas trips are now seen  in a largely negative light.

Simply jumping into Nicaragua to dig wells for one summer is not enough. Jefferiss went on to explain that colleges are more concerned with the quality and commitment of volunteer work than the location.

To put things into perspective, consider this: If a student volunteered at a hospital for two weeks and then quit, should college admissions officers be impressed? The answer is no, regardless of whether or not the hospital is in Africa or Brazil or wherever.

Additionally, embarking on exotic volunteer trips costs money that could be put to better use. According to Jefferiss, the typical overseas volunteering trip costs $2000-$5000. Extravagant much?

So much for charity work — what if this money was donated to a foreign charity organization instead, and the student spent time helping the underprivileged just 30 minutes from home? Such a student would not only be aiding foreigners in need, but also the locally less fortunate. Indeed, the lavishness of these "cool" trips only serve to perpetuate the inequality between rich and poor, and colleges are catching on.

Evidence also suggests that most foreign volunteer work is the kind that benefits only those who receive the trip payments.

For example, every year, inexperienced volunteers attempt to cuddle with “unloved” foreign children. While they mean well, the effects of their actions can be psychologically detrimental. According to Flora the Explorer, a travelist blogger who has worked with children in 10 different countries, volunteers often make the mistake of staying for inadequate periods of time. The children become attached to these well-meaning volunteers, only to watch them waltz back to their home country, never to be seen or heard from again.

Needless to say, this kind of treatment can be more emotionally distressing than comforting. To avoid this problem, Flora recommends that people “should only ever consider volunteering with kids, and at orphanages in particular, for a period of at least three months or more.” 

Take note: At least three months. The swoop in and save the world mentality helps no one.

Some may argue that the point of volunteering abroad is to see extreme poverty and to garner more appreciation for what one has. Such proponents insist that summer trips are “enlightening” and “fulfilling,” the perfect wake-up call the privileged need. 

To be fair, seeing starving children does leave a lasting impact on someone’s mind. Yet, one fails to see why visiting a local shelter or hospital wouldn’t give the same effect; as if misfortune was solely located in Africa! The sentiment reeks of colonialism and blindness to problems in one’s own backyard.

Those who wish to volunteer in other countries must be willing to make the commitment. Foreign volunteering is a double-edged sword; it can help the recipients or it can be a shoddy imitation of help. Therefore, traveling to Mexico purely for college applications, and not out of interest to aid others, is unadvisable. In these cases, it seems best to think of what one can do for foreigners, not what foreigners and their situations can do for one’s college apps.

Once one considers the factors, volunteering abroad just to build up one’s resume loses much of its appeal. It often doesn’t help others, doesn’t help your college application and certainly doesn’t help your parents, who are paying the expenses. So please, if you’re not dying to aid African children, spare yourself the exercise.