6 Things I Wish I Knew Before Volunteering In India

Wanting to volunteer overseas comes from a place of humility and respect and before you read the following article remember that volunteering in any capacity is a commendable achievement. However, please keep in mind, that your own country also has many initiatives you can be involved in as a volunteer and make just as much, if not more of a difference at home.

1. Which Company To Choose

I see A LOT of posts on social media of people asking which companies to choose to go travelling with, or to volunteer with. When organising my first trip overseas EVER, I wanted to be with a reputable company. The time I spent looking for one probably could have been much better spent doing my Statistics assignments, but thats another story.

In the end, we decided to go with WEP. WEP are a company based in Australia/New Zealand and predominantly organise international student exchanges, but they do have an option on their website for 18+ trips (see this link!).

2.  India is Relatively Safe

Before I left for India, every single person I knew told me one horror story or another about how I was going to get robbed, raped, have my hair chopped off, be scammed and every other thing you can think of. Now, I’m not saying all of India is safe, but if you keep your wits about you and don’t do stupid stuff, for the most part its okay.

Keep in mind: I was in South India, which is notoriously less dangerous than the North HOWEVER my friends from India insist that its the same as anywhere-be street smart and you’ll be fine!

3. English is a National Language

This really astounded me when I was on the ground in India, as one of the biggest hurdles when travelling is the language barriers! Because India is a part of the Commonwealth (ie. was once colonised by the English), one of the languages spoken nation-wide is English!

Now, I was in a remote town 8 hours from the nearest large city and the English was basic, but it was enough for me to still get by. This was especially helpful because, in the South, there are about 5 different languages that everyone uses interchangeably, so even if I knew a few words in one language, some people wouldn’t understand.

4. Cows are EVERYWHERE

So, this may just be something specific about me, BECAUSE I AM TERRIFIED OF COWS!

In India, they are legit around every corner, just when you think you’ve escaped, another one is right there! Some, even have horns (just to make you freak out more!). BUT, DO NOT TOUCH OR HURT THEM or you run the risk of going to jail for like, 11 years.

5. Volunteering Internationally is not that Sustainable (Unless you’re a Doctor or Nurse)

I read an article and spoke to a few people after my trip to India which made me realise this: going abroad to volunteer actually may do more harm than good. 

Why?

There are two major reasons; the first being that you are taking away jobs from the local people who could get paid to do something you are doing for free, thereby propelling the poverty in the given area even further. The second comes from my personal experiences and is specific for working with children-as most volunteer placements revolve around this.

Imagine, working with a group of children for 3-4 weeks and then disappearing from their lives. Not only this, but not being able to appropriately explain to these children why you have to leave and why you will never see them again. I’ll leave that thought with you.

DISCLAIMER: If you are going for an extended period of time or know how to speak the language, this may not be as much of an issue-but still something to think about. 

6. You’re just not needed

In most places in India, in particular, there is a great sense of community. So those schools, orphanages, old people’s homes or construction sites you want to work on, are already being done by people in the area. Not only this, but quite a few of the kindergartens run with mothers and grandmothers in the area for free. Keeping in mind that these community elders will be able to speak the language and will be able to teach cultural norms.

The Kindergarten and play area where we were placed

Happy Travels!