The benefits of joining an internship abroad
So, you’re passionate about being part of meaningful community development projects? But figuring out which career path you’d like to pursue in the sustainability sector isn’t always that straightforward.
You’re at the right place. Welcome to GVI community development internships – where you can use your skills to make a difference, gain experience working at one of our international locations, explore which career path is best for you, and get the relevant qualifications and a professional reference to show for it.
Take a look at some of the top benefits of joining an internship abroad with GVI:
Be part of hands-on fieldwork
When you join an internship abroad with GVI, you’ll contribute to genuine community efforts on the ground. You’ll use your skills, expertise and interests to help initiate project ideas, and empower existing initiatives to ensure a maximum social impact.
Want to experience the realities of grassroots community efforts outside of the pages of your books? Well, community development programs with GVI are definitely not a spectator activity – you’ll roll up your sleeves and get involved in various inspiring initiatives.
Empower locally-led projects
GVI doesn’t operate in a silo, and we don’t believe in doing things on our own. All our community development projects are run in partnership with NGOs, schools or government organisations in the locations where our hubs are based.
During your internship, you’ll work on projects that address existing challenges that have been identified as priorities by local organisations and community members themselves. You’ll be strengthening their efforts, and in the process, becoming part of the broader solution to create a better future.
Develop personally and professionally
Our internship programs are designed to give you impressive qualifications and sought-after soft skills that are relevant and needed in the job market. You can add all of this – your new skills, international experience and accredited certificates – to your cover letters, CV and LinkedIn profile to give you that boost you need to stand out.
We know that choosing a career is a big deal, and that it can be intimidating to make such a big decision on your own. That’s why GVI’s internship programs include career guidance sessions with an experienced mentor to help you understand your options in the sustainable development space.
You’ll get the following:
- internship certificate
- subject area foundation certificate
- leading for impact certificate
- careers in sustainable development certificate
- one-on-one mentoring sessions
- advanced leadership training
- job portal access
- career coaching sessions
- LinkedIn reference.
Use your specific skills
We love matching participants with community projects where everyone benefits. You get the chance to use your unique skills and expertise to strengthen local efforts that would value your specific skill sets.
Whether you’re passionate about specific topics, such as women’s empowerment or education, or can offer practical skills such as building, teaching, conducting research or even offering self-defence classes, we can find the best program for you.
Chat with our team about what you’d love to contribute to during your community development internship abroad, and they’ll give you a selection of inspiring program options to choose from.
Contribute to long-term impact
Partnering with community development internships that enable long-term impact is crucial to ensuring systemic change. Temporary programs may provide immediate relief, but they often fail to address the root cause of the problem.
GVI has permanent staff and permanent bases all around the world to ensure that our programs and partnerships with local organisations are continuous.
When you join a GVI internship, you’re guaranteed to be part of something truly meaningful and impactful. You’ll work with local organisations and real partners on hands-on community development work that’s aligned to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).
See the world responsibly
Joining an internship abroad with GVI is one of the best ways to ensure you travel in an ethical and responsible way. You’ll be able to immerse yourself in the community in a meaningful way through programs that deeply respect the local culture, customs and traditions.
The GVI team partners with locals to curate truly authentic experiences that promote cultural exchange and support local businesses and initiatives. With our programs, you’ll never exploit the local culture or cause harm to the environment, wildlife or community.
You’ll get the rare chance to build new relationships, get to know a new and unique way of living and feel part of the community – and something bigger than yourself.
We also train all our staff and participants in responsible travel and development best practices – including our robust child protection policies that are applied across our programs. Our ethics support principles of human, economic, intellectual, environmental and cultural empowerment. And all GVI program objectives are aligned with the 17 UN SDGs. We’re dedicated to making an impact, ethically.
