The Young Workers Volunteer Program is aimed at young adults who want to clarify career goals and gain intercultural knowledge. People that want to grow personally and gain work experience.
This 12-months program provides you with an easily accessible opportunity for effecting positive societal change through volunteering, while improving your skills and competences for personal, educational, and professional development. Non-formal and formal learning opportunities during the program will enable you to acquire essential competences for personal growth in order to become an Active Global Citizen, thereby improving your employment prospects and facilitating your transition into the labor market.
There are various projects in this program in Outdoor Education, which are looking for young, highly motivated team members to play an active part in their organization and to contribute to the daily work routine of the organization.
Projects Description: Outdoor Education
Within the Young Workers Volunteer Program, AFS Germany offers the possibility to work for a provider of outdoor experiential education for school groups of all ages. Centers which host groups for educational excursions may require volunteers to guide those groups through the fields and natural environment. They also conduct sportive activities with them. Volunteers may also help in organizing the program, giving information, help with logistics and supervision. Some environment centers have visitors or overnight guests as well as a shops or cafés. In this case volunteers will take care of the guests, give Information when needed, help in the shops or cafés, and do kitchen or cleaning duty. Please note that volunteers assisting in outdoor adventure education need to be prepared for physical activities.
As a Young Worker you will learn to conduct courses independently within a defined educational framework based on experiential learning and teaching methods. The overall aim is to help you develop a competence profile that will enable you to make a competent choice of education activities and plan a course program. Under conditions of high security and given quality standards, you will co-manage class and group trips in a young and professional team.
- Working language is German
- 12-months program participation
- Driving licence and willingness to drive is advantageous
- Depending on the Project, work might include climbing, Swimming, canoeining, hiking
- Volunteers should not be afraid of heights or water
- Volunteers will get an introductory training including sports and a first aid class in the beginning.
Volunteers’ report
Paula (2016) writes: “Before I came here I expected to be working in whatever chore I was needed. However, when I arrived it was explained to me that I was expected to become one more Teamer, which translates to preparing, executing and being in charge of courses, alongside another teammate, aimed at children or adolescents. A course can have either a 3, 5 or 10 days duration. Also, when the amount of courses is low, we partake in projects aimed at improving the conditions of facilities. One of the aspects I believed contributed to a great acclimatization was the planning my boss prepared for me. My first week was solely dedicated to get to know all of our premises as well as the basics on what the organization is and how we work. The week after that, I got the opportunity to take part as “the third teamer” in a course aimed at young adults from a Special Education Facility.
I believe this was the right step to follow as it gave me a hand on experience to understand nd the information I had previously read about and the theory I would be getting to deepen on the coming weeks.”
Victor (2016) writes: “There are a lot of things that I enjoy from my work. It is a place where you can learn a lot from a lot of things: Interactions, reflections and games with a lot of people from different ages that come to us every week; we have seminars about really interesting and cool topics like cooking or “Ski Langlauf”; Moreover from all this incredible actions, I like that I am able to practice and improve my German a lot, since I have to talk to the people (kids, young people, adults) that come every week and explain them the interactions that we offer. When I feel a little bit down or stressed it is nice to talk to the others and feel their support and comprehension. The atmosphere in my work place is really dinamic and crazy. Everybody is always on movement and with a lot of energy.”
