My name is Sofiia, and over my time on Erasmus, I spent three months volunteering in Italy.
When I was 19, I volunteered and participated in activities with the Ukrainian NGO "Centre for European Initiatives". At the same time, I studied for a Bachelor's degree and worked as a journalist in my city- I was actively involved in various international volunteering projects, and dreamed of taking part in such an initiative. Therefore, I knew in principle how to look for a host organisation, and just before graduating from my Bachelor's degree I started doing this.
In volunteering, I wanted to use English and at the same time learn another foreign language. From the very beginning, I had preferences for Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. I wanted to do something useful for society, be active, and express myself. I also wanted to learn to take responsibility for myself and others.
At first, I looked for projects in special Facebook groups, where, as a rule, they publish information about volunteering programs and offers in other countries. I responded and sent my motivation letter and CV, but no one answered. Then I sent emails to various organisations, told about my own volunteering experience, tried to introduce myself somehow. Some organisations wrote back to me, who were not averse to conducting an interview with me. But in May, I received an offer from the NGO "Center for European Initiatives" about a project that was to take place in Italy, in Florence. And the cards turned out so that I got what I wanted.
I said that I really wanted to go to Italy, but I studied the programs that were offered to us. It is important to choose the project, because a volunteer will spend a lot of time at work, which directly resonates with the chosen direction. I wanted something related to project management and I managed to find such a project. I went for the minimum period of 3 months, but you can stop volunteering if personal reasons arise. And you can, on the contrary, continue, but provided that the duration of your project is less than a year. But these issues are resolved with the host organization.
Living conditions also need to be clarified on the eve of the trip, during the interview. As a rule, these descriptions are in the project itself, but it is better to clarify. After all, there may be certain changes and you always need to be prepared for them
I had an office job and I worked about five hours a day. We were engaged in organising youth exchanges, and I had to plan them, think over workshops and actually conduct them. There were about five such projects per year. In principle, my organisation had a fairly flexible schedule. For example, I could take a weekend or vacation whenever I wanted.
At first, it was very difficult to get used to a new country. For about a few weeks I felt uncomfortable and awkward, because I had few acquaintances and friends there. So these first weeks are the most important, because you need to not give up and not cancel the project. I just know that there are cases when misunderstandings occur with the host organization and other volunteers. You still need to be adaptable to changes and easy to get back on track. Everyone can have downs and very, very difficult situations. It is simply important not to close yourself off and leave your comfort zone.
So the following months were better. Before the trip, I made a list of things to do and desires, which I even exceeded during volunteering. As a result, I am very pleased that this happened. For example, there are two weekends every month, which you can then accumulate and take a vacation for a week or more to travel or even go home. Sometimes I went to other cities even twice a month.
After volunteering, I returned home for two months. And I had a bit of a shock: the same thing happened to me at the beginning of my life in Italy. I had to get used to Ukraine again, because after living abroad everything seemed strange. I remember going to the supermarket and being shocked that the cashier didn't even say hello or wish me a good day.
Volunteering changed my life, not least because I got into Newcastle University. In fact, I had thoughts about studying abroad even before volunteering. But at that time it seemed very expensive and unrealistic. But after living in Italy, I understood how everything works and decided to try it.