Volunteering with vostel.de | A little Guide
We are very pleased that you are interested in an volunteering through vostel.de. Before you start, we would like to invite you to get some basic knowledge about the function of our platform as well as the dos and don’ts of volunteering with us. We have summarized the essentials for you under the following sections 🙂
- What exactly is vostel.de?
- What is vostel.de not about?
- I want to support social projects with vostel – how does it work?
- What requirements do I need to fulfill as a volunteer?
- How do I volunteer with an impact?
- What do I have to consider for certain target groups an what can I (not) expect?
What exactly is vostel.de?
vostel.de is a volunteering platform and an intermediary between non-profit organisations and volunteers.
Non-profit organisations use vostel.de to promote volunteering opportunities by uploading them on our platform. These are verified by our team and published, if they meet all our criteria. Our platform gives interested volunteers the opportunity to find out more about specific volunteering opportunities and either register directly for a project or get in touch with the organisation themselves. The use of the platform is for organisations and volunteers free of charge!
What is vostel.de not about?
On vostel.de you won’t find fulltime-volunteering opportunities or volunteering programs that would include support in applying for visa, accommodation or travel funds.
But have a look at weltwärts, ijdg or VEM – they all offer South-North volunteer programs and might be the right ones to address.
I want to support social projects with vostel – how does it work?
Our filters allow you not only to search directly for particular topics and target groups. They also allow you to search for specific districts in your city and volunteering opportunities that match your German language skills or your schedule.
You should think about how much time you can spare for volunteering work early on. While certain projects require you to volunteer once, others require regular and long-term support. Especially, when working for organisations where establishing trustful relationships with people is of great importance (for instance, when working with children), you should exclude a single or irregular volunteer assignment from the beginning. You can find out more about this in the section “How do I volunteer with an impact?“.
If there are no local volunteering opportunities from non-profit organizations in your area, you can easily get involved in a location-independent project. In addition, our 5-minute commitments offer you inspiration for your own individual commitment in everyday life.
What requirements do I need to fulfill as a volunteer?
In general, you should be motivated to volunteer for projects fitting your preferences and competencies, get to know and experience other living situations and constantly learn new things.
The specific requirements for volunteering in a specific project can be found in the project description. Many of the projects listed on vostel.de require little or no prior knowledge or experience. However, others, especially those that imply close interactions with people, often require prior target group-specific experiences. For that reason, please always read the requirements thoroughly and evaluate for yourself whether you fulfill them (especially in terms of availability and German language skills). In addition, you should also consider in advance whether you are sufficiently emotionally prepared for the project (cf. paragraph “What do I have to keep in mind for certain projects and what can I or can I not expect?”).
For some projects, you have to provide a health or police clearance certificate. This often concerns projects for food saving or with children and teenagers. Please check out our FAQ to find out, how to obtain these certificates (under Health and Safety Certificate).
How do I volunteer with an impact?
The “impact” of your commitment may seem small at times, but you can be assured: Your support is needed and its impact often goes far beyond mere task fulfillment. In order for the time and effort you invest as a volunteer to be fully effective, there are some basic things to keep in mind which we have summarized for you in the following blog post.
What do I have to consider for certain target groups an what can I (not) expect?
Each project and each target group usually has its own or special requirements. To give you an overview of these, in collaboration with the organisations that work with us, we have summarized some target group specific tips.
Volunteering with children and teenagers
A commitment for children and young people is actually a steady burner on vostel.de. In order to make your work with children and young people effective, there are a few things to consider. We have summarised the 4 most important aspects in the following blog post.
Volunteering with elderly people
Many older people are dependent on support. This applies not only to seniors living alone, but also to those already staying in nursing homes. To help you evaluate whether a commitment with and for older people is the right thing for you, we have summarised three important points in our latest blog post.
Volunteering with people with disabilities
What limits people with disabilities are usually not their physical, mental and/or psychological characteristics – they have often already become quite accustomed to these, but above all the barriers in everyday life that hinder them and thus limit them in the first place. In addition, there is often a certain stigmatisation by other people. In order to be well prepared for your commitment to people with disabilities, we have put together 4 tips for you here.
Volunteering with refugees
Projects with and for refugees have been an integral part of our platform. Over the years we were able to gain a lot of experience about important aspects when volunteerig for/ with refugees. We would like to share these experiences in the blog post “3 tips for volunteering with refugees” with you.
Volunteering for homeless people
According to estimates of the BAG Wohnungslosenhilfe e.V., more than 678,000 people in Germany have no home and are thus considered as flatless (as of November 2019) – and the trend is rising.
If these numbers concern you as much as they concern us and you want to do more than just donating change or clothes, maybe volunteering for homeless people is the right thing for you. We will let you know here, what you need to keep in mind.
Volunteering for animals
If you don’t have the possibility to own a pet, you can integrate your love for animals into your everyday life, for example, with a commitment for and/or with animals. We have summarized for you here what is important.
We hope that we have been able to give you a comprehensive overview on the topic of volunteering. Should you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us at hello@vostel.de.
Your team from vostel.de
Hallo,
Ich heisse Kalyani Madan, eine 50 jaehrige Inderin. Ich lerne und unterrichte Deutsch in Bangalore seit einigen Jahren.
Wollte gern dieses Jahr I’m November eine kurzfristige Deutschlehrersausbildung machen, aber das hat mir nicht gelungen.
Freiwillige Arbeit ist in der Naehe meiner Herze und das have ich seit Jahren und ausfuehrlich gemacht.
Wenn ich durch einen 4 woechigen Aufenthalt in Deutschland etwas mit Minsern mitmachen koennte, waere es wunderbar. Damit koennte ich auch vielleicht meine Sprachkenntnisse verbessern.
Mit freundlichen Gruessen,
Kalyani
Storytelling, book reading, German teaching, English teaching, are some of the areas are of my interest.