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Volunteering and internships in international cooperation: how to get started the right way
- Page updated onMarch 15, 2026
Are you thinking about volunteering or are you already involved in a social cause? Well, you should know that with this, not only can you have an important impact on society, but it can also serve as a first step in an eventual career in humanitarian action and development cooperation. If you are already preparing and moving towards it with your basic academic training, in addition, you could do internships in organizations. In some cases, with care and careful study of the options, you may even be able to access international volunteering that is safe and of high quality.
These paths are often the first contact of future professionals with the humanitarian sector, where social sensitivity, self-initiative and the competences and skills they learn are highly valued. In addition, they often help to alleviate the lack of professional experience when looking for a first job.
Table of contents:
Why start with local volunteering before going international
Local volunteering is a coherent and responsible option to contribute to society and develop skills for the future
Volunteering not only brings benefits to society, but also to yourself. Volunteering in social action and activism and getting involved in youth and student associations can help you develop skills and competencies that, in the future, can be key in a job in development cooperation or humanitarian action.
In local volunteering you can learn a lot about teamwork, planning activities, problem solving, interpersonal communication with people from different backgrounds and cultures, preparing reports, seeking funding and grant justification, time management, coordinating teams of less experienced people, or just getting to know from the inside what it's like to work in a humanitarian organization.
Local volunteerism has enormous value in responding to the problems of the population
All of the above can be developed, in most cases, close to where you live, either in formal associations and social movements or in more informal community initiatives. In any context there are people in vulnerable situations, marginalized or suffering discrimination and ways to get actively involved. Although in some contexts the authorities restrict this type of voluntary social action, in most contexts it is possible. In some contexts, moreover, volunteering plays an essential role that neither the state nor professional organizations are able to fill.
In many contexts of humanitarian crises, from natural disasters to armed conflicts, it is volunteers who first respond to assist their communities and societies. Their commitment and responsibility can be far more decisive than that of international actors, something that the humanitarian system is beginning to recognize more and more. These people are not only looking for their own survival, but to help protect others, even in the most difficult times.
Voluntourism is not volunteering: how to spot it
Two weeks of community service in an exotic country for anyone willing to pay?
Under the name of solidarity tourism trips or cooperation volunteers, travel agencies (incorporated as associations or companies) offer interested persons the possibility of paying to travel for a few weeks to low- and middle-income countries. The usual claim is to live an enriching and unforgettable personal experience, without requiring any qualifications.
In many cases, these trips do not meet the needs of local communities. Moreover, they can be highly inefficient, consuming personal and economic resources that could be put to better use. Worst of all, they can even be dangerous for the volunteers themselves or for those who in theory should benefit from the volunteer action.
Not everything that glitters is gold in international volunteering
Some of these agencies exploit local needs by providing far less than would be achieved by directly hiring local professional staff. No, there is no need for anyone from abroad to help build a wall in Tanzania or help cook for ladies in Bolivia who have been doing it all their lives.
Likewise, some of the tasks suggested for unqualified persons may be completely inappropriate. For example, it poses an enormous risk to child protection that the care of minors in some centers is systematically left to unqualified tourists. Even in the best of cases, these people generate strong, non-durable emotional bonds with the children. In addition, some orphanages are known to be a dishonest business, paying families who can and should care for the children to send them to the center. Similarly, it is unethical to offer students in training the possibility of volunteering to provide health care in places with few resources, without proper supervision or accompaniment.
This type of tourist trip generally does not comply with any of the legal requirements to be considered a real volunteer: insurance, training and accompaniment, safety conditions, and payment of expenses incurred for the performance of the agreed tasks. Furthermore, it does not add much to the skills or competencies of the person performing it, nor to his or her resume, despite its cost.
It is very important to be aware of the risks of some volunteering options and the security measures of the organizations
There are organizations that offer volunteer opportunities adapted to local needs and the qualifications of the volunteers. In addition, they are offered a certain amount of training and accompaniment.
Sometimes these organizations manage the risks and security aspects very well. At other times, however, they do not have the capacity or the means to guarantee a minimum level of safety and security in the destination country. This is especially sensitive in many contexts that are riskier than they appear at first glance. In these cases, adequate medical assistance and repatriation insurance is not provided for volunteers from other countries, or a good risk analysis has not been carried out to minimize the risk of illness, traffic accidents, theft or even attacks.
In other humanitarian and conflict contexts, simply performing any voluntary or professional action on the front line of response poses an enormous risk to the physical integrity of the person doing it. The risks in these cases are very high, despite the organizations' efforts to mitigate them, and individuals must be aware of whether they are willing and able to assume them.
How to get an internship in humanitarian NGOs
The opportunity to get to know international organizations and for them to get to know you
Some NGOs (and UN agencies) offer valuable opportunities for (usually young) internships at their headquarters and offices. In most cases, these internships do not include the possibility of traveling to other countries or to complex humanitarian crises (usually for good reasons).
These internships are usually associated with academic institutions or with the study of certain postgraduate programs, such as masters in global health or international cooperation. They are also sometimes open to interested recent graduates who spontaneously contact the organization, a department or one of the people working there to proactively propose an unpaid internship.
Internships in NGOs can provide a valuable unpaid professional experience. This experience can also be useful to get to know yourself better and see if your expectations fit with the day-to-day reality of the job, make yourself known in the sector and meet experienced professionals who can inspire you and even serve as a source of information and guidance on how to continue your career. There are many cases in which, after an internship, that person ends up working in the organization.
When contacting the organization, show proactivity and autonomy
When considering an internship in NGOs, it is highly recommended not just to send a resume and a generic email explaining your motivation. If there is no existing internship program, it may be difficult for the organization to "make room" for someone to join who, if they have little autonomy, may have a workload that they do not have the capacity to monitor and supervise. If there is an existing program, there may be a lot of competition for a few positions.
In fact, it is highly recommended that, when contacting an organization to suggest an internship, you demonstrate a good knowledge of the organization and the priority areas of its work, and even propose actions to be carried out that may be of interest.
Many organizations would be willing to open their doors for an internship or unpaid collaboration to someone who would offer to prepare training and learning materials, help assess how the latest global recommendations on a topic are being or could be applied in international projects, or analyze existing information from past or ongoing projects to help draw lessons learned of what works and what doesn't work, for example. Many of these tasks can even be performed remotely and can fill needs that the organization's staff never has time for.
Even in cases where what is proposed is not exactly what the organization needs, it is easier for them to make a collaboration offer to someone who demonstrates autonomy, creativity, proactivity and technical knowledge, than to someone who just sends a resume.
The best international volunteering programs
Finally, there are international volunteer programs fully in accordance with the law and the principles of cooperation, but they are scarce. This type of volunteering is usually qualified and directed to people with the appropriate academic background (including health personnel) and professional experience. In addition, all expenses (travel, accommodation, food, insurance, vaccinations, etc.) are covered to enable the volunteer to join an existing professional team at the intervention site.
Two very good examples: European Solidarity Corps and UN Volunteers
Possibly the best example of international volunteering for someone living in Europe is the European Solidarity Corps initiative. This program offers the possibility of humanitarian volunteering in safe countries, thus integrating the former EU Aid Volunteers initiative. Under this initiative, young people between 18 and 35 years of age with professional experience are offered the possibility of volunteering in the field for several months to a year. This volunteering, moreover, is carried out with accredited professional organizations, after receiving comprehensive introductory training.
For those living outside Europe, similar programs exist such as the Peace Corps in the United States or equivalent initiatives in other countries.
Similar to this model is also the United Nations Volunteer Program (UN Volunteers), which offers different options, including youth and university volunteering (from 18 to 26 years old) and specialist volunteering (from 26 to 35 years old) and expert volunteering (from 35 years old).
This type of volunteering also provides unpaid professional experience that is well recognized by many humanitarian organizations and can help to access future employment in international cooperation. However, there are usually very few vacancies for international contexts. For this reason, they require a selection process in which having previously volunteered locally is highly valued: all the more reason to start close to where you are, whatever your context.
Volunteering for qualified and experienced health care workers
Finally, for health personnel qualified to practice their profession in the public health system and with at least several years of professional experience there may also be some additional possibilities for international volunteering.
In several countries there is the possibility of joining emergency medical teams (within the framework of the World Health Organization's initiative of the same name). After passing a selection process, the selected personnel join a pool of volunteers. In the event of a humanitarian emergency, this pool is mobilized to deploy a full medical team that can provide the health services of a field hospital with surgical capabilities.
Preparation and training
How to cite this page
Abarca, B. (March 16, 2026). Volunteering and internships in international cooperation: how to get off to a good start. Salud Everywhere. https://saludeverywhere.com/en/humanitarian-careers/volunteering-internships-international-cooperation/
External links
- European Union. European Solidarity Corps.
- IFRC. Volunteer with us.
- UN Volunteers. Volunteer abroad.
- WHO. Emergency medical teams.
- The Global Humanitarian. A Comprehensive Guide to the United Nations Volunteers Program (UNV).
- The Global Humanitarian. 10 Ethical International Volunteer Opportunities You Can Trust.