Volunteering opportunity in Romania – Life Skills for Rural Education

Team for Youth Association in Baia Mare, in Romania is looking for volunteers from France, Italy, New Caledonia, Austria, Portugal, Germany and Spain for a 12 months European Voluntary Service through the Erasmus Plus Programme of the European Commission.

The “Life skills for Rural Education” service of the volunteers starts in May 2016, or immediately after we select the participants, and brings together 10 volunteers from Germany, Austria, France, New Caledonia, Spain, Portugal and Italy. The project has as a general topic the educational development in Baia Mare and rural areas around, by introducing nonformal methods of education into primary schools and high-schools. The 10 volunteers will be hosted in Baia Mare and will work both in the hosting city and its surroundings.

• Name of the project: Life Skills for Rural Education
• Type of project: European Voluntary Service
• Period of the service: 12 months – starting as soon as possible
• Number of volunteers: 10 international volunteers
• Places available per country:
  • France, Spain and Austria: 2 volunteers/country
  • Germany, Italy, Portugal and New Caledonia: 1 volunteer/country

• Location: Baia Mare (Romania) and its surroundings
• Hosting organization: Team for Youth Association
  www.t4uth.ro
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• Project financed by: European Commission through the Erasmus+ Programme

The work of the volunteers in the community will bring opportunities for alternative education during school schedule and after classes, for their free time. Volunteers will organize educational activities such as science fairs and competitions, sports activities of different types, painting classes, clay modeling, dancing and education through games, origami, and storytelling etc.

• organizing short term activities like seminars and debates on different topics that encourage active citizenship;
• planning, organizing and facilitating personal community projects in villages;
• planning and facilitating summer camps in the villages;
• assisting educational activities in schools from rural areas, providing after-school opportunities for children in villages;
• assisting language lessons in schools and high-schools of Baia Mare;
• providing help in kindergartens;
• holding Intercultural presentations.

Team for Youth Association sketched the general features for the profile of the candidates, according to the proposed activities:

• aged between 18 to 30 years;
• coming from Italy, Germany, Austria, New Caledonia, France, Spain or Portugal;
• having a strong motivation to work in an international team of volunteers;
• understanding the concept of being a volunteer and having the desire to be involved in a process of community work;
• willing to work closely with teachers from schools and high-schools;
• being motivated to work with children, especially in the rural areas;
• feeling comfortable with the idea of being the center of attention, comfortable to answer the curiosity of others about them;
• being an ambassador of their culture, willing to talk and make presentation about their country
• neing decided to analyze situations, communicate about problems and seek solutions to make things work better, both for themselves and the others, being proactive and confident;
• willing to learn and develop themselves, in an intercultural team;
• having long term objectives for being part of the project.

The activities of the project require medium language competences in English. A level of communication that allows the volunteer to get around in a foreign country would be more than enough.

What we provide?

• the volunteers will benefit from the full support of the Team for Youth Association staff and local volunteers in promoting, preparing and implementing activities;
• Team for Youth Association will also provide for the volunteers a mentor, as well as Romanian and English language teacher;
• The volunteers will share a flat with other long-term volunteers and there might also be the case of sharing one room with two beds. The flats are rented by Team for Youth Association and the volunteers do not have to contribute to the rent or the utilities;
• The volunteers will receive 450 RON (approximately 100 €) for food, transferred in bank card, provided by Team for Youth Association and 250 RON (60 €) pocket money, in cash. To avoid lack of budget management, Team for Youth Association decided to pay the Food money at the beginning of the month and Pocket money on 15th date of each month;
• Team for Youth Association will also provide a Romanian SIM card for phone, charged monthly, WI-FI available in the apartments and in the office as well;
• Travelling costs are covered by the budget of the project;
• All the volunteers will benefit from a medical insurance valid throughout the service, provided by the project, through the CIGNA Insurance Plan;
• In the end of your service, you will receive a YouthPass to certify your learning process and experience within the European Voluntary Service.