I realize Ms. Winkler is not American, but I am ever puzzled that any student feels it’s necessary to travel overseas to do good works. There’s plenty of need right here in inner cities, rural areas, and on Native American reservations. And charitable institutions in the US can be properly vetted beforehand.
I get sick of posts bragging about how the student had to fly to Costa Rica to “volunteer”.
And then there’s the one by the kid who admittedly barely speaks French, and wants validation to do a paid “volunteer” program in a Paris hospital during summertime tourism high season. 8-|
Most of the children in foreign orphanages, like most of the children in foster care in the US, are not orphans as they have living parents. Some countries allow relinquishment, other countries have abandonment.
I’m surprised that people think those in ‘orphanages’ are orphans. Many aren’t called orphanages, but children’s homes, social welfare institutes, or state homes. Many are put there by their families because the families can’t afford to feed them or give them medical care.
Agree that truly good works can, and should, be done close to home. They also should never be tied to proselytizing for any religious group. NO kudos to any HS or college kid who does spring/winter summer breaks going away to help, and oh, btw, spread their religion. As I understand it colleges are not that impressed with those who find someone to fund their foreign vacation in the guise of charity work either. There are so many students who can’t afford the costs (nor would I donate so they could).
This sounds like a Parent Café topic.
I’ve sat through more than one college admission session where this topic came up, and I clearly remember it being something that does NOT impress adcoms on most applications. The point was made that there are plenty of people who need help in your own area and that expensive travel in order to show “community service” is sometimes not looked at in a favorable manner. 
Just think what some charities could do w a several thousand dollar donation from families who pay for these programs so their kid can be Marie Antoinette pretending to be a shepherdess.
Gee, I’m on a roll. I think I’ve agreed more with @GMTPlus7 in the last few days more than we’ve agreed on anything… ever? 
But really… I’ve worked with foster children, abused women and children, and not to mention non-human charities in my own backyard for as long as I can remember. It makes me want to tear my hair out when people would rather spend thousands to “go volunteer” than to put that money to actual good use.
Not to mention that I’ve railed for years on here (it seems like it used to come up a lot more than it does now) that it’s a rare occurrence that one’s “help” actually does more good than harm.
ETA: And I admit, I did a study abroad program. Yes, in Costa Rica. I lived with a Bribri community for several months and helped them get a tourism program up and running. They specifically wanted someone from the US to come and assist with bilingual websites and whatnot because they weren’t sure how to market to Americans (their target audience). Yes, there were people living in other parts of the country that were bilingual but very few who were familiar with American customs/tourism. I did this through a scholarship at my undergrad which was specifically marked for poor students studying abroad in Latin America.
There are some groups that do some good, that return to a same site year after year, work modestly/long hours, and can show results over time. There are also kids from third world countries who go back to their family home countries to help, bring medical supplies and services, work on energy projects, building schools, etc. Some of this is noble and has purpose beyond tourism and self congratulations. Or converting souls.
It’s difficult to slam all efforts because there’s an issue in one country ( or more,) with one type of volunteer, or because, in this case,some number of the needy kids aren’t technically “orphans.”
But I wholeheartedly agree there is also work needed in one’s own community. Too may kids somehow think travelling to some far off land is somehow shinier. Too many dart in and dart out, do little while there and won’t lift a finger where they live. It misses the point.
Just got back from my son’s senior awards night where the principal gushed over one young lady’s charity work in central America when awarding her a service scholarship. I know that adcoms see right through this sort of thing but the nice old people who are donating a thousand dollars for a scholarship in their family name are completely in awe of it. I expect she won this award over several kids who are doing real and substantial volunteer work in our own community. (The principal is kind of an idiot too but that’s another story.)
I know of a student that volunteers in central america every summer but one of the reasons she does that is to learn Spanish. She stays 3-4 weeks at a time and her mom told me the cost of all the weeks together is less than one week of a sleep over language camp here in the US. And there she gets the full immersion. The family is very happy of the arrangement as they think the daughter not only learns a language but also gets more mature by living abroad and also has some other opportunities by shadowing some professionals of interest. In the same time she volunteers certain hours each day so she can check that box off as well. I did not look at it very closely but family seems very happy and the student looks forward every summer to go.
For me, it is so obvious that some of these volunteering abroad programs are more about traveling to an exotic place, than the volunteering itself.
Otherwise, kids would just go volunteer for free at their local food bank, animal shelter, homeless shelter, Habit for Humanity, etc. Or, at least sign up with AmeriCorps. But dealing with inner-city kids in big, gritty American cities isn’t quite as exotic as living with the natives in a “quaint” village in Central America. And you can’t go hiking in the jungle on your day off.
And for what they cost, you could take that money and apply to an immersion language program, if that’s your child’s goal.
I do agree that some volunteer efforts may do some good. I’ve talked with a lady in my Spanish class at the local cc, who goes to Guatemala every other year with a church group. She said they build and./or help maintain schools in rural areas, and provide supplies, textbooks, school uniforms, etc. as well as help pay teachers. I asked about the religious component (because I’m wary of missionary efforts that require church attendance, etc, in order to receive aid) and she said the Christian group her church volunteers with does not require the children and their families to attend church, be Christian, etc.
As always, The Onion is all over this:
http://www.theonion.com/article/6-day-visit-to-rural-african-village-completely-ch-35083
There’s also a satirical Instagram called White Savior Barbie: http://qz.com/666690/the-creators-of-white-savior-barbie-are-two-white-women-who-want-to-hold-volunteers-accountable/
Many/most admissions offices may well see thru this. But I am willing to bet that not all of them do. So at least in some cases, it may well work.
And I suspect that at least in some cases, parents are looking for a way of advertising that they are full pay when applying to at least some purported “need blind” colleges.
Local opportunities can be great. But “need” is relative. US has first world problems compared to third world problems. But that is a whole different issue and often times these types of programs aren’t really addressing third world problems.
When they see the expensive short term trip, many will look to see what the kid does at home. Not all care about ECs. But those competitives that do are also looking for some wisdom, perspective and maturity. Those expensive short trips arent any “it.”
“completely changed her profile picture on Facebook.” Yow.
I think that it depends. Let’s say you’re a kid that does community service through your church. You build up a record of local service and they you get selected to go on a mission trip to somewhere in South America and you also have been studying Spanish. If service abroad is embedded in a long-term commitment with a given organization, that seems a lot more genuine than a random two-week stint in an orphanage or a rural village where you don’t speak the language.
I’m going to admit my child went to the galapagos islands through one of these organizations - GLA. She volunteered regularly at home. I never viewed this as a “legit” way to volunteer, and she learned a lot on the trip about the environment and ecology, helped clear brush and paths. It wasn’t to show ad coms anything. She always dreamed of going there, found a way to go and did it and had a great experience. I viewed it as a summer camp.
Volunteers often offer one invaluable gift: the gift of English.
There are nations (Cambodia is one of them) where English is a stepping stone out of abject poverty. At the same time, there is no money for English teachers – the ones who speak the language will earn much more as, for example, hotel maids, than teachers. Especially teachers in an orphanage school.
So these volunteers do what missionaries used to do: teach the language and encourage education. I’ve met many people in the developing world who learned English this way. Teaching English isn’t as glamorous as “building clinics,” but it’s something volunteers can do more or less effectively, depending on their willingness to push themselves and their background.
To us it may sound like a dubious contribution, but to many people too poor to attend schools with professional English educators, volunteers are crucial.
And just to be clear, I think it’s very smart to be cautious when it comes to giving money to “orphanages” since scams do exist in otherwise legitimately poor countries, such as Cambodia.