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International Education Week Spurs Interest in Service-Learning Opportunities
Weak job market fueling demand for international volunteer programs among Americans
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, November 30, 2009 /University PR News/ -- The U.S. recently observed International Education Week that celebrated the benefits of international education and cultural exchange. This joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education is part of recent U.S. efforts to promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences in the United States.
In a recent statement by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, she notes "During International Education Week, we recognize the benefits of an American education for international students, and the value of studying abroad for American students...International educational exchanges help students and educators around the world to understand one another better. Together we must respond to the challenges of poverty and hunger, climate change, public health, and economic revitalization...Through international educational exchanges, we can build bridges of respect and understanding that will connect people and enable us to work together, now and in the future, for a better world".
With the US and worldwide economic downturn and job crisis, there is a steep rise in westerners traveling overseas to gain volunteer work experience in foreign countries. Recent college grads and young business people are choosing stipends and mosquito nets, rather than competing in flooded markets for internships or jobs that fail to meet U.S. monetary standards of living. Programs providing these international educational opportunities are growing in number.
Global Service Corps (GSC), a leader in international service learning volunteer program development, has been providing "mini-Peace Corps" international cross cultural service-learning experiences for Americans since 1993. In order to better understand the level of interest among volunteers in international placements, GSC conducted a September 2009 survey of U.S. consumers interested in volunteer opportunities. The GSC survey confirms substantial interest in service-learning programs abroad which deliver affordable and accessible cross cultural exchange and which can also serve as a platform for career building among participants:
• 57% of respondents indicated they had conducted some form of volunteer work in the past and were interested in doing international volunteer work.
• 70% of respondents said they would be interested in volunteering while on vacation.
• The top three areas of interest for international volunteer activities were:
o HIV/AIDS Education and Prevention (55%)
o Public Health (52%)
o Caring for Orphans and Disabled Children (43%)
• Volunteers surveyed were most interested in information about funding volunteer placements (#1) and strategies for linking volunteer abroad experiences to career development (#2).
The GSC survey was fielded to over 13,000 consumers with 456 survey respondents and is accurate at a 95% confidence level +/- 3-4%. For more details about the Global Service Corps 2009 Consumer Survey, please contact Rick Lathrop, Executive Director, Global Service Corps.
About GSC
GSC has been a pioneer and a respected leader in international service-learning since 1993. With over twelve volunteer programs in Thailand, Cambodia and Tanzania including HIV/AIDS education and prevention, sustainable agriculture and food security, public health, English language instruction, and Buddhist cultural immersion, GSC volunteers, interns and fellows work with local communities in Africa and Asia to design and implement effective community-based programs providing life-changing learning experience for American participants and lasting value to underserved populations in these areas.
For more information, please visit www.globalservicecorps.org.
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Press Release Contact Information:
Rick Lathrop
Global Service Corps
Executive Director
3543 18th Street
San Francisco, CA
USA 94110
Voice: (415) 551-0000
Fax: (415) 861-8969
Website: Visit Our Website |
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