Psychology Volunteer Opportunities for High School, Undergraduate, University and College Students of Year 2024

Author: Ayushma Bista

Last Updated: January 6, 2024

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Located in the South of Asia, Nepal is a country known for its culture, nature, and hospitality. The country has been blessed in terms of natural resources and is rich with beautiful and attractive tourist spots and deep-rooted traditions. The country with its varied ecosystem and landscapes hosts a very rural living and a simple lifestyle. Visitors enjoy the country for its simplistic living. It is popular in Nepal for visitors and tourists to try to learn the culture by living and spending time with the locals.

The employment rate, living standards, and per capita income have been on the rise in the economy. The country seems to be joining its neighboring countries in the path towards economic prosperity. However, with the rapid shift in the working pattern and busy work life, it has hosted a compromised work-life balance, and an increased number of people are requiring psychological assistance. There are a handful of organizations that provide services that could be of help to these people. In these circumstances, anyone with a willingness to volunteer in the psychology field is deeply appreciated as the opportunities are immense.

What is Psychology Volunteering?

According to Psychology Today, psychology is the scientific study of human behavior, so it tries to take a peek at how the human mind functions in various circumstances. It studies human feelings, emotions, thoughts, behaviors alike. There are many fields in psychology that an interested individual can pursue such as clinical, child, marriage, school, as well as sports psychology to name a few. A psychologist practicing this discipline might link psychology with other disciplines such as medical science, neuroscience, social science and work together with them.

The very fact that you’re reading this means that you are already interested in some kind of volunteering work. So, psychology volunteering is open to professionals that are interested in the opportunities available in the sector of mental health. As a volunteer, you can get first-hand experience in the field that you are interested in and work with elderly people, children, and people in need. The act of giving as a volunteer should give you satisfaction along with the experience that you will collect for your professional career. If you didn’t already know, volunteering multiplies the weight of your CV enormously especially when you are in such a competitive field as psychology. 

What is a Psychology Volunteer Abroad Program?

Have you always been fascinated with the idea of learning a new language, culture, and lifestyle? If that is so, an abroad psychology volunteering program might be the best choice for you at the moment. Believe me, the number of new skills that you learn, bonds that you create, and the experience that you gain are all worth the adaptations you will have to make towards the beginning. The combined experience of traveling and learning while being at a new place might just be something you might need to boost your confidence. 

The countries that you volunteer at will forever be grateful for your contributions in the areas of their necessity. In Nepal, there are NGOs and NGOs that offer psychology volunteering opportunities. There are some opportunities that you will have to pay a very minimal fee for the accommodation and the services that you might consume during your stay. However, these minimum fees will be completely worth it compared to the practical and in-field education that you might be able to bag in. Oftentimes these volunteering works are in developing countries as they are the most in need of help from willing individuals.

Why High School, Undergraduate and College Students Should Join Psychology Volunteer Program

The volunteering experience will help you move towards a professional career that you have always envisioned for yourself. You will enrich yourself with the skill of time management, confidence, communication, teamwork, professionalism, leadership, problem-solving, work ethic, among dozens of others to name a few during your work as a volunteer. Your future employer will see your experience as a plus point while deciding to hire you.

The younger you are the better it is for you to start collecting volunteering opportunities. In a country like Nepal, there are a ton of contributions you can make in the field of psychology as a volunteer. Even as a high school graduate you can help in work such as: assisting in hospital and medical care centers. If anything, starting early can help you understand your interests better as a future psychologist.

Similarly, if you are in college studying for an undergraduate degree in psychology, you should consider joining a psychology volunteering program to expand your knowledge on the practical application of your theoretical learnings. People happily take gap years to visit rural places and developing countries to put valuable learnings into perspective. 

What might be stopping you from dedicating yourself to this journey is the lack of confidence or the fear of the unknown and it is a very natural thing to feel. Nonetheless, you must remind yourself that you will come through after this experience with unforgettable experiences and value-added to your CV.

The best thing about joining a volunteering program as a student is that their expectations from you are lowered. They only expect you to be willing to cooperate and open to learning and you will be good to go. There are several places you can look to apply for these programs. A Lot of websites already have the requirements mentioned in detail for your ease.

What is clinical psychology volunteering?

Clinical psychology is the application of psychology in the diagnosis and treatment of mental and psychological disorders. The practitioners that perform clinical psychology are known as clinical psychologists. There are further fields or areas of expertise in clinical psychology such as Child Psychologist, Clinical Social Worker, Counseling Psychologist, Medical Psychologist, Mental Health Social Worker to name a few. The people who have an interest in clinical psychology require a professional degree i.e either an undergraduate, graduate, or a doctorate. As a volunteer for clinical psychology, you will get to work together with the doctor and gain hands-on experience with clients in a medical setting. 

During any of these degrees, the students of clinical psychology typically require a minimum of a year's experience in some kind of internship. So, in this scenario, a volunteering program is a big help for students that will help them understand and apply their study in the field of clinical psychology while working as a volunteer and gain their life-changing experience. Practical learning is a compulsory part of any clinical psychologist, as a result, volunteering experiences are a big opportunity for any student. As a volunteer, you can observe the work in all the departments and fields of clinical psychology and decide which one you would want to pursue yourself.

What can a student do in a psychology research volunteer opportunities

As a student, putting yourself in a position where you can learn new things, experience new cultures, and gain new skills is the best thing you could decide to do. Volunteering opportunities can give you an insight into the outside world and real-life problems that you can use as a guideline to base your research project on. It is important however that you put in the research first about the potential psychology volunteer opportunities in a specific place. Make sure that the place that you decide to volunteer in matches your values, ethics, interests, and principles as that is where you are going to grow for the next 1 to 3 years. 

The students can get training, facilitation, and mentoring as required from the supervisors. You can also assist in teaching and in some programs teach children and small students as volunteers. Volunteering as a psychology research assistant (RA) will give you a practice-oriented experience on how the research process is. The professors will be happy to take you as their assistant and you can help them in the collection of data, processing, analysis, and coding as well. If you have been interested in non-clinical psychology i.e. research, volunteering is a great way to learn the steps involved in the scientific research process and to explore the methods used in research.

Can you volunteer as a psychologist?

As someone who tries to understand the human mind and behavior, your work is always valuable and required in any place in the world. You can volunteer as a psychologist in the field of work that you are specialized in. Whether you are a clinical, child, military, counseling, cognitive or developmental psychologist, in developing countries, where there is a huge requirement for help from interested individuals, your work will always be appreciated. As an expert, your knowledge and experience will help the organization or the medical institution in need to solve the problems that people are facing in that place. 

With your education and training, you can give professional assistance as well. Especially in the field of psychology, getting a job immediately after your graduate or undergraduate degree is very difficult. This is why, even as a psychologist you can volunteer as a health worker, assistant, or support care worker which might lend you a hand in stepping forward in your professional career. This might also be a crucial step to expand your networking in your respective field. Volunteering will give you insight as well as the chance to build relationships with professionals that are from all around the world. As a result, you get to advance your professional career in this field of psychology with the help of volunteer programs.

Who can participate in a Psychology volunteer abroad program?

There are set requirements for individuals willing to apply for the psychology volunteering abroad program. If you are trying to apply for one of these volunteer opportunities make sure that you check all the requirements. Most of the time, you are required to have a Visa or apply for one before even being eligible to apply for these programs. There also are age limits to these requirements as most of them require you to be at least 18 or above for you to be eligible to apply. Along with that, you might need to submit a criminal background test. Some volunteers might also need to pay for their stay or the internship opportunities that are provided to them. This might include the flight cost and transportation and living costs that are incurred by you. 

According to the position or program that you are applying for, you might also be required to complete a certain language course, and have completed your education up to a certain level. Before applying, make sure that you can use that volunteering program as a fulfillment of your college or university degree if required. In the field of the psychology volunteer program, if you are applying to work abroad make sure you understand the language as you will need to communicate with the locals. This will make your life much easier throughout your stay. Make sure that you understand all these requirements before confirming your program and moving out to a new country. 

Why does the third world need the Psychology Volunteers from Developed Countries?

In developing countries, as their economy rises and their living standards become a reflection of economic growth, there is also a simultaneous rise expected in psychological issues and a decline in mental health. As people move from a more monotonous lifestyle to a busy and scheduled structure, the social aspects of the lifestyle get compromised. 

Some institutions are taking steps towards mitigating these dire circumstances. However, there is an immense requirement for professionals who can provide expert guidance and assistance in the field of psychology. As these countries have very few health professionals and experts, it requires volunteers from developed countries. 

In a field like psychology, where psychologists need to attempt to understand human behavior and control it, it would be a blessing to have someone who can share their experience in clinical psychotherapy. Whatever one has learned in the university can be applied to better the situation and solve the problem of the developing country. 

One thing to keep in mind about developing countries is that their economy is behind and thus, their per capita income does not allow them to hire professionals. As a result, they can only expect people to assist volunteers and interns as the fee of hiring someone from a developed country would be very high. 

Your contributions will help not only the organization that you are involved with but the children, disabled, the elderly, or whoever you helped in need will remember you helping them in their time of need. Third world countries require this assistance to cope with the sudden growth in their lifestyle and the psychology volunteers from developed countries might be the best option. 

In a Nutshell: Psychology Volunteer Opportunities for High School, Undergraduate, University and College Students

With the volunteer experience that you collect from abroad, you can not only immensely increase your skills and knowledge but also feel a boost in your confidence. The experience will make you richer in your practical understanding of the theoretical learnings from your high school, undergraduate, or graduate education. 

You can apply in research initiatives, psychiatric clinics, or awareness campaigns to become a part of the volunteering programs. In Nepal, there are plenty of NGOs and INGOs that provide such opportunities. This might be the best professional add-on to your resume for your gap year in the psychology course. You can travel, learn and have fun as you enrich your professional and personal experiences through volunteering work.