• Volunteer projects in several countries throughout Asia.
  • Make a difference in a variety of dynamic projects.
  • Flexible program options allow you to volunteer from one week up to six months, depending on the country.
  • Build your resume while gaining global experience in your field of study.
  • Take advantage of our fundraising guide to help you pay for the cost of your Volunteer Experience!
Volunteer Experience Asia

Volunteer in Philippines

Assist local communities with their basic needs, focusing mainly on children. Volunteer in either urban or rural areas to assist and develop local Filipino communities through education, integration, research and volunteerism. A marriage of Eastern and Western cultures in a paradise-like setting, the Philippines has been described as the best-kept secret of the Orient. Made up of over seven thousand islands, the Philippines is home to numerous languages, mouth-watering foods, intricate traditions, and some very interesting animals (such as the monkey-eating eagle). Unfortunately, however, many Filipinos do not have the access to education, health care and jobs they deserve. This program will offer you the chance to experience life in a beautiful island location while making a difference in people’s lives.

Volunteer in one of four projects:

Teaching Programs

Day Care Center: Volunteers teach children ages 3 to 5 the alphabet and basic concepts like colors, shapes, sizes, days of the week, etc., through songs, stories and play. This program is not available during April and May.

Elementary and High School: Volunteers on this program teach elementary and high school students in public schools for two to four hours a day. Subjects taught include English, math, science, health, and basic computer skills (only in schools where computers are available). Volunteers may be teaching on their own but there will also be a local teacher available to assist. This program is not available during April and May.

Health Program

Philippine laws provide for a community health center in each of its 41,000 barangays (communities). Sadly, not all communities have their own health centers and those that have one are woefully under-equipped and understaffed. Medically-trained volunteers may help in community health centers and hospitals, and may perform medical tasks depending on their skills and qualifications.

Volunteers may also help set up clinics in public schools and train teachers and students to become effective health officers and clinic custodians. Only volunteers who are in their final year of study or who are professional doctors or nurses can participate in the Health Program. Health volunteers will be asked to live and immerse themselves in the communities where they will conduct medical missions, especially in the rural placements. This is done to give the volunteers a more holistic appreciation of the people they wish to help, their economic activities, culture, values, issues and struggles. At some point in their program, they will also be taken to both public and private hospitals to see the problems of the health sector in the Philippines.

School Building and Maintenance Program

Volunteers on the program will be doing the manual tasks of building. Your time will be spent repairing and painting school buildings.  Volunteers may also help in setting up libraries. Volunteers can start by asking for donations of old books from families, friends, towns, parishes and former schools. You can encourage the use of books by the students through class visitations and regular story-telling sessions. The objective is to introduce to public school students the joys of using a library, which most do not experience until college, if at all. Volunteers can spend up to one month on the School Building and Maintenance Program. If volunteers want to stay on the program longer, they can elect to combine their time with two or three programs.

Environment Program

The Philippines is one of the world's biodiversity hot-spots. Volunteers have the chance to help out placements to promote environmental conservation.  You can assist in operating a nursery for the propagation of mangrove seedlings, or you can help reforest mangrove sites by planting.  Volunteers can also help implement the marine sanctuary project with regular patrols, beach clean-ups and education on the needs and benefits of the project.

Short term volunteers will be placed around the capital city of Metro Manila, while long term volunteers will be placed in Romblon.

Program Dates

  • Volunteers are required to arrive before the start of the month they are volunteering in.
  • Training and orientation will be held on the 1st of each month.
  • The program has a minimum time frame of 2 weeks; however you can volunteer for a period of up to 6 months.
  • Volunteers will stay in Manila for the first two days for orientation (Program, Placement and Volunteer Work) and training (Language, Culture and History).