Caring Causes: Spring Break with Projects Abroad

Volunteering abroad is becoming a popular alternative for students seeking a different spring break experience and the specialized trips offered by Projects Abroad have seen a noticeable increase in the number of students signing up. The organization is passionate about offering travel options to engage every student's goals and interests and has added a new program in Mexico to their schedule for Alternative Spring Break Trips available in 2015.

The new Public Health in Mexico trip focuses on providing important healthcare services in local communities. Based in Guadalajara, volunteers will work in poverty-stricken urban areas, including schools and orphanages, and participate in medical outreach work and public health campaigns. All volunteers work alongside qualified doctors and nurses and will gain a great deal of practical experience in the field. It is also a fantastic opportunity to engage with locals in a Spanish-language environment. This trip is ideal for pre-med students building a resume for medical school and those studying healthcare fields such as nursing and community health.

"Our Alternative Spring Break Trips are designed with short-term volunteering in mind and give motivated university students the chance to break away from the usual spring break experience and get involved with service projects," says Tom Pastorius, Head of Pacific Recruitment for Projects Abroad. "Students from all over the country are becoming more interested in programs that will help them achieve this goal and we are very excited about expanding our roster with programs that will help them do this."

Alternative Spring Break Trips are scheduled around major university calendars. In addition to Mexico, the organization also has a variety of volunteer service programs available in Costa Rica, Jamaica, Ghana, and Morocco.

For high school students who wish to travel and volunteer over spring break, Projects Abroad has also added spring 2015 dates for the Care & Community in Jamaica project. On this project, teen volunteers spend a week helping out at a summer camp for underprivileged children. Getting the children involved in arts and crafts activities, debates, quizzes, photography, sign language, drama, sports, and more is crucial and helps foster social development and cultural exchange.

For more information about Alternative Spring Break Trips in 2015, visit www.projects-abroad.org/volunteer-projects/alternative-spring-break-trips.