How did I end up volunteering in Timor-Leste? This is a good question and one I’ve asked myself a few times… I write this after being in Dili, the capital of Timor-Leste, for about six weeks, reflecting on how I got here. This post will give you some advice and an idea of what the application and induction process for Volunteer Service Abroad (VSA) is like. They are a New Zealand NGO that since 1962 have supported over 4,000 New Zealanders to volunteer overseas, primarily in the Pacific. Most of their funding comes from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade as part of New Zealand’s international development programme, but they also fundraise to cover the significant costs of supporting people in country on assignment.

I don’t remember exactly when I heard about VSA but it was probably in 2019 when I was living in Auckland and contemplating what to do next. I had moved to New Zealand from the UK in 2010 and became a New Zealand citizen (which is a requirement for VSA volunteers) in 2016. I probably came across VSA when Googling volunteering opportunities and was attracted to the unusual locations they work in (Timor-Leste, Bougainville, Kiribati) and their approach to volunteers.

At that stage the image of volunteering that came to mind for me was young people teaching English in a developing country (despite having no teaching experience) or helping at an animal sanctuary for a few weeks while on backpacking adventures. These neither appealed or made use of the fifteen years of professional experience I had.

The typical VSA model (though they have been experimenting with remote and blended assignments) is to recruit people with experience for specific roles that make use of their skills, and for people to be living in country for at least a year. You don’t work for VSA, they effectively recruit you on behalf of their partner organisations, which include international NGOs (like Oxfam), United Nations organisations, local NGOs (like HAMNASA where I’m helping), and government departments. They provide in-country support, accommodation, flights, any required vaccinations, travel and medical insurance, and cover your living costs.

In 2019 I applied for the role of a Business Association Adviser in Bougainville, an autonomous region of Papa New Guinea. I was so excited I basically failed the assessment centre by giving the impression that I’d disappear into the bush once I got there. My feedback was that I was too energetic and adventurous for Bougainville! Which, as these things often do, turned out for the best as if successful I would have left for Bougainville in February 2020, and returned, due to Covid, in March 2020…

So instead of moving to Bougainville I moved from Auckland to Wellington for a change of scenery, which worked out well as I met my partner, and enjoyed the almost car-free and hiking filled lifestyle that Wellington allows. In 2023 we took a four month trip around the Middle East and Europe which gave plenty of time for reflection on what we wanted to do with our time together. Memories are more important to us than possessions so the thought of slogging away at work for the next twenty years didn’t really appeal. I remembered about VSA and searched their website for opportunities suitable for the pair of us and came across a climate change role suitable for my partner, and a program quality advisor role suitable for me.

This was in June 2023 while we were travelling. We had a long conversation over lunch while in Shkodër, Albania, of all places, and decided definitively that Timor-Leste was just too hot for us. And we then forgot about VSA for a couple of months. As we headed back to New Zealand in August the idea of VSA came up again and we decided that it seemed crazy not to do something like this because of the climate, and the roles were still being advertised thankfully.

The first stage was to complete an online application form that asks you things like why do you want to volunteer at this stage in your life? Describe your experience of working with people from different cultures? What technical skills do you bring to volunteering? What experience do you have of mentoring and building capacity in others? All good questions!

We applied and within a fortnight had a screening interview with a VSA recruitment advisor which was primarily about ensuring that we had some idea of what we were getting ourselves into! Apparently some people are surprised to learn that volunteering doesn’t pay a salary, or that it is quite hot and humid in basically everywhere VSA operates. It also covered the recruitment and deployment process which is comprehensive! Understandably, as if someone makes it to a remote part of the world and is unable to cope it isn’t good for either them, their partner, or VSA, so there is robust screening.

After the screening interview we submitted another application, similar to the first but with personal and professional references, and authorisation to do background checks on us. VSA have quite a lot of work to do after this so the next interview wasn’t until nearly four weeks later. End to end from applying to being in Timor-Leste took six months, and this is about as fast as things can go, so if you’re thinking of volunteering you need to plan ahead!

The second interview was also far more about cultural awareness and understanding of what a VSA assignments involved rather than technical skills. This was a joint interview with my partner as they wanted to get a feel for our relationship, before we put it under potential strain by moving to a completely different environment.

The third and final interview was with VSA and the partner organisation, and was the classic behavioural style “tell us about a time that…” but again far more focused on capacity building, cultural awareness, and relationships than would be typical in a ‘normal’ job interview.

After this we both got provisional offers and then the work really started! The main provision was that we were declared medically fit to spend a year in a least developed country with limited healthcare and a far more challenging climate than Wellington (other than the wind…). This involved trips to the travel doctor for vaccinations, dentist, and doctor, plus any follow up tests required. This is all paid for by VSA so it’s an excellent way of getting a thorough check up, but does take time to organise. This is generally the slowest part of the process post getting a conditional offer.

Before Christmas we went to the mandatory Pre-Deployment Briefing, three packed days in Wellington with 16 sessions covering the context (international development, capacity building), assignments (intercultural awareness, reporting, relationship building, sharing your story), and wellbeing (medical, insurance, mental health). It was a fascinating, if exhausting, few days, and a great opportunity to spend time with a dozen or so other VSA volunteers heading out on assignment shortly.

It was a strange limbo land waiting for the medical clearance process to finish as we couldn’t commit to anything solid (like renting out the house) until it was complete. It was likely that we would be going but not certain so we had to think about a plan B in case it fell through. We were both excited about potentially going, and realistic that it might not happen.

The limbo gave way to certainty when we our medical clearance came through, the flights were booked and we would be leaving in six weeks! Which seems like quite a long time but it really wasn’t as we then had to rent out the house, buy things we needed (shopping is limited in Timor-Leste!), and generally sort ourselves out to be away for a year (what do you do with the car?). Originally I thought it’d be like packing for a long trip, but it turned out to be more like moving house but you can only take two suitcases…

Mid-February 2024 we flew from Wellington to Melbourne to Darwin to Dili and started our new lives in Timor-Leste, which I’ve covered in other posts written ten days and a month after arriving. Reflecting on the experience from considering volunteering to arriving in Dili this is the advice I’d give…

• Be clear why you’re doing this, it is not a holiday and it will be tough at times
• The recruitment and deployment process takes a while (allow 6-9 months) so consider how that fits with your life plans and any decisions you need to make
• VSA do a good job of preparing you for the reality of the assignments, but it is one thing to read / hear about something, and another to actually experience it
• If you are going with a partner consider what they will do if you’re not both volunteering full time
• Be aware that everything takes longer and is harder to do in developing countries, patience is required!
• VSA cover pretty much all your costs so if you’re able to rent out your house to pay the mortgage (or move out of rented accommodation) then volunteering shouldn’t cost you anything, and will give you unforgettable memories and experiences (both good and bad!)