Service trips are purpose-driven experiences that enable you to make a difference and grow as a person. Trips are built around visiting a community to devote a short period of time to a specific cause and are brought to life by the unforgettable moments that come from meaningful volunteer work, cultural exchange and service learning.

If you’re taking a service trip within Kampala and neighborhood you don’t have to go for a long time to create positive outcomes. A month or 1 week spent volunteering with Milele Foundation Uganda on a meaningful project and immersed in the local way of life provides you with an authentic insight into the culture and allows you to connect with the greater purpose of your volunteer work. Your efforts will support and grow on the long-term impact of previous international volunteers and you’ll experience tasks relevant to a career or field of study.

If you’re a college student, gap year traveler, or teenager then taking part in service trip abroad is one of the best ways to engage in service learning. As both a student and volunteer, you’re fully immersed in the community and able to see the benefits of your work through the eyes of locals. There are also fewer distractions to water-down the learning and plenty of opportunities for post-work reflection to further cement the day’s lessons. Many volunteer programs can be used as course credit towards a qualification.

People who take part in service trips and service learning abroad get the reward of seeing the difference they can make, as well as the benefits of cementing theories and concepts by seeing them in action.

Many lessons are best learnt in practice – that may be using a teaching technique successfully, helping to construct a building or spending one-on-one time helping to care for the elderly. This is precisely why service learning is such a powerful way of absorbing knowledge and gaining experience. It shouldn’t be seen as a replacement for theoretical learning; service learning is an excellent supplement to textbook studies.

For students entering the workforce, there are huge benefits in being able to show practical experience. However, without a chance to get that experience, it can be a trap that’s difficult to escape. By taking service learning opportunities abroad, that important practical experience can be gained to make a résumé stand out from the rest. What’s more, the initiative to go on a service trip abroad shows drive, creativity and a willingness to learn that is attractive to employers.

How do service trips benefit the community?

Every community faces challenges. That’s why we know that no matter where in the world you choose to travel, you can make a meaningful contribution. Communities who open themselves up to hosting volunteers are working together, across cultures, to build a better tomorrow.

The benefits for communities are clear – the community needs help and a volunteer provides it. It’s that simple. Support from a well-meaning, motivated volunteer can, and does, achieve tangible results.

The type of volunteer work that’s needed in these communities is important. It could be that volunteers are needed to support the disabled, assist local farmers or help wildlife conservation efforts. While it’s beneficial, it can be seen as less important for everyone’s day-to-day life. Without volunteers or service learners to help, a lot of this kind of work would simply not be done.

Members of these communities abroad also benefit through cross-cultural exchange. Exposure to different cultures and beliefs helps both volunteers and locals to enhance their appreciation for the world, challenge themselves with a foreign approach to life and have a better awareness for the way others live.

Milele Foundation Uganda is greatly ready to welcome you and move along with you as you create a life changing memory through your voluntary time.

Milele Foundation Uganda, A lifeline to hope.

Changing Lives, Reaching out to communities.