Deadline: February 29, 2016
People of all nations are invited to apply for voluntary service in Germany sponsored by the Friends of Waldorf Education. The Federal Volunteer Service in Germany Incoming program is designed for motivated, socially committed women and men of 18 years and up whose permanent residence is outside Germany.
Are you interested in helping people with special needs? Would you like to spend 12 months living and working in a foreign country, experiencing a new culture and getting to know the mindset, work ethic and social structure of Germany? If so, you are heartily invited to apply to the Incoming Program.
Benefits and Cost
Before and during the period of service, volunteers receive the following benefits:
- Support with visa application (official invitation) prior to service
- An allowance of at least 150 euros per month during the duration of the service
- Free room and board while in Germany
- Free health, accident and liability insurance
- Contractually regulated holidays
- Educational and administrative backing and support through the Friends of Waldorf Education during the voluntary service
- 20 accompanying seminar days, free of charge, at the beginning, during and at the close of the voluntary service, as well as transportation costs to and from the seminars
Travel costs to and from Germany must be covered by the participants themselves!
Applicants from Brazil and South Africa can receive support, advice and preparatory assistance from their local Friends of Waldorf Education.
The volunteers themselves are expected to pay for a possible preparatory seminar in the volunteers’ home country, according to a solidarity cost model.
Eligibility
- be at least 18 years old (there is no maximum age).
- have permanent residency outside Germany.
- be socially motivated and show dedication to your work or engagement.
- know at least the basics of the German language. For those working in the fields of curative education (children with disabilities) and senior care (homes for the elderly), a good to excellent knowledge of German is a must. If at all possible, you should provide a certification of your studies or other official proof of your German language skills. It also expected that you be prepared to improve your German during the duration of your voluntary service.
- have already gathered practical experience in working with people with special needs or with the elderly. Should you not have this experience, you will be required to carry out a 2-week internship or training program at a qualifying institution in your home country. The Friends of Waldorf Education will be happy to assist you in making contact with organisations that fulfil these criteria.
- be prepared to work for 12 months in a full-time capacity. Shorter terms of service are not possible.
- be entirely open to living together with the residents and patients of an institution for curative therapy (children with disabilities), social therapy (adults with disabilities) or a home for the elderly.
- be eager for personal development and be ready to integrate yourself fully in a new culture and work environment.
- show initiative and a strong sense of social engagement, as these fields of work will, at least in part, be quite demanding. Additionally, most of the institutions are located in rural agrarian areas.
A decision about your admission to the program is made on the basis of:
- The application documents, which should validate your social motivation. Please communicate your needs and requirements in a straightforward manner.
- Your commitment to learning German (certificate/s, ongoing German language course, e-mail communication in German)
- The report of your practical skills, respectively your two-week internship and the references from the institution in which you’ve been (e.g. one of our partner organizations abroad).
- The e-mail or telephone communication with you: A reliable and fast communication is important to us.
- Your willingness to meet with a German volunteer our a former participant of the incoming program in your home-country; depending on the possibilities of your location.
How to Apply
Please send us your COMPLETED application for the German voluntary service ONLY via e-mail (incoming[at]freunde-waldorf.de). A completed application includes the following documents:
- Application form 1
- Application form 2
- Checklist
- Photo in jpg format (max. 250 KB)Passport photo
- Reference for a social internship (further details about the internship)
- German language certificate (minimum level A1, with minimum score “Good”) (further details about the German knowledge)
- A legible copy of your passport
- References from your host family (if you have worked as an Au Pair in Germany or another German-speaking country.
- Confirmation for the attendance of Waldorf education seminars, certificates of job training, job references if you have already worked in Waldorf institutions before and would like to undergo further training (only for applicants to Waldorf schools and kindergartens)
- A copy of your driver‘s license (if applicable)
