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About America Solidaria

América Solidaria is an international nonprofit organization founded Chile with offices in Colombia, Haiti, Peru, Argentina, Uruguay, the US, and Mexico. Our mission is to end child poverty and to create a more equitable hemisphere by building networks of cooperation throughout the Americas. We have been working shoulder-to-shoulder with the underprivileged communities for over 15 years and we will continue until the poverty and inequality no longer exist.

We engage directly with the poorest and most underprivileged communities on social projects aimed at improving education, health and family economic stability of children, youth and their families. Since 2002, over 800 professionals from different countries within the Americas have shaped and led 234 grassroots projects in collaboration with 96 local host organizations in 13 countries.

About the Service Program

The fellowship is a 1-year professional service program that covers the volunteer’s travel and basic living costs. It starts with an orientation that provides cross-cultural, technical, health, and safety training in Santiago, Chile. Further, during the twelve months of in-country placement, fellows serve within the host organizations in the communities ranging from small rural villages to large urban centers. Upon completion of the program, fellows become true advocates of change equipped with the leadership skills, technical expertise and access to the network of changemakers across the Americas.

Fellows’ education, work experience, skills sets, and countries of origin are as diverse as the projects they are involved in. We invest a lot of effort into matching prospective fellows with host organizations in order to both suit fellows’ professional interests and serve the needs of the local communities: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwAOWumxKy4

Where are the projects located?

Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru, Uruguay and the United States. Please note that Fellows are required to serve outside of their country of origin.

What are the eligibility criteria?

• approximately 23-35 years old (early-stage professional);
• a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent;
• professional fluency in Spanish;
• professional experience in the nonprofit or public sector;
• demonstrated leadership and collaborative skills.

Areas of Expertise

1. Social sciences: sociology; psychology (incl. community psychology), psychotherapy, social work
2. Health: midwifery and obstetrics, therapy, (incl. occupations therapy), kinesiology, physiotherapy, nutrition, speech and language pathology
3. Education: basic education, early childhood education, pedagogy, special education
4. Other: agricultural engineering, accounting

What are the program benefits?

• Travel to and from country of service;
• Visa expenses;
• Out-of-country two week orientation training;
• Placement at a host organization;
• Housing and monthly living stipend adequate to support a modest lifestyle for one person;
• Health insurance;
• Access to the alumni network.

Fellowship Terms and Conditions

• Fellows are expected to serve full-time during the service-year fellowship;
• Fellows should not incur any outside obligations which may interfere with attending the orientation and other program activities;
• Fellows may not receive payment for their service in participating organizations during the course of their fellowship;
• Fellows may not hold any paid position that will interfere with their full participation in the fellowship program;
• Fellows are expected to conform to the same professional standards as paid staff members.

Application Cycles

America Solidaria seeks a new cohort of talented individuals twice a year: in March and September. Selection for the March cohort begins in October and selection for the September cohort begins in April.

Please note that once you are accepted to the program, the offer may not be deferred. Start dates are not flexible, and assuming your visa is approved, you must begin your project with the cohort to which you are accepted.

2018 Selection Process and Timeline

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. The hard cutoff for the September 2018 cycle is June 1st. Apply through the following link: http://us.americasolidaria.org/hazte-voluntario/

Should your professional training and experience match one of our project profiles, we will contact you for a personal interview, followed by a technical interview and personality test.

The orientation will be held in late August, date TBA.

Please direct any questions regarding the application process to infous@americasolidaria.org

We look forward to receiving your application.