International Volunteer HQ's partner NGO in Peru requires volunteers Now! IVHQ has a wide range of volunteering opportunities available in teaching, orphanage work and medical work in the Peruvian cities of Lima and Huancayo.

* Teaching English
English is widely recognized as the 'universal language' and with Peruvians naturally being Spanish speakers, there is a real demand from local people to be taught English by fluent foreigners. Work is mainly at schools and directed towards children but there is also a lot of demand from community groups and adult groups we work with. Volunteers are placed in community schools, public schools or orphanage schools. Many of the people volunteers teach have only very basic English, therefore it is a requ irement for volunteers to have at least a basic level of Spanish to teach on this program. Naturally a volunteer's Spanish will improve over the course of their volunteering but it is highly recommended that the volunteer take advantage of the Spanish lessons offered by our program staff in Peru.

N.B. Volunteers DO NOT need to be a qualified or experienced teacher.

* Orphanage Work
Developing and third world countries tend to have a large number of orphaned children and orphanages due to the general poverty and poor conditions, many families live in. Peru is no exception and there is a real dearth of helpers and volunteers willing to work in these orphanages and help educate and develop the children. Work at the orphanage can involve cooking, cleaning, playing with children, entertaining children, assisting with feeding programs, caring for children and babies and teaching. Volunteers on the orphanage program can have only basic to no Spanish but must be prepared to take a language course (this is compulsory for volunteers staying for over 2 weeks - please see below for details).

* Medical Placement (Huancayo Only - No Medical Placement in Lima.)
Healthcare can be both very expensive and hard to access for poor and less privileged Peruvians who often struggle to make 'ends meet' let alone pay for health care. Poverty creates a large barrier to the acquisition of healthcare in general, but in a country where a large percentage of the population are struggling to make 'ends meet' on a daily basis such as Peru, this effect is accentuated. The Peruvian Government has authorized our program partner to place medical students and professionals in their clinics and hospitals. These dispensaries and hospitals have very basic equipment and facilities. Volunteers are placed in a hospital or dispensary based on previous medical training and experience. In order to participate on this program, volunteers must have at least an intermediate level of Spanish.

N.B. For the Medical Placement, volunteers need to be training or qualified in a relevant medical field. Naturally, volunteers are required to present a copy of their qualifications and certificates to our program partner on arrival in Peru.