un volunteer management tools

YOUR ASSIGNMENT AS A UN VOLUNTEER . 1

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End-of-Assignment

Vol Toolkit_End of Assignment [2]_Layout 1 22/12/2011 19:48

Foreword

End–of–Assignment hand book: is a practical guidance on how to cope

with transition; remaining engaged after completing your assignments.

The tool is part of a Volunteer Toolkit, which contains eight (8) volunteer

management tools: The Volunteer Toolkit has been developed to support

the implementation of UNV Programme Strategy 2011- 2013, more

specifically to enhance the effectiveness of volunteer management and

the skills of UN Volunteers to become good advocates of Volunteerism for

Peace and Development.

The Volunteer Toolkit is to be disseminated and/or made available to UN

Volunteers over the course of their volunteer assignment. The objective is

to ensure that UN Volunteers (POs, other international UN Volunteers,

and national UN Volunteers) can benefit from each tool at the relevant

stage of their assignment: Pre-assignment; Support during assignment

and End of Assignment.

Front Cover: Two national UN Volunteers support local sustainable livelihoods in remote areas.Referred to as Yanapiris (‘people who help others’) in the local languages (mainly Aymara andQuechua), indigenous UN Volunteers work to advance the MDGs in the Department of Oruro,Bolivia. With a deep knowledge of the region’s sociopolitical context, they are able to adapt MDGmessaging to the indigenous philosophy and culture. (Nicolas Josserand, 2010)


CONTENTS . 3

3. What to expect post assignment ...19

3.1 Reverse Culture Shock:

what is reverse culture shock? .........19

3.2 Common Challenges and

strategies .........................................22

3.3 Stress and Medical

Considerations..................................25

3.4 Employment ..................................27

3.5 How to Conduct a Job Search ......27

3.6 Employment Considerations for

Spouses and Partners ......................29

3.7 Further education..........................30

3.8 Sabbatical or Time Off...................31

4. How to stay involved.......................32

4.1 Continue to Advocate for

Volunteerism for Peace and

Development.....................................32

4.2 Seek another UNV Assignment.....34

4.3 Continue to Volunteer....................34

4.4 Mobilize Volunteers .......................36

4.5 UNV Contact Information ..............37

5. References .......................................38

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Preparing for the end of your

assignment ........................................04

2. Preparing for departure ..................05

2.1 Timeline of the Process.................05

2.2 Self-reflection through the

Volunteer Reflection Toolkit ...............08

2.3 Performance Evaluation................08

2.4 Competency Based Letter of

Reference .........................................09

2.5 Certificate of Service.....................10

2.6 Final Reports-the Volunteer

Reporting System (VRS) ..................10

2.7 Administrative Issues .....................11

2.8 Documentation..............................12

2.9 Exit Debriefing With UNV

Field Units.........................................13

2.10 Planning Your Goodbye...............13

2.11 Handover Note Guidelines ..........14

2.12 Special Considerations for

Spouses and Partners ......................15

2.13 Repatriation with Children...........17

2.14 Senior Volunteers........................18

2.15 Preparing for what Comes Next ..18


2 . END-OF-ASSIGNMENT HANDBOOK

Preparing for the end of an assignment is

a monumental task that every volunteer

will need to undertake. Managing the

return to an old environment after

experiencing so much transformation and

learning can be a challenge. Some of you

may be unsure about what to do at the

end of your service.

Planning the transition at the end-of-

assignment is important for many

reasons. It presents a clear opportunity to

value your role as a volunteer, and the

commitment and contribution you have

made during your volunteer assignment. It

is an opportunity to reflect on what your

plans may be for the future and to map

out ways in which you can continue to

contribute to the peace and development

process. It also ensures that you take the

time to prepare for upcoming changes or

the experience of reverse culture shock.

This manual has been designed to help

you facilitate your way through this

process, allowing you to forecast the

upcoming changes to the greatest extent

possible. It has been created with the

personal needs of a diverse range of UN

Volunteers in mind. Because of this, not

all sections may be relevant to you.

Please feel free to read only those that

you find useful.

1. Preparing for the end of your assignment


PREPARING FOR DEPARTURE . 5

2.1 Timeline of the Process

The following is an approximate timeline

of the process that you are about to

undertake. How rigidly you follow this

programme, as well as what other items

you will need to take care of, will depend

largely on your personal situation. In the

process of leaving, many things need to

be done at the host organization, in the

community, socially and within your family.

When preparing an action plan, it is

recommended to plan all foreseeable

activities well in advance. A plan can help

to keep the levels of stress within

acceptable limits. You may find it useful to

do this by creating lists, an action matrix,

or mapping the activities out on a

calendar. Following, on pages 4 and 5, is

a proposed timeline:

2. Preparing for departure



The UNV Field Unit will send you an

email or letter alerting you of your end

of contract (exact departure date will

depend on your leave balance). They

will also send you a copy of this

handbook.

Undertake final self-reflection on plans

and goals (see Volunteer Reflection

Toolkit).

Generate plan for exit timeline.

Register for job sites, collect research

for your options after assignment, etc.

Start to collect stories, souvenirs and

photos, and plan your goodbye.

If relevant, discuss extension with host

agency.

Prepare for competency based letter of

reference.

Prepare for final performance appraisal

(only if applicable).

6 weeks before departure

Continue the process for Competency

Based Reference Letter.

Begin the Checklist/check-out form for

UNV Field Unit.

Account if applicable for UN assets

(especially multi-user equipment) that

are in the volunteer’s name.

Prepare the document hand-over and

start selecting appropriate documents.

If you are supported by a funding

agency for your assignment, check

with them for any end-of-contract

support or services they may provide

or reporting they require.

Do the final report for UNV (VRS). Open

from 2 months before end-of-contract.

Consider how to remain involved with

volunteerism.



1 week after departure

Sit for exit debriefing

with UNV Field Unit

Final coordination for

flights, payments, etc.

Hand in your End-of-

assignment

Checklist/check-out form

and other documents for

check-out purposes.

Depending on country

context, attend End-of-

assignment Workshop

Hand in handover notes.

Prepare text and email

addresses for your last

day ‘goodbye’ email.

Reserve your last day for

saying goodbyes.

Reintegration stress or

‘reverse culture shock’

may have begun to set

in.

Consider undertaking a

medical examination.



2.2 Self-reflection through the

Volunteer Reflection Toolkit

As outlined in the Volunteer Reflection

Toolkit, coming to the end of a volunteer

assignment is an appropriate time to

reflect. The end-of-assignment presents a

chance to take an inventory of what you

have learned and achieved, how you have

changed over the duration of the

assignment, and in what areas you could

improve in the future. Since this is a

significant period of change reflection

offers you a chance to get to know

yourself better, and can help give your

ideas that can inform the many decisions

and actions that will dominate your life in

the coming months.

How to reflect, along with suggested

methods and examples, is covered in

detail in the Volunteer Reflection Toolkit.

Questions that you may be better able to

answer after a self-reflection process

include:

■ What do I plan to do after the volunteer

assignment?

■ Do I plan on going home?

■ How would I like to relate to my family

or home community upon reintegration?

■ Will I need to ask my friends and family

for support during this time?

■ Based on my assumptions, are my

expectations of arriving home realistic?

■ After reintegrating, how will I stay

connected with UNV, volunteerism and

development cooperation?

Most volunteers who reflect on their

volunteer assignment feel that they are

better prepared for the end-of-contract

transition, and can approach it in a

constructive and organized way. The

steps for this process are to recognize

and examine your feelings, to accept that

there will be feelings of loss upon leaving

the volunteer assignment and prepare for

these, to take stock of the experiences

that you have lived through, and finally to

prepare yourself for the reverse culture

shock that you may feel upon

reintegration to your home community.

Reverse culture shock is discussed

further in chapter 3.

2.3 Performance Evaluation

UN Volunteers are encouraged to take

part in an evaluation of their performance

through the evaluation methodology of

their host organization. If your host

organization is not conducting

performance evaluations, the following

points may still be useful to prepare for a

final meeting with your supervisor.



■ It is difficult to conduct a good

evaluation of your performance if you

do not have clear Description of

Assignment (DoA). If you have realized

that your DoA is unclear, find a way

together with your supervisor to

acknowledge the problem and to

carefully list what did you do and get

feedback on the real assignment and

what was achieved by the end of your

volunteer assignment.

■ Take this opportunity to look at your DoA

and reflect on what you have achieved

during your assignment in terms of

volunteer contribution, self-development,

national capacity development and in

other areas. If there have been

challenges in your assignment, reflect

on what can be done in the future to

help overcome these. Try to be realistic

about things that are out of your control

as this will allow you to put your

achievements into perspective.

■ Propose changes and suggestions in

the DoA if the assignment is going to be

re-filled.

■ Ideally, a performance evaluation is a

two-way meeting. It is your chance to

talk about your contribution, as well as

your manager’s opportunity to give

praise and suggestions for

improvement.

■ A performance evaluation can be a

good tool to prepare you for the

considerations of what is next. For

example, you may want to reflect on

what strengths you developed over the

course of your volunteer assignment or

whether you may need the support of

your manager in the future in terms of

providing a reference or in a mentoring

role.

■ It is recommended to make notes of the

discussions and outcomes of this

process so that you are prepared when

meeting with your manager, and when

the time comes to update your CV or

roster information with the

competencies that you have developed

during your volunteer assignment.

2.4 Competency Based Letter of

Reference

The reference process is an important

opportunity for the supervisor and the

volunteer to have a constructive dialogue

about the tasks and achievements of the

volunteer. UNV is in the process of

developing a standard Competency

Based Reference letter to be completed

and signed by your host agency and your

UNV Field Unit you will have an

opportunity to provide any comments and

add any relevant information on your

achievements and performance. The



dedicated to volunteering with UNV. It will

indicate how long you served and in which

country, and it will be signed by the

Executive Coordinator of UNV.

2.6 Final Reports-the Volunteer

Reporting System (VRS)

An important obligation of the UN

Volunteer is to prepare and submit to the

UNV programme periodic reports, called

the VRS. These reports serve as an

opportunity for the UN Volunteer, the

supervisor and others to discuss and take

stock of the progress made towards

meeting stated development objectives. It

can also help to identify any follow-up

actions required. The volunteer reports

ensure a learning environment in which

the contribution of UN Volunteers can be

better known and understood, and

experiences shared with others inside and

outside the country.

The multiple-choice format of this report is

designed to account for the ‘Volunteerism

for Peace and Development’ dimension of

your assignment and can be found at

http://vrs.unv.org. The report will be open

for you to complete from 2 months before

your end-of-assignment. If there are items

that are not covered within the report that

you feel are important to pass along to the

UNV Field Unit or headquarters, note

these down and bring the issues with you

letter will include the title and period of

your assignment and a general rating of

your skills and abilities. Note that if you

are thinking of re-applying to UNV in

future, you will need a reference from your

UNV Field Unit therefore you will be

requested to share a copy of the letter

with your UNV Field Unit.

Please note that this is an open process

that has been standardized across UNV,

so if you require a confidential reference

or a reference letter that is in a different

format you will need to make separate

arrangements with your host agency if in

agreement that are specific to your needs.

Make sure that you take a hard copy of

the final signed reference letter with you

when you finish your volunteer

assignment, as it is not the responsibility

of the UNV Field Unit to follow up with

supervisors for agreement or signatures

or corrections before and after you have

departed. It is your responsibility to

ensure that this letter is completed and

signed by both parties prior to your

departure.

2.5 Certificate of Service

At the end of your contract, you will

receive from either UNV Field Unit or UNV

HQ a certificate of service. This certificate

stands as a token of appreciation of the

time, energy and skills that you have



to the exit debriefing. Note that the

settlement of the end-of-assignment

entitlements is contingent upon the

submission of the end-of-assignment

report.

2.7 Administrative Issues

Following is a list of some administrative

issues you may need to take care of

before you finish your assignment. This is

not exhaustive, and may need to be

tailored to meet your personal needs,

particularly if you are moving locally or

internationally. Your UNV Field Unit has a

Checklist/check-out form that is required

and complements this list (refer to

Appendix XIV of the Conditions of

Service). Please discuss with your UNV

Field Unit any special arrangements or

needs you can foresee when you pick up

the checklist. Some items covered may

include:

■ Submit the online End-of-Assignment

report (see 2.6 above)

■ Hand in UNV identity cards

■ Hand in national identity cards (for

international UN Volunteers)

■ Provide your permanent address and

telephone number so you can be

contacted

■ Change your address/email address

with your host, the UNV Field Unit and

any other relevant contacts. Particularly

ensure that you give an email address

that will be valid after your work account

is closed

■ Provide adequate notice as required to

close agreements for rental, utility,

phone, etc..

■ Prepare financially for the departure:

close bank accounts, transfer money,

do final medical claims, submit

outstanding travel claims, pay monies

owed to your host organization, receive

End-of-Service payments, plan for the

first few months at home. Make clear

how you wish to receive your

repatriation entitlements. Also make

sure official telephone bills are settled

■ Account if applicable for UN assets

(especially multi-user equipment) that

are in the volunteer’s name. Start early

the process of identifying and locating

those items.

■ Make sure your banking details are

correct

■ Pay rent and utilities

■ Consider whether you will need any

statement from UNV for income tax or

social services purposes



■ Complete a Travel Authorization for

homeward travel

■ Re-apply for inclusion in the UNV roster,

if appropriate

■ Complete your VRS (final report)

■ Return items signed out to you by the

office

■ Return confidential documents to the

office

■ Prepare handover notes and back up

your files

■ Put an away message on your

professional email account

■ Collect the contact details and names of

those people you may need to contact

again

■ Collect the documents that you may

need in the future (see section 2.8

below)

■ Book flights

■ Arrange visas if necessary

■ Plan for health insurance coverage

■ Plan how you will discard of unwanted

items- selling, donating items, etc

■ Buy gifts and plan how you will pack

gifts that you receive at the last minute

■ Plan your shipping and packing

■ Sign a discharge letter for UNV if you

wish to stay in your country of service

■ Plan where you will live or stay at home

or in your next destination

2.8 Documentation

The documents you need from your

volunteer assignment will depend on what

you are planning to do next. It is easiest to

collect any documents you may need

before you leave your site. Some ideas:

■ Competency Based Reference Letter

■ Certificate of Service

■ Copies of annual performance reviews

(if applicable)

■ Description of Assignment

■ Copies of any substantive documents

that you have produced over the course

of your volunteer assignment. Examples

could be project documents, annual

reports, or advocacy tools. (These will

normally have to be approved by your

supervisor, but can act as excellent

portfolio examples)

■ A criminal record check from the

appropriate authorities in the location of

volunteer assignment, if you think that it

will be required by your future

employers (e.g. if you are working with

children or in certain government

ministries).



■ Volunteers who have supervised staff

themselves or who have otherwise

worked with local people (e.g. national

UN staff, Government counterparts,

local NGO staff, even personal

household help) should, as a matter of

courtesy and in line with their capacity-

building role, give due consideration to

provide recommendation/reference

letters and/or performance appraisals to

such persons, as appropriate.

2.9 Debriefing with UNV Field Unit

A debriefing is an excellent opportunity to

discuss the outcomes of a volunteer

assignment, talk over the competency

based reference letter, help to clarify what

you plan to do next, and brainstorm ways

that you can continue to engage with

volunteerism. The debriefing should not

deal with just operational issues, but focus

on your achievements, challenges and

your learning process as a volunteer.

The information collected in a debriefing

interview will be fed back into UNV

headquarters discussions so that the

organization can improve its procedures

and report on the achievements of its

volunteers. UNV is a learning

organization, so we rely on your

constructive feedback in order to improve

and grow. If you have anything that you

wish to be discussed confidentially,

please make this clear in advance.

Come to the debriefing prepared,

particularly in terms of self-reflection, book

the appointment for this debriefing well in

advance, so that the UNV Field Unit can

be ready for the meeting.

Where the distance between your duty

station and UNV Field Unit is too large, the

debriefing may take place by telephone.

2.10 Planning Your Goodbye

One of the most neglected aspects of

completing a volunteer assignment is the

way in which one goes about taking leave.

Nobody likes to say goodbye; 72% of

former UN Volunteers surveyed felt that

saying goodbye was a major challenge in

their departure process. Many people put

off the process until it is either too late or

very rushed.

Grieving or a sense of loss is a normal part

of the repatriation or completion process.

These feelings are often complicated by

the fact that you may be busy and also

excited and anxious about what is coming

up next. Any feelings of loss will be felt

two-ways: both by you and by those that

you leave behind. Therefore, the

opportunity to say goodbye is important not

simply for you but also for your colleagues

and those in the community with whom you

have interacted.



As well, there may be cultural traditions

that are important to follow in order to

show respect to the community and to

your colleagues. It is useful to ask a local

friend or mentor about how to plan a

culturally appropriate goodbye party or

ceremony. Planning this well in advance is

an excellent way to take the stress or

anxiety out of the situation.

During the exit period, you may also want

to take the time to say goodbye to special

places that you have visited or that had

meaning for you. Many people find that it

is important to take some final

photographs, make a video, buy a

traditional handicraft, learn how to cook a

favorite food or learn how to perform a

specific cultural or religious ritual before

they depart.

On the last day, you may want to reserve

the day for saying goodbye to colleagues

and counterparts. It is recommended to

prepare an email and email addresses in

advance so that you can send it out upon

exit. Ensure that your tasks or projects are

properly handed over to colleagues,

another volunteer or a manager. If there is

no one to take on your tasks, leave a

detailed handover note for the person who

later pick up where you left off.

2.11 Handover Note Guidelines

A handover note is intended to ensure

continuity of processes and appropriate

follow up on tasks that need to be done

after your departure. The note can be

given to your supervisor or to your

successor, and may contain specific items

depending on your role and organization.

An accurate documentation of pending

tasks, operational and programmatic

issues is crucial to ensure that the

valuable work you have undertaken can

continue. It will also help your volunteer

assignment come to a positive closure.

In addition to the Handover document you

will leave important documents behind.

We would like to encourage you to

provide your successor (if there is one),

your colleagues at the duty station, as

well as UNV Field Unit with a clearly

structured document handover. Please

pass your documents on to your

colleagues at your duty station and the

UNV Field Units either by saving them on

a shared drive or by sharing them on a

CD or USB-stick.

We all know how frustrating it is to search

for documents in chaotic folder systems

named in ways impossible to understand

and worse when combined with constant

information and document overload. This

is why we suggest the following steps for

a document handover:



■ Be rigorous: select only the really

important documents that should be

passed on. If a successor will take your

place, it might be useful to leave more

documents behind than in cases where

no successor follows, especially

background studies and practical

manuals.

■ Leave only final documents behind (if

possible) and remember: the fewer

documents, the easier it is to find the

important ones!

■ Name your documents in a

comprehensible manner: remember that

the people who will receive your

documents need to grasp the content

right from the title. (A Project Document

named “PD01” for example cannot be

identified as a ProDoc by anyone,

whereas a tag such as

“ProjectDocument WaterManagement

Andhra Pradesh final – August 2009” is

easy to understand & to find.) Give the

document the clearest name possible,

indicate whether it is final or not and

include the date.

■ Structure your folders as

comprehensively as possible: The same

principles as for documents apply. Bear

in mind that the people who will receive

your documents are most likely not yet

as familiar with the thematic aspects of

your work as you are. We suggest the

following folder structure as a guide:

■ Project related documents.

■ Administrative documents.

■ Resource materials (studies, toolkits).

■ Contact lists (as well as names please

add the significance of the people to

your work).

■ Important correspondence.

■ Media files (Pictures & Videos) that can

be used for communications purposes.

(Where possible consult with the

country office and/or host in advance

about their needs and only pass on high

quality files as media files demand a lot

of storage space.)

Lastly, please do schedule sufficient time

for this; it is not unusual for this process to

take up to half a working day. In the long

run, it will save others time and effort and

make your work more accessible and

more likely to be used.

2.12 Special Considerations for

Spouses and Partners

The personal dynamics of each family unit

or partnership are unique. Your partner or

spouse needs to be included in the end-

of-assignment preparations. A second

consideration is whether your partner or



spouse will move with you during your

transition. It is important to try to make

time for reflection and discussion, and to

share as much information as possible, so

that you can plan together for the

emotional and operational aspects of the

move. Each reintegration is experienced

through an array of feelings- from positive

to negative. The feelings that accompany

re-entry are very similar to culture shock

(see section 3.4 for more on reverse

culture shock) so it may be useful to share

this document with your spouse or partner

so s/he can see what to expect.

UN Volunteers who left their families back

home when they were on assignment in

non-family duty stations will obviously face

additional challenges upon return. These

will depend on the length of time away and

how closely and regularly the volunteer had

remained in contact with their families.

Returnees should expect a period of

readjustment for everyone, which can

usually be made easier by sensitively

sharing some of the positive experiences of

your assignment (without overemphasizing

how much you miss it) while at the same

time reassuring your family about how good

it feels to be back home and how much you

missed them. It is also important to take the

time to make collective plans for the future,

both in the short term and longer term. Be

aware that the routines of family life will at

first feel unfamiliar to both you and for your

family - don’t forget they also have to

readjust to you being back - but this will

ease with time.

One factor on how a transition will impact

an accompanying spouse or partner is

whether s/he will be working on re-entry.

Research shows that non-working and

accompanying spouses/partners often

feel re-entry shock more strongly than the

person who is working. This shock is

attributed to the pressures placed on the

non-working person who may have limited

social structures in the place of

reintegration while simultaneously being

under pressure to find a new place to live

and establish basic routines.

If your spouse or partner is from the

location of assignment, and you will be

returning together to your home, there will

be many cultural considerations related to

the move. Some questions that can be

explored together include: Is this his or her

first time away from his/her home? Does

s/he speak the language of our new

location? What are his or her expectations

about the move? The way a spouse or

partner integrates into your home will be

different from the way you reintegrate. All

of these factors add stress to a

relationship, so advance planning and

discussion may help to ease this process.



2.13 Repatriation with Children

How children are affected by reintegration

into their home location depends on their

personalities, the length of time they have

been away from home and their current

age. Overall, it is important to allow time

and space for children to go through the

same steps of reintegration that you are

expecting to go through, and to ensure that

they are part of the planning and decision-

making process.

If your children have never lived in the

place that you call ‘home’, bear in mind that

they may experience considerable culture

shock when you move. This transition will

present challenges in terms of building an

identity around the home culture,

developing relationships with other children

or extended family members, and possibly

integrating into a new school system. Teens

may find this time particularly difficult, as

there are so many other changes going on

in their lives in addition to the move. Issues

emerge, such as how to make friendships

within groups who may have bonded many

years ago, or questions of what is current in

terms of language, current culture, and

fashion. Culture shock may present itself as

a loss of energy, irritability, feelings of

inadequacy, and periods of isolation.

When moving with children, it is important

to allow them time and opportunities to

say goodbye properly to their friends and

places that have been important to them

and to recover from any feelings of grief

and anxiety during the process of

repatriation. Your children may want to

have a goodbye party or some other

special event to mark the change. To get

them excited about the move, you may

want to show photographs of special

people or places, or find movies or books

that highlight special things about home.

Another situation may involve moving with

children who have been born at the

assignment location and/or are still too

young to have lasting memories of the

move. Children of a young age adapt

fairly quickly, particularly if their parents or

caregivers are present to provide them

with reassurance. In this case, you may

be more concerned about the logistical

arrangements of the move, such as

getting passports or working out how to

travel with small children, which can

require considerable advance preparation.

However, even young children can feel

the stress of a move without being able to

verbalize or otherwise express their

frustrations. This may erupt as tantrums,

clinginess or other forms of socially

inappropriate behavior.

When returning home with children it can

be useful to prepare friends and relatives



for the homecoming. Well-meaning family

members may have expectations of how

to interact with the child or of how the

child will behave, which can place

unnecessary stress on the reunion. For

example, the child may not like the food at

home, or may be afraid of all the smiling

faces. It is important to prepare people in

advance for the extra personal or parental

time that the children may need.

Note that if you have adopted children in

the location of assignment, it is

recommended to do research well in

advance of returning home, as there are

many national and international laws

regarding the legal adoption of children.

2.14 Senior Volunteers

The process of returning home as a

senior volunteer will depend on what

plans you have for your return. If you took

a sabbatical from a job at home in order to

undertake a volunteer assignment,

research suggests that your primary

challenge may be how to integrate the

lessons learned from the assignment into

your regular routine. If you will be looking

for work after your assignment, your

extensive experience and the networks

you possess may be a major asset. The

time it takes to find a job may be your first

real experience of being unemployed,

which can be difficult both emotionally and

financially. Planning ahead can help to

prepare for some of these challenges.

Other alternatives, such as retiring,

spending time with family, or continuing to

volunteer will involve many personal

decisions and implications. Research

done has shown that the decision to

volunteer once you return back home is

influenced by your age and stage of life.

Approximately 70% of a survey group of

older volunteers found that the volunteers

who continue to volunteer at home were

influenced by factors such as having more

free time, and finding the activities a

rewarding and stimulating substitute for

paid employment (CIDA).

2.15 Preparing for what Comes Next

Over the coming months, you will face a

number of options- some of which may

present themselves easily and others that

may take more time and energy to

discover. Since your choice as to what

you do at the end of your assignment will

be tailored to you as an individual, we

cannot give details on every option you

may pursue. Those that will be covered in

this document are future employment,

further education and taking a sabbatical;

they will be covered in Sections 3.3, 3.5,

and 3.6. Guidance on how to go through

the preparation process is outlined in the

Volunteer Reflection Toolkit.


WHAT TO EXPECT POST ASSIGNMENT . 19

3.1 Reverse Culture Shock: what is

reverse culture shock?

Reverse culture shock is defined as the“reactions which occur as a result of re-

adapting to our home culture. … Thereentry process has some things in

common with culture shock but also hasthe added factor of surprise: we don’t

expect our home culture to be sounreceptive to us, and to be so difficult to

come back to.”Janet Bennett, Transition Shock: Putting

Culture Shock in Perspective

As this definition suggests, culture shock

and reverse culture shock are similar, but

have different symptoms and will be

experienced differently given the unique

dynamics of returning home. The diagram

below shows a comparison. Note that

these shocks, when lived through, are

more often a series of small shocks

occurring on a daily or weekly basis, and

culminating in the overall pattern shown

below:

3. What to expect post assignment

Source: ‘Almost American’ Blog



The stages and characteristics of reverse

culture shock are described below:

■ Taking Leave: This stage includes

saying goodbye (section 2.11), and

preparing to take leave (Chapter 2). It is

likely to be a series of emotional ups

and downs before your departure, and

is often all the more stressful due to the

time and energy constraints that are felt

during the process of concluding your

assignment. Try to make time to think

about what it means to be ending your

assignment, to visit a place that you

have always wanted to see or to

otherwise mark the end of your

assignment while reflecting on what it

means to be coming to the end.

■ Excitement: You are excited to be

home, and are anticipating the

upcoming changes. You may be excited

and relieved to see family and friends

and to have access to all the aspects of

home that you have missed during your

volunteer assignment.

■ Anxiety and Feelings of Loss: You may

begin to feel that parts of your home

culture are irritating, illogical, or

generally unexpected. You may miss

aspects of life at the location of your

volunteer assignment. The reality of

settling in begins to set in!

■ Reverse Culture Shock: Classically

experienced as a period of depression

or apathy, this stage can be very

challenging. Feelings of isolation and

confusion are common. The low period

in reverse culture shock begins earlier

than it would if you were experiencing

an initial shock to the location of

volunteer assignment. The lowest

periods normally occur during the

second and third months home, and

balance out approximately six months

after you return (Nancy Adler,

International Dimensions ofOrganizational Behaviour).

■ Recovery: Slowly you begin to reconcile

what you have experienced in your

volunteer assignment with life at home.

■ Re-integration: A balance is found

between the two cultures and

differences are appreciated.

There are many reasons why reverse

culture shock occurs, but the major

contributing factors are:

■ The reality of home differs from the

home you remember: Over the course

of your volunteer assignment you may

have idealized or romanticized home. It

is easy to forget or minimize the

problems or issues that once were

sources of stress in your everyday life.



When you return home, the

juxtaposition of reality to ideal can

create conflict.

■ Things change: Change has occurred to

everyone and everything. Learning

about these changes and adjusting to

them can be very stressful. As well, you

have changed over the course of your

volunteer assignment, and it may be

difficult for people to know how to react

to you.

■ People may not react to you or your

experiences in the way you expected:

Many returnees find it difficult to

connect with people and society in the

ways they used to or may be frustrated

by people’s limited attention span for

their experiences, which may last only

five minutes. Connections can feel

superficial or unrewarding in

comparison to the relationships you

developed whilst on assignment.

■ Re-integration is generally not

understood by family and friends:

Reverse culture shock is not well

understood, and is even less so by

those who have not lived through it. The

lack of tolerance and patience displayed

at home may make you feel displaced

or misunderstood, and may reinforce

any feelings of depression that you may

be experiencing.

The intensity of the reverse culture shock

that you feel will depend on a number of

factors, including:

■ the degree of cultural difference between

the home culture and the host culture

■ the depth of cultural immersion that you

experienced

■ changes that have occurred in your

home environment, particularly in the

field of employment and technology if

you plan to enter the workforce

■ the length of your volunteer assignment

■ whether you had another person or

many people to share the volunteer

experience with

■ prior experience(s) abroad

■ your reasons for returning. Note that if

you returned from a post conflict

situation or a situation where there were

significant security risks, your reverse

culture shock may be very extreme and

may culminate in post-traumatic stress

syndrome. Do not hesitate to seek social

or medical support if needed.

■ the expectations for the return

■ other personal factors, including your

gender, age, education, networks of

family and friends

(Adapted from: What’s Up with Culture? at

http://www3.uop.edu/sis/culture/index.htm)



Each of these factors can be explored in

isolation; the better you understand the

changes and challenges, the better

prepared you will be for the reintegration

process.

Research suggests that there is no

definite timeline for the process of

reintegration. Some people will have a

few weeks of discomfort, whilst others feel

that their whole life has been impacted by

the process of reconciling what they have

seen and learned on assignment with the

realities of home. For some returnees, the

initial period of excitement lasts less than

a month with others reporting it to last

only a few hours.

3.2 Common Challenges and Strategies

Volunteers who return home find that

there are common feelings and

experiences that they encounter. Some of

these include:

■ Boredom: After the dynamism and

challenge of your volunteer assignment,

some people find their home

environment to be stagnant or boring.

■ Feelings of mourning or loss: It is

common to feel sadness about the

people or life you have left behind or for

the situations that you simply could not

resolve before departure.

■ No one seems interested: It may be

difficult to find people who understand

your experiences or who are deeply

interested in what you have lived

through. This may be because they

have limited abilities to draw

comparisons with their own lives or

have different interests and world views.

■ Reverse homesickness: If you adapted

to your host culture, a part of you is now

‘at home’ there. Because of this, you

may feel alienated at home or miss

certain aspects of your assignment

location.

■ Things at home have changed: People,

places and things change in ways that

are both positive and negative. Some

relationships will have been

strengthened while others weakened.

■ You have changed: Integrating your

new experiences and knowledge into

your home context may be challenging

for you. Other people may

misunderstand you or your new ways of

‘being and doing’.

■ Feelings of depression, void, apathy or

lack of energy and enthusiasm: It is

very common to go through a period

characterized by these feelings. How

long these periods last depend on your

coping strategies and the support that

you receive from your community.


■ Changes in status: As an expatriate

volunteer, a volunteer serving within the

UN system, or as a person bringing

expertise, one is often placed in a

position of respect and authority. The

high status that is held whilst on

assignment is often a contrast to the

status that one normally holds at home,

and it may be difficult to accept what

may be perceived as a fall in status

upon return.

■ The contrast in life, culture and weather:

Inevitably, you will make comparisons

between life at home and life at the duty

station. Things such as the vibrancy of

the people, the access to goods and

services, the changes in the weather,

etc can make you idealize one place or

the other or cause situational stress.

As with every aspect of the reverse

culture shock process, the way in which

you overcome the challenges you face will

be highly personalized. Simply beingaware that reverse culture shock existswill already ease the process to someextent. Some possible strategies and

solutions are outlined here; chose those

that fit with your situation and personality.

■ Start mentally preparing for the

adjustment process before ending your

assignment: Ongoing reflection is useful

in terms of clarifying your thoughts and

feelings now and over the course of

reintegration. The different reflection

fields might be:

■ social relations (you may also find

yourself exploring how you and the

people around you have changed as

you might have grown apart from

some friends, you no longer have the

same interests, it might become

necessary to find new friends)

■ search for job/training (You may think

about how you will market the

competencies gained whilst

volunteering, etc)

■ cultural life

■ physical environment (housing,

space)

■ ways to link your host culture to your

home culture (find ways to

incorporate your news interests and

cross-cultural skills into your life here

– keep in touch with your experience!)

■ See the Volunteer Reflection Toolkit if

you are interested in more ideas or

guidance.

■ Give yourself enough time:

Reintegration is a process not a one-

time event. Avoid putting time pressures

or deadlines on how you feel or on

major life decisions.




■ Learn about what has changed: Family

members, friends, politics, job markets,

technology, popular culture and even

your favorite restaurants may have

changed since you left for your

volunteer assignment. Look for ways to

learn about your own culture.

■ Avoid being defensive, aggressive or

making excessive comparisons: People

at home may not be able to understand

your ideas or empathize with your

experiences. This can be extremely

frustrating for a returnee; try to remain

positive and flexible when in these

situations.

■ Cultivate good listening practices: One

of the best ways to ensure that you

have an audience for your stories is to

show that you care about their stories.

Being a good listener will reinforce

mutually respectful and beneficial

relationships.

■ Seek support networks: Many people

find that the biggest challenge of

returning home is finding people who

are like-minded or with whom they can

share their experiences. In a recent

survey of former UN Volunteers, 70% of

those surveyed felt that finding

someone who might understand their

experience was a significant challenge

to their reintegration process. In order to

overcome this, you may want to

maintain contacts with other volunteers,

develop contacts within socially-

oriented organizations, discuss your

experiences with people who travel

frequently or people who visited you on

your assignment, take language

classes, or generally find other outlets

that attract people of a similar mind-set.

All of these social networks can now be

maintained in person or online; recently,

UN Volunteers have been

communicating by means of blogs and

online forums.

■ Find ways to manage your stress: There

are many techniques to manage stress,

and you will know best what works for

you. Some ideas are to continue to

keep a journal, do meditation, get

involved in sports or start to volunteer.

■ Teach people about your host location:

People may have a short attention span

for stories, but there are other ways to

bridge the cultural gap. Try teaching

people about your host location through

cooking lessons of traditional foods,

giving dance or music lessons, etc.

The benefits of volunteering outside of

your home culture are many, but these

benefits and what they mean to you may

not be immediately apparent. Thinking

back over what you have learned, the


people you have met, the lives you have

impacted will be the legacy you carry

throughout reintegration and to your life

beyond.

3.3 Stress and Medical Considerations

Attention to your health may not be

foremost in your mind given the number of

other things you have to take care of

when you return from your volunteer

assignment. However, during this

transitional time, it is very important to

guard your health. You may expect some

extra exhaustion, depression or anxiety,

which are normal accompaniments to long

distance travel and the stress of returning

home. Most of these conditions are

temporary and preventable to some

degree, but will require planning,

understanding and attention to your

personal limits.

The World Health Organization (WHO)

recognizes that there are certain health

risks that increase after extended periods

of time in areas where hygiene and

sanitation are inadequate, medical

services are not well developed and clean

water is not easily available. The risks you

have faced personally depend on many

factors, such as how different the location

of assignment is from your home, how

much time you spent in the field and your

personal behavior patterns. If you have


been accompanied by children, they have

encountered health challenges that are

different to those that adults experience,

so it is recommended to be particularly

diligent with respect to their health.

Many tropical illnesses do not exhibit

symptoms for months after being

contracted or may be confused with the

exhaustion and stress of the move. In

order to rule out tropical illnesses, it is

advisable to talk to a doctor with

experience in tropical medicine about

having a basic medical checkup. If you

wish, an exit medical can be done at the

UN Clinic before your repatriation travel, if

such a clinic exists. This makes sense if

there are unresolved medical issues of

which the UN doctor is aware. Get a copy

of your medical records to take home with

you. Alternatively, you can undertake the

exam in your home medical system with a

doctor who specializes in tropical

medicine or who is familiar with the region

you have been on assignment to. Always

mention to your doctor where you have

been living. In either case, discuss cost

recovery charges with the doctor before

undertaking the exams, as these costs

are not currently covered by Vanbreda

insurance or the UNV programme.

In a world with HIV, it’s important to know

one’s own HIV status. This is even more



important if you have been living abroad

for a long period of time, far away from

home. If you are HIV-infected, it is

important to be tested as early as

possible, so that a doctor can monitor

your health and begin therapy when it will

be most effective. If you are not HIV-

infected, being tested can help reduce

your anxiety and provide an opportunity to

personalize your own HIV-prevention plan

with a trained counselor. In most

countries, there are many places where

you can get tested for HIV. It is

recommended that you get the HIV test

done at a health clinic or at a specialist

HIV & AIDS voluntary counseling and

testing (VCT) site where confidentiality is

guaranteed. When you go to get tested,

you will see a doctor, trained counselor, a

nurse or another health professional in

private. He or she will explain what the

test involves and what the results mean.

More information is available on HIV at

www.uncares.org.

Ultimately, it is the responsibility of each

individual to protect their health and

welfare upon return from their volunteer

assignment. Up-to-date and in-depth

information is available on the

international travel advisory site of the

WHO at http://www.who.int/ith/en/.

Reading can be targeted at health

considerations that are specific to the

area or country in which you were living. If

malaria exists at your location of

assignment, but not at your home

location, look for the symptoms. If you

exhibit these symptoms, you should take

into consideration you may have malaria

and immediately consult a doctor.

Many volunteers find that readjusting to

life at home can be difficult and generate

mixed emotions; this is discussed in detail

in the section on reverse culture shock. In

addition to the normal stresses

encountered at the end of an assignment,

you may experience “burnout”. Burnout is

a state of mental or physical exhaustion,

due to work-related or emotional stress. If

not caught in time, burnout can lead to

both physical and emotional illness that

will need the support of the medical

community and your social networks to

overcome.

As with all other medical issues, it will be

important for you or people within your

support network to be able to recognize

the possible signs of burnout. These

include:

■ Chronic fatigue - exhaustion, tiredness,

a sense of being physically run down

■ Anger

■ Self-criticism


■ Cynicism, negativity, and irritability

■ Frequent headaches or gastrointestinal

illness

■ Weight loss or gain

■ Sleeplessness and depression

■ Shortness of breath

■ Suspiciousness

■ Feelings of helplessness

■ Increased degree of risk taking

If you find yourself experiencing these

symptoms, don’t ignore them. Talk to

whomever you feel will provide you with

the best support: family members, friends,

medical professionals or supervisors.

3.4 Employment

Looking for employment is something that

many full-time volunteers pursue at the

end of their volunteer assignments.

However, be prepared that you may not

face your employment search in quite the

same way that you would have previously

expected. In a survey of 549 Canadian

volunteers, 46% of respondents found

that their career decisions were greatly

affected by their volunteer experience,

and another 40% had their career

decisions impacted to some extent

(CIDA). This does not mean that

everything you know about job search is

irrelevant. What it does mean is that the

types of positions you are interested in,

the type of office environment that you

may find rewarding, and the

competencies you bring with you to the

employment arena are likely to have

changed. These changes can be reflected

upon and planned for, and doing so will

ultimately enrich your job seeking

experience.

3.5 How to Conduct a Job Search

The stages of an effective job search

include reflecting on your priorities, doing

background research, planning, taking

action and re-adjusting your strategy.

Reflection: Begin with brainstorming what

you want in a job. You likely started this

process with your end-of-assignment

reflection exercises, but it can be done

separately if you prefer. Use mind-maps,

lists or matrices to begin to clarify what

you are looking for in a job. Examine your

interests, skills, and preferences.

Background Research: In this phase, start

to look at the types of work, organizations,

and postings that match the criteria you

are interested in. Where you will look for

job postings will be greatly influenced by

your home context. Perhaps you live

where everything is done by word-of-

mouth? Or conversely, you may live in an




internet society. Consider whether the

method of posting jobs has changed since

you went away. If you are moving on to a

third culture, it will pay to investigate how

and where DoAs are posted in the target

location. Some former UN Volunteers find

looking for employment in the social

sector or with in other institutions with

strong social mandates to be the most

fruitful. Other volunteers chose to setting

up their own business.

Planning: In this stage, you will set out

your strategy, along with a concrete plan

of action. Include a timeline or other

motivational milestones in your plan.

Consider your financial situation, your list

of contacts, what method of application

will you use (online, direct, etc), and what

other actions you need to take (revising

CV, buying job search clothes, etc).

Taking Action: You have made your plan,

now pursue it! Some tasks in this phase

may be:

Write or revise your CV: There is good

online advice on CV writing.. The biggest

tips are to ensure that you contextualise

your CV in terms of what is appropriate for

the post and country of application, and to

ensure that you have someone else

proofread your CV.

Before revising your CV, think critically

about what you have learned during your

volunteer assignment, and what

competencies you now possess that put

you at an advantage over other job

seekers. The reflection process may help

you to identify these skills. Through your

volunteer experience it is likely that you

have learned new skills or enhanced skills

that you already possessed by applying

them in a new context. Most returning

volunteers feel that the level of

professional and cultural complexity they

are now able to manage has greatly

increased. They often feel improved

confidence, flexibility, resourcefulness,

patience, tolerance, openness and ability

to manage under change.

Make contact with your networks: Prepare

emails, social events, visits, or phone

calls with the people you have identified

as key contacts. If you are shy about

‘networking’, contact them to say ‘hello’

and to let them know you are back from

your volunteer assignment.

Practice interviewing: There are many

generic interview questions that come up

over and over again. It pays to have

practiced responses to these and clear

examples of your work experience related

to the DoA so that your preparation for an

individual interview is streamlined. Search


for ‘interview questions’ online. It is

recommended to practice your responses

out loud, and if possible do a mock

interview with a friend or family member

asking you the questions.

Interview: An interview is a presentation of

you. Think in advance of what questions

employers may ask and read up on their

work.

It is well known that many posts are never

advertised, but filled informally through

the process of ‘I know someone who

would be good at this’. Therefore, it is

worth it to add the following techniques to

your job search repertoire:

Call select organizations: The primary

objective of this tactic is to make a human

contact within an organization, whilst

finding out more about what they do and

what their values are. Prepare a script

before you call, and practice what you

would like to say. Be respectful of

people’s time, as it will reflect poorly on

you if you are not. If you are nervous

about this process, start by doing a

practice phone call with a friend. Ask them

to act the part of a potential employer.

Book an informational interview: If your

phone call was successful, try to book an

appointment or informational interview

with someone in the human resource

department or the department that you

are interested in. Focus on fact-finding

rather than ‘getting a job’.

Re-adjustment: Take the time to reflect on

what you have learned thus far and

incorporate this into a revised plan.

3.6 Employment Considerations for

Spouses and Partners

The preceding section on employment

contains information that is relevant to

spouses and partners who are planning to

look for work upon their arrival home.

They will also benefit from the reflection

process as outlined in the Volunteer

Reflection Toolkit. In addition to these

tools, there are a few considerations that

may be specific to spouses and partners,

particularly if s/he was not working at the

location of the volunteer assignment:

■ The process of clarifying what

competencies the spouse or partner

has developed is very important. S/he

will likely have developed language

skills or contributed substantially to the

logistics of setting up and operating a

household. Perhaps s/he volunteered

his or her time, joined community

groups, worked part time or completed

consultancies. All of these activities will

be sources of skills and competencies.




■ Non-working spouses or partners may

not have up-to-date networks that they

activate easily, so they may want to

focus in this area well in advance of a

move. Some ideas are friends and

family members who are working in

your field of interest, former colleagues,

mentors, or alumni groups.

■ Letters of reference can be difficult if

one has not been working. Fellow team

members from volunteer groups are

useful in this respect. Another idea is to

alert previous referees that you will

begin looking again, and ask them if

they are still willing to give a reference

on your behalf.

3.7 Further education

You may decide to pursue further

education or a change in your field of

specialisation after you have completed

your volunteer assignment. The steps to

take when considering your educational

options are very similar to job search:

reflecting on your priorities and interests,

doing background research, planning, and

taking action.

During the reflection phase for your

educational options, things that may come

up are:

■ Your areas of interest

■ New technologies or areas of research

that have developed since you last

studied

■ Time availability (Part time, full time, for

how long?)

■ Finances

■ Location (Near your home town, online,

elsewhere in the world? Factors that

may influence this are the

specialisations offered at the institution,

costs or timing of the programme.)

■ Employability (Is it important that you

are more employable at the end of this?

In which areas? Do the prospective

programmes have good employability

ratings?)

Other factors to consider will likely come

up as you progress through the reflection

and onto the research stages.


internet search engines if you search for

‘scholarships’ in the country and language

that you are interested in studying in.

3.8 Sabbatical or Time Off

Some volunteers may decide to take a

break or sabbatical after their volunteer

assignments. This may be due to a

multitude of personal considerations

including wanting time with one’s family,

needing time to recuperate from a

stressful volunteer assignment, taking

care of one’s health or to simply needing

some time to relax. Whatever the reason

that you chose to take a sabbatical, note

that you are not alone: 66% of people who

participated in a Swiss survey and who

did not return to work immediately after a

volunteer assignment cited personal

reasons or a sabbatical as their reason for

not doing so (CINFO).


Once you have mapped out your criteria,

it will be easier to proceed with the

research and planning stages. In order to

conduct research, most institutions have

web pages that give an overview of their

courses. However, you may want to

request a calendar from certain

institutions so that you have detailed

information about their entrance schedule,

entry requirements, and costs. Some

institutions offer ‘open days’ where

prospective students can visit the campus

and get a sense of its culture and

programmes. This often includes a tour of

services and a discussion with current or

graduated students. If you cannot make it

for the day, try requesting the documents

and contact information of student

representatives from the day.

Sources of funding for your education will

be country specific and depend on your

background. Some scholarship or bursary

programmes are run through embassies

or development programmes and will

require country specific research.

Information on many scholarship

programmes can be found through



Your assignment is complete, but the

learning experience you have taken part

in does not need to be over. Your

assignment is just one stage in a lifelong

commitment to making positive change.

As each of you is a unique individual, the

activities you undertake will be as diverse

and dynamic as you are: it doesn’t matter

where you are based, how much time you

have, or whether you promote

volunteerism for peace and development

specifically. You have a valuable role to

play.

“If you think you’re too small to have animpact, try going to sleep with a

mosquito.”Anita Roddick,(Founder of The Body Shop)

This final chapter will outline a few of the

ways you can stay involved. These

include continuing to advocate for and

promote volunteerism for peace and

development, seeking another UNV

assignment, continuing to volunteer,

mobilizing volunteers, and staying in

contact with the UNV programme. These

ideas do not present the end, but simply a

beginning, to the ideas and opportunities

that you can generate.

4.1 Continue to Advocate for

Volunteerism for Peace and

Development

In today’s information age, advocacy is an

important tool to capture the attention of

governments and of general populations.

The role that media plays in our societies

cannot be underestimated, with the

opinions of international organizations,

governments and local communities being

heavily influenced by what is portrayed.

Laws and policies are influenced by these

opinions, which in turn have direct

impacts on people’s day-to-day lives.

Advocating for and promoting

volunteerism for peace and development

is your chance to influence how people

perceive volunteerism and volunteers,

and to move their understanding beyond

philanthropy and skills development.

Volunteerism is a powerful tool that can

be used to generate a momentum,

mobilizing other people into service-

oriented action.

With this in mind, advocating for

volunteerism can mean many things. It

may mean raising the profile of volunteers

within your community by writing an article

about local volunteers for the newspaper

or by designing a volunteer recognition

4. How to stay involved


ceremony for a local organization.

Presentations at local organizations or

universities are a way to demonstrate to

the next generation the value and

complexity of volunteering. Advocacy

could mean getting involved with larger

organizations, marches, or public events,

all the while highlighting ways that

volunteerism can provide greater leverage

to these agendas. You may also want to

advocate for the UNV program itself,

encouraging people to consider the

broader principles that we embrace and

possibly to apply to become a UN

Volunteers themselves. If you are short on

ideas, try talking to people around you or

looking on the internet for topics that

might interest you.

At the end of your volunteer assignment,

you are strongly encouraged to write

about your experiences. How to get

started on this process is covered in the

Volunteer Reflection Toolkit. The stories,

lessons, and other documents that you

generate will help to raise awareness

about volunteerism and of the positive

impacts that it can have on development.

If you share this information with UNV, it

will improve UNV’s ability to meet the

needs of the poor, through more informed

programming. It will also serve to support

incoming volunteers’ needs for

information, good practices and tested

HOW TO STAY INVOLVED . 33

advice. Channels for sharing these items

are:

■ Via your UNV Field Unit: Share photos,

stories, project documents. The UNV

Field Unit in your country of assignment

will then link with the UNV Knowledge

and Innovative Section and

Communication Unit at headquarters,

the UNDP Public Information Unit, with

local press and with volunteer networks

in other countries. Note that UNV is in

the process of setting up a social

network for former UN Volunteers which

you can access once it is fully

operational (see point 4.3 below for

more detail)

■ Submit article ideas through your end-

of-assignment report: Near the end of

your report, you will be asked to submit

ideas, articles, etc on your volunteer

assignment activities.

■ Upload your documents onto the World

Volunteer Web at

http://www.worldvolunteerweb.org/tools/

contribute.html. The World Volunteer

Web supports the volunteer community

by serving as a global focal site for

information and resources linked to

volunteerism. These can be used for

campaigning, advocacy and networking.



For ideas or inspiration, try looking back

at your journal, photographs, project

documents or other notes that you have

kept. If appropriate, telling stories can

outline the special role that being a

volunteer or volunteerism played in

helping you reach the objectives of your

assignment. See the Volunteer Reflection

Toolkit for guidance on how to write

articles.

To stay abreast of UN advocacy tools, try

searching UN agency websites.

Alternatively, there may be a chapter of a

United Nations Association (UNA) in your

home country. These groups have regular

meetings to discuss UN activities and to

plan events at the national level.

4.2 Seek another UNV assignment

In a 2007 survey of former UN Volunteers,

85% of the volunteers who were

interested in staying involved with the

UNV programme were interested in

applying for another UNV assignment. If

you are interested in doing the same, you

must activate your profile in the UNV

database of candidates by updating your

availability and your entire profile through

http://MyProfile.unv.org. A summary of

your experience as UN Volunteer should

be added to the professional experience

section of your profile.

Prior to reactivating your profile in the

UNV database of candidates, UNV will

request a recommendation from the UNV

Field Unit of your country of assignment.

Subsequent to this, the recruitment will

follow the usual process of waiting for

appropriate assignments to become

available, interviewing against the

Description of Assignment, and waiting for

selection.

4.3 Continue to Volunteer

A research on the effects of the national

UN Volunteers programme in Mongolia

found that 100% of the former national UN

Volunteers said that they were somehow

involved in volunteer activities on a

regular basis after their UNV assignment

(CSD, Centre for Coscial Development,

Ulaanbaatar). The findings of the research

also suggested that the former volunteers

“developed pro-social attitudes such as

helping others, looking for possibilities to

improve their social environment and

situation, involvement in volunteer

activities, civil society and NGO activities

and developed leadership skills in

encouraging other to participate” (CSD).

Many former volunteers feel that this is

important in order to maintain their new

beliefs while at the same time apply their

new skills and competencies in the home

context. Consider where you would like to

donate your time, what type of volunteer



assignment would be rewarding to you,

what type of skills you would like to use or

develop, and how much time can you

afford to give.

If you are looking for ideas on how or

where to volunteer, many countries or

cities now have websites that function as

clearinghouses for volunteer assignments.

Another idea is to look on the World

Volunteer Web at

http://www.worldvolunteerweb.org/take-

action/be-a-volunteer.html. Additional sites

can be searched online. Another option is

to approach organizations that are of

interest to you and ask them directly if

they are willing to take you on as a

volunteer. If you are interested in directly

contributing your local knowledge,

consider becoming a buddy or a mentor to

local organizations or universities that

send students on international

assignments.

Unfortunately, after the end of your

assignment you may find yourself with a

desire to continue volunteering but

overwhelmed with time constraints and

family obligations. If this is the case, you

may want to consider volunteering during

your holiday periods, or volunteering

online. By continuing to volunteer over the

internet via the UNV Online Volunteering

Service (www.onlinevolunteering.org) you

can directly assist development

organizations, working from a computer

anywhere in the world. Volunteering

online gives you a great degree of

flexibility, there is no travel involved and

you can volunteer the hours that fit your

schedule.

Finally, you may feel that the best way for

you to continue to donate your time is via

a direct linkage to a community that you

got to know during your UNV assignment.

If so, supporting them through a small

project may be appropriate. Some steps

are:

■ Take the time to speak with local people

and generate a general concept or idea

of what you would like to do. This can

be discussed with other colleagues, or

you could conduct a needs analysis. If a

similar project already exists, how

would this project be different or what

could it add?

■ Make the appropriate contacts before

you leave your assignment location, as

these may be difficult to secure later.

■ Research broad ideas as to who could

be potential funders in this area. What

are their areas of interest and criteria?

■ Select the appropriate funders and

prepare your application according to

their application requirements.



■ Follow up on the applications you

submit

Online research or lessons learnt from

other projects can provide a good basis

for developing these ideas.

The former UN Volunteer network

UNV is currently developing a ‘former UN

Volunteer network’ to be launched in 2011

as part of the celebrations to mark the 10th

Anniversary of International Year of

Volunteers. The network, to be built

initially online, is designed to provide a

forum for peer-peer support, to facilitate

peace and development related

discussions and the exchange of

resources, as well as to create and

promote opportunities to stay involved

with volunteer related activities online and

onsite.

At the time of writing we are piloting the

network hosted on a platform, developed

by UNDP called ‘Teamworks’. Once the

pilot phase is complete, the intention is to

open it up to all former UN Volunteers for

which we will develop a user-friendly

registration process and communicate this

to all former UN Volunteers that we can

contact. In the meantime to keep up-to-

date with developments and opportunities

you can visit http://www.unv.org/how-to-

volunteer/former-unv-volunteers/the-ne

twork.html. For further information you

can email the Volunteer Networking

Specialist responsible for the network, at

[email protected].

4.4 Mobilize Volunteers

A very practical way to stay involved in

volunteerism is to continue to mobilize

volunteers. If you know of dynamic, skilled

and committed people who you can

recommend to roster with UNV, this is

most appreciated. Or perhaps you will see

an opportunity to mobilize volunteers

within your community or an organization

that you are involved in. If you are in a

position to plan projects that could be

made more effective through the use of

volunteers or require ideas on how

volunteerism could magnify the impact of

the organization’s developmental efforts,

please contact the UNV focal person

closest to you.

4.5 UNV Contact Information

As one of the nearly 40,000 members of

the UN Volunteers alumni, (know as

former UN Volunteers) you are part of a

global community and an extended

member of the UNV family. If you are

interested in staying informed about what

is happening within the organization as

well as in finding local and global

opportunities to remain active with peace


and development issues through peer

discussions and events reach us at the

information below:

General enquiries:

Email: [email protected]

Or: [email protected]

Tel: +49-228-815 2000

Fax: +49-228-815 2001

Web site feedback/queries:

[email protected]

Mailing Address:

United Nations Volunteers

Postfach 260 111

D-53153 Bonn

Germany


“Remember it’s a time of transition. Be good to yourself by taking the time to relax,reflect and re-enter your home.”



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This is a living document that will change as your needs change. If you have comments andadditions that you feel can make it more useful, please send your feedback [email protected] is hoped that the exercises and topics discussed will help to make yourtransition a successful one. We look forward to hearing from you in the future.


NOTES


UNV is administered by the

United Nations Development Programme

(UNDP)


un volunteer management tools

Documents