Long and Middle Term Volunteering (LMTV)

LMTV stands for Long Middle-Term Volunteer and is used by SJ Vietnam to refer to all volunteers committing to a project for more than one month. You’ll find all the LMTV opportunities below.

The LMTV role is intended for people who already have some experiences in the voluntary field. In addition, as projects run for several months, committing to being an LMTV is not the same as being on holiday.

Leaving one’s matters here and starting something “there”, in a place which is far away from our friends, familiar places, culture and comfortable life is a serious decision.

A long-term volunteer is a person who individually and actively takes part in a project lasting from 1 to 12 months.

There is a minimum age of 18 to become a LMTV. Volunteers are expected to have a very high motivation and a certain amount of “life experience”, meaning that s/he can look after themself, work independently and be able to deal with any problems that might occur during the time the volunteer is abroad.

The applicant should be open-minded towards the project and motivated to carry out the work of the project. The vast majority of our volunteers are committed to working for the common goals of the project. If a volunteer has some workcamp experience, then s/he has met with an international group of people, lived in basic living conditions and knows what to expect from a project’s living and working conditions. This can be important as LMTV work can demand a lot of initiative and independence.

SJ Vietnam promotes active management and democracy as an approach to encourage volunteers to take responsibility and become self-reliant through experimentation, success and partnership. The LMTVs have to be involved in their project and undertake responsibilities including project management, work schedule and the organization of activities. The LMTV manages their food budget and social life in close relation with the staff and the local SJ Vietnam members.

People wishing to be placed in one project together should register as early as possible because we try to limit the number of people from the same nationality to avoid division between volunteers and to create the richest possible international environment mix for the volunteers. If you wish to join a LMTV as a group, then it is not a LMTV project anymore but what we call a “bi-lateral project” between your group and SJ Vietnam. Please contact us at [email protected] for more information.

In cooperation with several local partner organizations and institutes, SJ Vietnam organizes around 12 long middle-term projects (LMTV-projects) in and around Hanoi each year. These projects can be attended from one month up to one year and they require more than just carrying out the work at the specific locations. LMTVs have to participate more actively in the SJV organization and management of their project. The projects are much more intense than our short-term projects and need a higher level of motivation.

Volunteers have to participate actively in the management of the project; sometimes they have also to supervise and support short-term volunteers. LMTVs will stay in one of the SJV houses in Hanoi and will live together in an international environment surrounded by many different cultures. Cooking, cleaning, having fun (also sometimes conflict management) and learning about each other’s cultures will be part of everyday life. Please read the Infosheet about our projects for more detailed information.

At the end of your work as a long middle-term volunteer you will see the world from a different point of view. The cultural challenges that volunteers will encounter during their stay will strengthen their knowledge of problem-solving and life experience, so that when you return home, you will probably look differently at things that always used to be very common to you.

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