“Volunteering will change you in ways you never thought possible”, says Frank Hiebert, who has recently returned from a volunteering trip in Peru, organized by Developing World Connections.  Frank was part of a group of eight, ranging in age from mid 20s to over 60, based in Lima to carry out volunteer work on construction projects in the nearby slum areas. Frank’s accommodation was in a hostel-type hotel in Lima, and every day the group [...]

Many Canadian students who are going abroad to study also intend to work there to cover living costs, tuition fees, trips etc. Wherever you are working in the world, the bad news is you will have to pay tax! The good news is that you can claim a lot of this money back! GoStudy has teamed up with taxback.com – a leader in international tax refund and tax filing solutions. Taxback.com will make an often very complex process [...]

Canada’s largest international university and student travel expo is back .. check out the schedule below to see when we are visiting a city near you: March 2, 2013 – MONTREAL – Le Palais des Congres March 3, 2013 – TORONTO – Metro Toronto Convention Centre March 5, 2013 – VANCOUVER – Vancouver Convention Centre If you have ever considered studying abroad for a semester, a year or for a full undergraduate or postgraduate program, [...]

Enter our facebook contest to win a volunteer trip to Peru or Guatemala, offered by Developing World Connections.  The prize is valued at $2000 and includes all in-country expenses, accommodation, food etc. To enter is easy … Tell us why YOU deserve this trip! 3 easy steps to enter this contest: – Make sure you’ve LIKED our facebook page – Write in the Comments box why YOU should win this prize … – Get your [...]

Harnoor Gill, student at Christ the King Catholic Secondary School in Georgetown, Ontario, proves that you are never too young to make a difference.  Harnoor was presented today with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for outstanding contributions to his community.  For the past ten years, he has volunteered with various local charities, and recently founded the Peace Welcome Club with a mission to ‘heal the community and to uplift migrant youth’ by encouraging them [...]

The Toronto Star published an editorial on January 4th entitled “The downside of overseas volunteering”. It raises great concerns about the transiency and true benefits of international volunteering. I agree with the criticisms whole-heartedly; however, this likely sounds hypocritical given that I lead the International Outreach arm of SOS, which has roots in two-week volunteer trips to build schools. So. How do I sleep at night (or, at least reconcile that hypocrisy)? I use my [...]