“The organisation of the projects is always second to none”. Chris Gale, Program Manager, Global Opportunities. Our 5-year partnership has seen over 250 Cardiff students volunteer in Fiji

“Think Pacific is so easy to work with and really understand the needs of students”. Cara McCosh, Program Manager, Leeds Beckett Study Abroad. Think Pacific designed its first bespoke student project for the Carnegie Faculty.

Our placements are very popular for students who have a specialist interest in Psychology, Sports, Education, Geography, Health and International Development – sometimes as a course-related or work-experience placement. However, students from all disciplines join our teams and gain huge value from our programmes. Our projects run across the whole year with our most popular periods being during the university summer holidays. It’s the chance for students to have a meaningful summer break and gain unique global experience, personal attributes and soft skills, which are transferable to all education and career goals.

During a 3-day induction, we cover health, safety, cultural awareness and local language as well as engage and instruct students in the specific skills needed to deliver workshops in rural communities as per the Fijian Ministry of Youth & Sports standards. Training is delivered through team-based tasks, presentations and group seminars. Throughout the project, students have briefings with our leaders and management staff to progress their understanding and skill development. Students demonstrate learning outcomes through presentations, journals and observations.

Students sample a way of life that few people will ever be fortunate enough to see as they live with families at the heart of a remote and traditional Fijian village.  This experience consistently has a profound impact upon our volunteers as they are adopted into the community. The villages are incredibly safe, friendly and hospitable places and the local people treat our volunteers as family. Students experience the simplest of conditions, cold water showers, limited electricity and a back-to-basics lifestyle. They also immerse fully into daily subsistence life, from learning to farm or fish to exploring Fijian customs, language and history.

Students must complete an application form and have an interview (which can be made by phone or Zoom) or attend one of our university selection days. Throughout the project, students will need to challenge themselves, embrace a new culture and throw themselves into our project aims and daily Fijian life. We work hard to achieve important government directives and provide real support for rural communities. For these reasons, it’s important we set expectations fully, get to know students and find out what skills and enthusiasm each person shall bring.

Think Pacific is a UK social enterprise and a registered charity with ethical and transparent project fees, 30% of our costs directly fund the communities we work with through resources, training and long-term support. Over 70% of our volunteers raise their entire project costs through university funding or charity fundraising. Project fees are £2,145 for a 1-month placement and include food, accommodation, in-country travel, resort briefings, training, weekend adventure activities, emergency support and an expedition leader team living alongside the students 24/7.

We work with universities in various ways to enhance the student experience and increase employability outcomes. We can support you with bids for government funding to provide summer mobility opportunities or design-specific placements for academic courses. When working with our team, we are proud to offer plenty of support to university staff. Our staff members in the UK and Fiji can handle all presentations, application interviews and pre-departure support, to remove the added workloads from you and your colleagues.