Travel And Volunteer As A BYU Student!

Why Travel With ILP? 

Our travel programs are in countries all over the world, so you can spend time teaching English in the classroom (or helping in an orphanage) while adventuring in a foreign country.  You're set up with a group of fellow volunteers to travel with, with weekends off and vacation days to do a lot of traveling. You'll get all of this and more with an ILP semester: 

• No previous skills required!
  You don't need to speak another language, have traveled, or have any teaching experience to be an ILP volunteer.
  
  
• Make a difference in the lives of children 
  You have the ability to change a child's life just by sharing your natural gift of speaking English and showing them you care. Bridge cultural gaps, make lasting friendships with your group of peer volunteers, have incredible experiences that will affect your own life for the better in countless ways ... and, boost your college resume at the same time.
  
  
• Volunteer with other religious students
  International Language Programs (ILP) isn’t affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but a lot of our volunteers are (so you can volunteer with other YSAs). It's not a requirement to be religious to volunteer with ILP, but every volunteer agrees to a Code of Conduct, so you’ll be living and volunteering with people who share your same standards. 
  
  
• Go abroad on your college budget (for less than a BYU study abroad) 
  We know you’re a college student (hello, BYU tuition!), so the program fees cover your airfare, housing, food, language & culture classes, training, and visa. The program fee for an entire semester is often less than the cost of one of the BYU study abroad  programs — Plus, we offer discounts and promotions to help you afford a semester abroad, like a pretty sweet discount for you and a friend (more about that below) 
  
  
• Do so much traveling
  Volunteer up to 20 hours per week with Saturday and Sunday off, which means you have tons of time to explore with your group. You'll also have scheduled vacation time so you can see even more.
  
  
• Get support
  Our volunteers are set up with an ILP group of college-aged peers that they live with, volunteer with, and travel with, so you're not alone ... You might even meet other BYU Provo students and come home with a new roommate! Talk about solving any BYU housing concerns for next semester, right? 
  
  Volunteers also get the support of a Local Coordinator who lives in-country, plus the support of the Orem, Utah staff. 

Save Even More Money 

We know travel is even better at cheaper prices, which is why we want to help out anyone paying BYU tuition. Tell your friends about ILP and you can both receive a discount of $300 when you volunteer in the same Spring or Fall semester for qualifying countries. 

• *To qualify, your friend must list your name as the person that referred them on their application. Contact the ILP office for the current list of qualifying countries. 

ILP also offers other discounts, tips to help you raise money to pay for your program fee and payment plans to make this work for  you. When you apply, you'll be put in contact with your very own ILP representative who can tell you more about our discounts and work out a payment option that work best for your situation. 

There are BYU students volunteering with ILP every semester — we want to make this work for you, too! We know student travel can seem like something you can't make work, but we have several options to help make a semester abroad a reality, without messing up your college plans:

Get BYU internship credit
Depending on your major (and certain BYU Provo programs), you might be able to get school credit for your volunteer service by talking with your academic advisor. Even talking with the BYU admissions team could be helpful. 

Take BYU Provo online classes
ILP volunteers serve part-time (20 hours a week), so there is free time to balance exploring the country you're living in and taking an online BYU class or two. See which BYU courses or BYU classes are offered online, and plan to complete those during your semester abroad, all while you see the world.

Volunteer this summer
If you don't want to have to take a leave of absence, how about volunteering during the summer break? ILP's summer semester volunteers usually leave in May (or late April) then get back in July or August — meaning you'll get back in time to start BYU courses in the fall, no problem.

Defer a semester
Or, taking some time off might work better for you (we all need a break from studying, right?). We’ve had volunteers defer a semester (BYU calls this a "leave of absence") to volunteer with ILP during the Fall or Winter semesters of school. You don't have to fill out any paperwork or talk to the BYU enrollments office or anything to defer a semester, just as long as you sign up for classes the next semester. 

Still Have A Few More Questions? 

Let's stay in touch — clicking that button will get you in touch with your very own ILP representative, who has volunteered with us before (and is here to answer all of your questions). 

Who Is ILP? 

Take advantage of all of the opportunities to travel abroad with other college-aged volunteers! International Language Programs is an affordable volunteer and travel program where you can make a difference in the world when it comes to helping children in classrooms and orphanages. You may have seen us around BYU campus ... come say hi, if you do! 

We have a Code of Conduct all volunteers adhere to, so you can feel good about volunteering with people who share your same standards — being based in Utah, we do attract a lot of volunteers and students who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (though it's not required to be religious to volunteer with our program). 

If you're looking for opportunities to have a meaningful experience living abroad with others who have a similar standard to yours, this is right up your alley. Learn more about our program online, or click above to get in touch with someone who has already volunteered with us (and can help you get your questions answered).