At Leave UR Mark, many of our participants are students and recent graduates who are often already in debt through university payments, low-income jobs, or unemployment. Interning/Volunteering abroad should not be an experience that is only accessible to those with a lot of disposable income. We highly encourages students and travelers to not let finances get in the way but rather prepare, plan, and invest in all the costs associate with going abroad through Leave UR Mark. Some of us at Leave UR Mark saved for two years before we got to do an internship abroad in India. Others have reached out to close-knit communities that may want to help us go abroad. Ultimately, when you are thinking of going abroad, it wont just be for yourself. It will be for the communities that you engage with in India as well as the knowledge, freshness, and excitement you bring back home after your experience is over to family and friends. Everyone has a stake in helping you go abroad to do something meaningful. Here are some of the ways in which we and our former interns/volunteers have saved up for their trip. We hope their ideas will inspire you and bring forth many more.
- A $3 cup of coffee in the United States equals one amazing meal in India at one of Bangalore’s historic restaurants from the 1970s. This includes all snacks that seem like only a few dollars but add up to quite a lot (frozen yogurt, slices of pizza, etc.)
- Ask your friends if you can cook together instead of going out to eat. $20 spent on a dinner out equals one unforgettable day trip in India.
- Don’t spend money on clothing that you absolutely don’t need. Only shop for those items that you want to bring along with you on your internship abroad.
- Skip going out to the movies ($5-$10) and instead go online and stream an Indian Bollywood movie to keep your motivation going. For $10, you can go to the movies three times in India.
- Skip any domestic travel you are planning (visiting friends out of state/road trips/weekends away) and put it towards your trip instead.
- Instead of going to the mall (where temptations will be high), spend your free time doing free activities like parks and free museums.
- Forgo any treats to yourself like getting your nails done, fancy haircuts, massages, buying makeup, etc.
- If you drink alcohol, try giving it up until you come back from your trip. Unless someone is buying you or offering you a free drink, save your money!
- Curtail social activities that cost you money. We often forget how much we spend when we are out with friends and having a good time. Skip going to concerts, sports games, nightlife events, etc. for the short-term.
- Reduce or minimize your car usage. Walking places will help you save on gas money that you can use towards your trip instead. Plus walking everywhere will get you used to your project in India as you will be walking everywhere!
- Give up magazine subscriptions and gym memberships.
- Visit second hand shops like music and book stores to see what you can sell to them.
- Use coupons for grocery shopping.
- Bottled Water–yes this is a luxury and it adds up! Consider filtering your water and bringing around bottles with you instead of spending $1-$3 whenever you need water.
- Cigarettes-if you smoke, stop for just the time you need to save.
Use Your Community: Let your family and friends know about the purpose of your visit instead of pushing the travel component. If you are volunteering abroad, let them know more about the organization where you will work and what kind of impact you’ll be making. If you’re doing an internship, let them know how you plan to use the experience to help your own local community when you get back. It doesn’t just stop at family and friends. Look into your local churches, temples, mosques, and other religious organizations to see if they can help. Ask people for small donations ($10-$25). Put simply, you should be thinking of doing some sort of fundraiser, event, or networking opportunity on a weekly basis to help raise funds.
- Host a fundraiser dinner with family, friends, and contacts from your local organizations. Find a restaurant that may charge $15 per head for your event and ask everyone to contribute $40 to your cause. It will be an excuse for people to go out to eat, network, and support a cause. If 10 people show up, you will have raised $200 which buys you one week on a Leave UR Mark program. Maybe the restaurant may chip in too!
- Write letters, emails, and messages to all your contacts you have made through school, work, and networking. Let them know what you are doing and ask them to donate $10 or more in exchange for you providing them pictures or memorabilia from your trip.
- Talk to Indian organizations in your city/state. Non-Residents Indians have a strong presence in practically every country and often have associations and cultural groups set up to promote Indian culture in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia. They may be thrilled that you want to visit India and do an internship/volunteer work there and may find a local business that will sponsor a part of your costs or set up a fashion show/charity event. Note: Non-Resident Indians in the United States are one of the most affluent minority groups.
- Recruit a friend or family member to go with you. Ask Leave UR Mark what discounts are available for signing up with a friend or family member either on the same or different project.
- Ask family and friends to give you money on holidays and birthdays that you will put away for your trip.
- Talk to your neighbors and see if they would be willing to have you do errands (shovel snow, rake leaves, etc.) in exchange for a few dollars to help go towards your trip.
- Have a garage sale and sell your stuff!
Student Loans: If you are volunteering abroad, find out if you can defer your student loans. Private student loan companies sometimes offer deferment options for students doing volunteer work abroad, especially for longer term placements.Renting and Subletting: If you have a nice appartment or room, find out if you can sublease or rent to someone during the time you are abroad. Airbnb.com users usually pay around $70-$200 per day to rent out your space while you are gone.Recruit Travelers: If you are able to help Leave UR Mark recruit more people who want to volunteer and intern abroad, Leave UR Mark will lower program fees and give you discounts as well as commission for each person you recruit. Your own study abroad office at your university would be a good place to start.The most important factor in saving up for your trip is to set concrete goals. Set yourself a minimum amount that you must save per month. Email us at info@leaveurmark.com to discuss how we can help further!
