What is ESC?
European Solidarity Corps (ESC) is a European programme that encourages young people between the ages of 18-30 to be involved in voluntary work across the continent for the minimum of 2 weeks and up to 12 months. You can join a voluntary project either abroad or in your home country and bring impact to the community. When you are volunteering in a project, you do it voluntarily (so you won’t be compensated for your work), however, you will be reimbursed for your food, accommodation, language course, travel and private health insurance expenses. Additionally to those benefits, you receive a pocket money that may differ to each programme. During the time you spend abroad, you will have a coordinator by your side, whom you can contact with practical and work-related questions, as well as a mentor who will support you in finding your place in the new environment.
Who can join and where can I go?
ESC invites all the citizens of the Erasmus programme and partner countries. Check here (https://youth.europa.eu/solidarity/countries-covered_en) if your country is covered within the programme. If you have a residency permit in Hungary, we can support you in your project!
What are the ESC programmes like?
There are two ways you can be involved in the ESC:
- Short-term (team) and long-term volunteering. Short-term volunteering, also known as team volunteering, are project where you volunteer as a team between 2 weeks or 2 months to work together for a common goal.
- Long-term volunteering projects could either be individual or team projects. Within a long-term project, you can spend time from 3 months up to 12 months and contribute to the organization you are volunteering on a daily basis.
How many times can I be a volunteer?
Long-term ESC can only be done once in a lifetime. However, a young person who has participated in a short-term ESC project of less than 59 days (including transportation days) can do one more long-term ESC, provided that the total duration does not exceed 14 months. For example, a young person who participated in an ESC project for 59 days can participate in a long-term ESC project for 12 months.
Short-term ESC (volunteering team activities) have no limit to participate, so go as many as you can!
What sort of housing will I have?
There is no standard accommodation for the ESC program. You can stay with a family, in a dormitory or in a house with other volunteers from your hosting organization. The type of accommodation depends on the host organization and the approved budget of the project.
How much time will I be working during ESC?
This might differ depending on your project. However, the European Union disallows you from working more than 40 hours. This corresponds to 8 hours a day. However, some days you may have to work longer than this due to the project. In this case, the overtime hours will be deducted from your later working hours.
Do I need to pay any fees for joining ESC?
No. European Solidarity Corps is a completely free program. There is no fee for young people who apply.
