Combine your folk high school stay with a long travel with volunteer work in Japan

You are responsible for obtaining insurance for the period when you are not at Nordfyns Højskole. Be sure to check the coverage of your insurance policy. Most companies offer a youth plus travel insurance that covers worldwide. You can wait to purchase insurance until you have started at the school.

We will book the flight tickets collectively once we have the final number of students traveling to Japan. The flight tickets are included in the total price of 20,000 DKK for the trip.

If necessary, we will apply for visas together while we are at the folk high school. You should be aware that your passport must be valid for at least six months from the date of departure.

Vaccinations and preventive medicine may be necessary. It is your own responsibility to ensure that you receive the necessary vaccinations. We recommend that you research which vaccinations the State Serum Institute recommends, but we are also happy to assist both before and after the start of the semester. You can receive vaccinations and prescriptions from your own doctor, but there are also vaccination services available. Remember to bring your vaccination card to the school before departure.

The travel and voluntary work in Japan costs 20,000 kr. The total price for your folk high school stay depends on which semester you choose (fall or spring), as this affects the overall length of your folk high school stay, and whether you choose to extend your folk high school stay with the trip to Japan. If you indicate during registration that you would like to extend your folk high school stay with the trip to Japan, the trip will be included in the total price of your folk high school stay. The total price covers all expenses related to your semester at the folk high school, and unless otherwise stated, the price includes:

• Flight tickets to/from Japan
• Transportation from the airport to/from the partner
• Coordinator at the local partner where you will be volunteering
• Board and lodging during your stay, either with a host family or in a share house.

It varies a lot how much pocket money one spends during the stay in Japan, depending on both spending habits and desire for excursions during the free time. Our experiences show that some spend 5000 DKK while others spend up to 20,000 DKK. If you would like a better understanding of prices and what you can expect to spend, it may be beneficial to consult travel books or guides online before you leave or ask your folk high school friends from Japan for advice.

As an end of the travel, there will be an evaluation of both your time at the folk high school and your stay in Japan nd the voluntary work with our partner. This will be arranged to best accommodate logistics and may take place either back at Nordfyns Folk High School or locally with the partner. During this time, we will spend time together sharing, evaluating, and processing experiences.

If you wish, it is possible to book your return ticket so you can travel around and explore Japan before your departure.

You will be living as an integrated part of the local community. Either with a local host family or in a shared house with other volunteers. You can expect to live nearby or together with your folk high school friends. Living locally is a significant part of the experience of working and being in a different culture. You will live close to your voluntary work, but whether you have your own room or share with one or two other volunteers will be determined later. Expect to become part of the daily life of where you will be living. This also means that you will help with cooking, cleaning, laundry, and perhaps do some repairs around the house or garden. One thing is certain; it will be exciting and an experience for life.

What you are going to work with as a volunteer depends a lot on yourself and what you decide together with our partner before depar

Hvad du skal arbejde med som frivillig afhænger meget af dig selv, og hvad du aftaler med partneren inden afrejse. Du vil komme til at arbejde med aktivt civilsamfund og lokalt community engagement. Herudover vil du blive en del af hverdagen, og jo mere du siger ja til, jo mere oplever du.

When you land, our partner will be ready to welcome you and the others. During the first week, you will spend time together just settling in, getting a feel for the culture, and gaining a closer insight into our partner's general work. Throughout your stay as a volunteer, you will have a contact person at the partner organization, but you will also have a contact person (teacher) at the folk high school, whom you are always welcome to call.

Our approach to sending students out into the world to engage in voluntary work is through our partners. The better prepared you are for the context and the work of our partners, the more you will gain from your stay. Therefore, you will start with a minimum of 19 weeks at Nordfyns Folk High School. Here, you will meet the other students who will be volunteers, and together you will be prepared for the travel with both practical and theoretical approaches to democracy, development, active citizenship, communication, and project management. The length of your stay at the folk high school varies depending on whether you choose to attend in the autumn or spring semester.

As a rule, there are available spots for the travel to Japan on each semester. If you would like to know more about a specific semester, please feel free to call or send an email to the folk high school.

The earlier you sign up for the trip, the greater the chance that we can accommodate your preferences and that there are available spots. You can  sign up right up to the start of the semester, but the sooner we know you're starting, the better we can prepare all the details surrounding the voluntary work.

There are no specific nationality, education, or experience requirements to attend the folk high school or to join the travel to Japan and work as a volunteer with our partner. However, we do expect that you:

• Are motivated and engage both at the folk high school and during your volunteer stay.
• Are curious, flexible, and open to encountering new cultures.
• Are ready to understand and respect a different culture and eager to experience a completely new daily life in another country.
• Can live under simpler conditions than you are used to, including accommodation and food.
• Can take initiative and start activities for yourself and within the project's framework.
• Are prepared for a stay in another country to offer both challenges and unexpected situations, which you may need to handle on your own in some cases.
• Are at least 18 years old before departure.
• Speak and understand English at a reasonable level.
• Adhere to agreements regarding the communication of your volunteer work, both during and after the stay.

To join the voluntary work in Japan, you must be a student enrolled in one of our long-term folk high school stays, as the travel and the opportunity to do voluntary work in Japan are offered as an extension of your folk high school stay. We have admissions for our long-term courses three times a year: January, April, and August. The trip will begin once the folk high school stay is over.

You will first attend the folk high school for a minimum of 19 weeks, where you will have a regular weekly schedule with A and B subjects as well as elective subjects, and participate in the daily life of the folk high school on equal terms with the other students. During the semester, you will prepare for the trip together with the others who have also chosen to combine their folk high school stay with voluntary work in Japan, as one of your elective subjects. Here, you will delve into voluntary work, cultural encounters, communication, and daily life in another country, ensuring the best possible experience while you are away.

When the folk high school stay is over, you will travel together as a group to Japan, where you will engage in voluntary work with our partner and become part of the local community in Japan for 8 weeks. During your time in Japan, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to explore the country.