Volunteer with Therapy Abroad

This trip to Belize was my first time abroad and I couldn’t have asked for better. Experiencing the culture in Belize and all of the kind and wonderful people who make this community what it is was truly remarkable. Therapy Abroad made maneuvering a new country seamless, fun, and worthwhile. We had the best time delivering speech and language services to children in Belize who otherwise would not receive these services. Just amazing overall! I can’t wait to return or hopefully go somewhere else with Therapy Abroad. Can’t thank them enough for all they do for students and individuals in need of therapy services!

I had a great experience. I came through my university which just had an integration with two other schools. I was the only one from my specific campus. But have made great friends. I was so overjoyed to work with all the students in Belize and they were all so sweet. Our host and driver were amazing and took great care of us. There was not one moment where I was bored. Being able to be in the culture was so interesting. I never thought I would be able to leave the United States never the less be able to experience a culture so fully.

I absolutely loved my experience in Belize. I got to learn a ton about doing hearing screenings and even got to do a few of my own. I also really thought that the activities were really fun, especially cave tubing because I love activities in the water. The food was also really good as well and majority of the restaurants that were selected I enjoyed. I would definitely recommend this to anybody and think that it’s a really unique and valuable experience. I truly had an amazing time and would definitely do it again.

I absolutely loved my experience with Therapy Abroad! I got to work with certified SLPs to help perform speech screenings, and this was my first ever experience doing something like that! Going into it I didn’t know what to expect since we were not given many details, but I would say almost to everything was a happy surprise! I would say I would’ve liked to have had more 1 on 1 time with the kids in Belize, but I understand why that may have not been possible. I am thankful for this experience, and would highly recommend it to people who are wanting to serve abroad - just to have an open mind and be eager to try new things that may be out of your comfort zone!

I enjoyed my experience overall and had a great time. I found the therapy part to be a bit challenging in that we didn’t know much information about the clients we were seeing or their condition. There could be improvement in the sustainability aspect of the therapy we were doing. However, I learned a lot more about my field of study, and feel I grew as a person and future SLP. I also enjoyed learning about the culture of Belize. I was glad to be able to take advantages of other activities such as snorkeling and cave tubing. I would certainly recommend the trip to others.

This was an overall incredible experience. I’ve learned a lot about the field I aspire to work in from a perspective that I wouldn’t get in USA. The time spent working with the students was insightful, and truly made me feel that I am headed towards a career that will be fulfilling and right for me. I have no regrets about coming on this trip.

There was a lack of organization and communication from staff that left me and other students confused about what to expect. Not having a reliable itinerary or plan made it difficult to coordinate and prepare for activities that would be beneficial for students. This made me feel as if, in my 8 days here, we did not benefit and impact the students as much as we could’ve.

Food was awesome!

I truly loved this trip. Going into it, I was open minded and ready to get involved. Each day I feel I got to learn something new and it taught me to be flexible each day. I was happy that I got to experience hands on therapy with children and also experience other activities in Belize. I was in awe of the beautiful nature and had the best time meeting to students in my group. During this trip, it made me appreciate what I have and I hope a made a beneficial impact. I am thankful I got to attend this trip and I hope one day I am able to attend again.

I had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed the trip. The only issue that I really had was with food allergy accommodations - my chicken allergy was taken care of, but my egg allergy (which is the one I’m more allergic to) was never listed as an allergy of mine. I really enjoyed going cave tubing and I also really enjoyed the clinical experience. Before this program I had not had the chance to get to do hearing screenings and other types of testing, and it was fun to do so during my time volunteering.