This page refers to the Honduras, India, and long-term (10+ day) Ghana programs. For more information on the one-week Ghana opportunity, click here.
How To Apply
|
Program RequirementsOur research, experience, and evaluation has enabled us to develop a highly successful pre-service training and orientation process that ensures that volunteers are fully prepared to contribute to the success of the Unite For Sight programs. All of the Unite For Sight pre-service requirements can only be completed once a participant applies for and is accepted to the Unite For Sight program. Unite For Sight provides an easy-to-use personal login page so that fellows can keep track of their pre-service progress and access all relevant program-specific details and materials, program manuals, phone numbers, and important links, as well as email addresses of their fellow volunteers and alumni participants.
|
Costs
|
Alumni Reflections "I am very impressed with how Unite For Sight prepares their volunteers and has such a good rapport with their organizations that they work with. I like how Unite For Sight is very professional and prepared to help you in every way possible. They thought of almost everything and anything that could affect you while on your trip and prepared you for every situation (through readings, online videos, and other training). In turn, this made for such a wonderful experience during my two weeks." | Alumni Reflections "My overall experience was excellent because not only did I gain a cultural experience and meet wonderful people and make friendships, but I also have also gained an academic and hands on experience into the field my interest. The modules, preparations, training, fundraising and eyeglass collection have brought me so much closer to my family, friends, and community...I am certain that I will contribute some of my time and skill to community development in developing countries in the future...I learned so much about the role of NGOs through reading the modules and the importance of having an effective and organized organization in order to have a positive impact rather than a negative one." |
Alumni Reflections "In the surgery room, people were prepped and operated on at amazing efficiency, as the surgery itself took but seven minutes. Seven miraculous minutes was all it took for people to get their sight back. A miracle not only for them, but an eye opener for me, for I had fundraised enough money for 57 of these people to have this chance to regain their sight, a chance they would not have had without the financial support of Unite For Sight. My experience in Ghana was nothing short of amazing. Not only did I get a hands-on experience in the medical field as an undergraduate, but I realized how preventable blindness can be in many developing countries; so preventable that I, a mere college student, could change 57 lives." | Alumni Reflections "I loved how the Unite For Sight program guided you through the whole process of becoming a volunteer. I appreciated the deadlines, for it gave me solid timeline with which to work. On top of that, I was glad that there were readings on cultural competency, health care, the anatomy and physiology of the eye, and the numerous pathologies of the eye. Without all these required readings and videos, I would have gone in blind to Patna. However, because I was able to get a general understanding of what my stay in Patna would be like, what work was required of me, and how to interact with patients, I felt more at ease while I was actually volunteering. My favorite requirement was the one where I had to go and shadow an ophthalmologist. I learned so much more about the eye than I could have just from reading and watching videos. I was able to attain actual experience on how to establish a relationship with the patient and how to proceed in taking down a patient's history and visual acuity. Without the requirements, I would not have been as effective of a volunteer as I was because of all the knowledge I gained beforehand." |