Come and be part of the biggest event in the YFU world

Now is your chance to apply and become one of the 100+ volunteers at YES 2025!

Here are just a few reasons why we love to volunteer at the YES:

sharing your exchange and volunteer experience
getting to know a lot of new people – students and volunteers alike;
working with YFU on an international level;
contributing to the biggest YFU event in the world;
developing skills and expertise in different areas depending on the role (event planning, handling tricky logistics, developing educational content, leadership skills, etc.)
having volunteer expenses covered, including travel and accommodation!*

*Travel Policy for Volunteers

More information

Deadline to apply: 5th of January 2025

Deadline for selection: 5th of February 2025

When selecting volunteers for the YES, we are looking at the quality of the application, the motivation, and skills the applicant can show.

We will ask your member organisation for a recommendation for you, so we recommend that you inform them beforehand about the role you plan to apply for at the YES.

How do we select volunteers?

When making the volunteer selections, we always strive to remain objective and ensure equal opportunity and diversity in our team of volunteers. Our core team will evaluate the applications, with the following criteria in mind:

You do not have to be a superhero to become part of the YES team, but there are a few requirements. You need to be 18+ years old, fluent in English, and have a high level of motivation, responsibility, and dedication for the YES 2025.
It is important that in your application you demonstrate how your current experience aligns with the role you are applying for
Even if you are not the most experienced volunteer, if you are truly motivated to learn and support the team, we would love to work with you. Share with us why you are passionate to work on the YES
What you do at the local level matters. Inform your MO you have applied to be part of the YES and ask them to recommend you, sharing a few positive examples. We will be asking for recommendations right after the application deadline, at the beginning of January. You do not have to include this yourself when applying.
We strive to have volunteers from as many different YFU organisations as possible, as well as diversity in gender and age.
General experience in YFU that does not include YES.
If you have experience contributing to the YES, even in a role other than the one you’re applying to, we will take this into consideration. However, don’t worry if you’ve never volunteered at the YES - last year 45% of volunteers were there for the first time
Besides your MO, you will also be able to list if someone else in the network can vouch for you. If you have participated in other projects, be it National or International, and you know someone was happy with your work, please share their name and contact information
You will have the chance to apply for up to 3 roles at the YES, and you will have to specify the priority of these roles for you. We will try to match you with your first preference, but that is not always possible. Try to put thought into which role you truly want at the YES, and write a really great application, rather than saying you would do whatever. If you are not really sure which role is the best for you, write us an email at yes.info@yfu.world and we can give you some advice.
While we hate to have to make this differentiation, money is always something we need to consider at the YES. It is however the last differentiating criteria, so do not be discouraged by this when applying.
Check out the Volunteer Travel Policy here.

This might seem like a lot, but we strive to be as transparent as possible about volunteer selection. If you are not sure whether you are the right person for the position, just APPLY.

Have questions about any of the roles? Send an e-mail to yes.info@yfu.world!

We typically don’t select volunteers who don’t put an effort when they apply. See what we consider to be a good application on our blog.