A day as a European Solidarity Corps (ESC) volunteer is part of a full-time activity of at least 30 and not more than 38 hours per week, including language and other training activities relating to the project. The weekly timetables and videos of volunteers below show that day. Volunteers do musical workshops with children, work in a vegetable garden and check the Instagram profiles of an association. Our guide on what ESC volunteering means explains what the programme gives the person who does it, and this page shows how the hours of the day are spent.
Last updated: November 2026.
How many hours does an ESC volunteer work in a week?
ESC volunteers work at least 30 and not more than 38 hours per week, including language and other training activities relating to the project, and the rest of the time is their own. Volunteers have two consecutive free days per week, unless the volunteer and the organisation agree differently and explicitly state it in the volunteering agreement. Volunteers also have 2 days of leave per month, which they can combine, so a 10-month project gives 20 days of leave in total. The volunteer and the host organisation have to agree on vacation periods and weekly rest days. Our guide on your first steps as an ESC volunteer explains tasks, working hours and days off.
What time does an ESC volunteer get up?
A volunteer wakes up about one hour before the start time in the weekly activity timetable, to get ready and travel to the organisation. Start times differ between projects, as these weekly timetables show:
🌅 Start at 08:30: a model timetable in Poland starts with administrative tasks, so the volunteer wakes up at about 07:30
☀️ Start at 09:30: a timetable in Italy starts with support during activities with young and elderly people and the immigrant population, so the volunteer wakes up at about 08:30
🕙 Start at 10:00: a timetable in Portugal starts on Monday with a team meeting on the week's work plan, so the volunteer wakes up at about 09:00
🕚 Start at 11:00: a timetable in Málaga, Spain, starts on Monday, Wednesday and Friday with accompanying minors in educational centres, so the volunteer wakes up at about 10:00
Our guide on the volunteering agreement explains the document every volunteer signs before starting.
What does a workshop day look like hour by hour?
A workshop day in a model timetable from Poland has a language course and then musical workshops with children. The hours below come from that timetable, and the volunteer wakes up about one hour before the start time.
⏰ About 07:30: the volunteer wakes up to get ready and travel to the organisation
📋 08:30 to 10:00: administrative tasks
☕ 10:00 to 10:15: break
🗣️ 10:15 to 12:30: language course
🍽️ 12:30 to 13:30: lunch
✏️ 13:30 to 14:00: preparation for the workshop
🎵 14:00 to 17:15: musical workshops with children
🧹 17:15 to 17:30: preparing the room for the next day
Our guide on online language support explains the language help open to volunteers.
What kinds of work fill an ESC volunteer's timetable?
The work on a timetable depends on the project, and real weekly timetables show these kinds of tasks:
🧒 Children: pedagogical activities with children such as music, arts and dance at a community centre in Portugal, and educational reinforcement with children and then with young people in Málaga, Spain
👵 Nursing house: work in a nursing house in Braga, Portugal
🤲 Refugees: organising creative games, sports and cultural events for a refugee camp in Hungary, such as handcrafts, football, dance, cooking and presentations of home countries
🌱 Nature: river and forest cleaning, awareness campaigns, reforestation and garden creation in Braga, Portugal, and hiking or levada walks with clean-up and beach or city clean-up in Madeira, Portugal
🚜 Garden and forest: garden, forest, firewood and eco-building in Spain, and a vegetable garden and collecting the goats in Tarifa, Spain
🖥️ Office work: office work with staff such as paperwork and administration in Hungary, and recording and editing a weekly video blog in Ferrol, Spain
🖼️ Art: installing the monthly young art exhibition and designing participatory murals in Ferrol, Spain
🧡 People with disabilities: activities with young people and adults with disabilities, therapeutic pilates, therapeutic riding and therapeutic futsal in Portugal
ℹ️ Youth information: an open day in the Youth Information Centre, receiving individuals and groups, and an info session at a secondary school in Portugal
Our guide on how to choose a project helps you match the work to what you want. Our pages on volunteering with animals and nature and teaching English as a volunteer cover two specific kinds of work.
Which meetings and lessons come back every week?
Language lessons, mentor meetings, team meetings and time for a personal project come back every week on the timetables below:
🗣️ Courses: an Italian course on Wednesday and Thursday in Italy, and Portuguese classes from 09:30 to 12:30 in Portugal
🤝 Mentor: an evaluation and mentor meeting on Friday in Italy, and coffee with the mentor on Tuesday and Thursday evenings in Italy
📅 Team meetings: a Monday meeting with the coordinator to discuss and prepare the week's programme in Portugal, and a Friday meeting with mentors and staff for reflection, evaluation and planning next week in Hungary
💡 Personal projects: a personal project and the vegetable garden in Tarifa, Spain, and the volunteer's own projects on Wednesday and Thursday in Câmara de Lobos, Portugal
Volunteers should be encouraged to use their own ideas, creativity and experience and to develop their own initiatives related to the work of the host organisation. In standard ESC volunteering there is a person in the organisation who manages the volunteer's work, and the mentor is a different person. Mentor meetings are often planned weekly or every two weeks, but the volunteer and mentor agree on the rhythm. Our guide on your ESC mentor explains that role.
What are ESC volunteers not supposed to do?
ESC volunteers are not supposed to replace paid staff or carry heavy responsibility alone, and the rules are these:
🚫 Routine tasks: you are not supposed to do routine tasks that paid employees would normally do
🚫 High-responsibility tasks: you should not do high-responsibility tasks alone or unsupervised
🚫 Individual care: you should not be solely responsible for the individual care of vulnerable people (babies or children; ill, elderly or disabled people, etc.) on a day-to-day basis
Any changes in the project and in your tasks must fit the general set-up of the agreed and approved project, and you and the host organisation must agree on them. Our page on what to do when a project goes wrong covers problems with tasks.
What does a day at a school look like for ESC volunteers?
A school day for European Solidarity Corps volunteers in a small town near Warsaw, Poland, starts at around 08:15, when the volunteers leave the house and walk to the town's primary school number 1, which takes less than 10 minutes. Whenever necessary the volunteers craft and draw things to decorate the rooms and hallways. Each day at 11:40 the school gives the volunteers a warm lunch, different every day, but the traditional Polish soup is never missing. After eating the volunteers always help in after-school care, simply playing with the children and coming up with fun activities and games, and their day at school ends at 15:30. Whenever the volunteers feel like it they go to the supermarket to buy groceries or snacks to have with a coffee at home. Some evenings the volunteers meet a group of local people to play board games. One volunteer from Germany plays badminton in Poland, a sport the volunteer loves and a great way to balance daily life.
A typical day had no fixed timetable for Elisa, a volunteer near Marseille: some days Elisa was at the library stand, other days helping in classes, with about four hours of work per day and much free time. The school had two weeks of holidays after every six weeks of school, which Elisa used to travel, while volunteers placed elsewhere, such as at the city municipality, had much less holiday. Anna, a volunteer in Ankara, spent time at the office preparing educational materials for classes and making reels, and took part in Turkish language lessons. Our page on the ideal ESC volunteer describes what these days ask of you.
What does a day at a youth centre look like for ESC volunteers?
A day at a youth centre in Beja, Portugal, runs from the morning to going to the office, work at the youth centre, a sustainability event, a workshop and online meetings. An ESC volunteer in Beja filmed one whole day because people kept asking how a day there goes. The day in Beja went like this:
🍳 Early morning: he woke up at 6 or 7 in the morning, had breakfast of one egg with a little salad, then worked for a while before going to the office
🥒 Lunch: he prepared his lunch to take with him: pasta, cucumber, yoghurt and water
🦆 The walk: every day on the way to the office he and the other volunteers walk through a park with ducks, which makes him feel really good
🏢 The office: the office is in a place he compares to a youth centre, with a small museum, places to stay and the offices of some clubs, and the volunteers do all their work there
🧴 The event: that day there was a sustainability event, then a workshop where they made their own shampoo and a cream
💻 Lunchtime: he had a meeting, so he ate at his desk while joining the online meeting
📝 4 o'clock: the other volunteers were making plans for what they would play with children the next day, and he did his own individual work because he looks after the technical side
⚽ After the office: he shot baskets with another volunteer, then played football and sweated a lot
🏠 Home: he got home and said it was only 6 o'clock and he had done many things
🌙 Evening: he had another meeting
Lisa, 18, from the Netherlands, filmed one week of her life as a volunteer in Croatia, where she had been for seven or eight months. Lisa works in a youth centre of an organisation called Carpe Diem, together with two other volunteers from Spain and France, who are also her flatmates. Lisa has a flexible schedule and decides it herself: she normally goes to work around 12:00 and works until 18:00, but it completely depends. Lisa normally comes back to the apartment to eat lunch and takes a break of about one hour, sometimes longer or shorter, depending on how much she has to do. One day she worked all day on graphic design, which she says was nothing special but enjoyable. At home Lisa cooked a big layered dish in the oven so she would have food for days, and started a podcast about being a volunteer. During the week she also went to a workshop and to the beach. One of the volunteers she had been with from day one was leaving the next day after finding a job, and it was a big change for them.
Near Montepulciano in Tuscany, Italy, European Solidarity Corps volunteers live in a house and work in the mornings, or whenever no tasks are planned in the city, from a tiny house where they discuss social media posts and do most of the video editing. In the afternoons the volunteers work at the youth centre, where they play games with kids. The volunteers do not use cars: they cycle to the train station, 10 minutes away, and take the train to discover the country. Federica, 29, chose to stay in Italy and explore Federica's own culture by moving only to another region. A 28-year-old Spanish volunteer on the same project has one tip: go with the flow and stay calm. Our collection of stories from ESC volunteers has more first-hand accounts.
What does a day on a communication project look like for ESC volunteers?
On a communication project volunteers check the Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and TikTok profiles, plan what to post and record videos. A video shows a day in the life of European Solidarity Corps volunteers in Warsaw, Poland, whose project involves managing the communication and promotion of their association:
⏰ 08:20: one volunteer wakes up, gets some fresh air, makes the bed, then goes to the kitchen to make coffee and have breakfast
🚋 Around 09:20: the volunteer leaves to take the tram, and on the tram one volunteer takes a newspaper and listens to the news
📱 At the office: the first thing the volunteers do is check the Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and TikTok profiles, then plan the week: what to post, the next volunteers' podcast episode and what to record
🎬 During the morning: volunteers make TikToks, record videos, schedule tasks and discuss ideas, and one volunteer tries to write in Polish using a translator
🍽️ Around 13:30: lunch, then tea or coffee and a little chat
🛒 Around 17:00: the volunteers finish, go to the shop if something is missing, then catch the tram home to hang out, chat or watch a movie
🏋️ 20:00: the gym, where the volunteers try different classes, and that day they tried aerial yoga for the first time
🍲 21:30: dinner time, then the volunteer prepares the lunch for the next day, showers and goes to bed
Carlotta, 23, from Spain, does a European Solidarity Corps project at a Europe Direct information centre in France. Carlotta's main duties are going to schools to talk about Europe and doing non-formal activities with children and young students, and also a lot of office work because of Covid: working on European projects and writing articles for the website on current European Union issues such as the Green Deal. Carlotta says the role requires being really up to date with the news.
Jasmine from Germany and Jason from Greece were European Solidarity Corps volunteers for three months at Local Europe, a Brussels-based think tank, on a project where migration was the primary topic. Jasmine says the volunteers were always tasked to do research on the topic and follow the current news on migration. What Jasmine enjoyed most was the flexibility: the volunteers had weekly tasks and weekly meetings, but other than that they were really flexible about when to do their research. Jason says the volunteers met new people virtually; meeting them in person would be better, but it was still very useful. Our guide on what ESC volunteering means explains what projects like these give the person who does them.
What does a day on a care or social project look like?
On a project in a seniors' house in Latvia a volunteer does morning exercises with the seniors, and on a project with asylum seekers a volunteer plans the volunteer teams for the morning and the evening. Tara, 24, from Georgia, volunteers in a seniors' house in Latvia under the European Solidarity Corps. Tara's tasks are doing morning exercises with the seniors, taking them upstairs in their wheelchairs for the exercises, being part of their daily life and helping them try something new that they do not expect at their age. Tara describes Latvia as quiet and says it suits calm people and introverts.
Mina, 27, works with refugees, and the host organisation saw Mina as perfect for the job because Mina comes from a refugee background and knows very well what refugees go through on their way to Europe. Mina deals with the daily planning and manages a team of 20 people who take care of asylum seekers, some of whom sleep rough. The team monitors the situation on the streets and Mina plans the volunteer teams for the morning and the evening. Mina says the project is a chance to learn a lot and to develop personal skills such as languages, leadership and coordination. Our story of Mariam's ESC project in Tallinn shows youth work on a different project.
What does a volunteer shift look like outside the European Solidarity Corps?
A volunteer shift outside the European Solidarity Corps can be an early shift from 6:00 to 13:30 or a late shift from 13:00 to 20:30, as in a rehabilitation clinic in Germany. Gian, 21, from the Philippines, is not a European Solidarity Corps volunteer: Gian did voluntary work for 9 months from January to September 2024 in Germany through the FSJ programme. FSJ stands for Freiwilliges Soziales Jahr, voluntary social year in German, a programme for young people who want to work in social fields such as hospitals, schools, museums and elderly care. Gian volunteered in that clinic, which specialises in neurology, mostly helping nurses with their tasks. The work was helping patients start their day by washing and getting dressed, assisting them with eating, such as preparing coffee and tea, and helping with their mobilisation. Gian realised life can be routine and monotonous, and that if you do not do other things after work or surround yourself with good people, it is really hard. Gian and a friend also doing FSJ would hang out, eat and cook together. Our guide on the European Solidarity Corps explains the EU programme this page is about.
What do team and month-long projects look like?
Volunteers on a European Solidarity Corps team in Sardinia worked towards an intercultural festival. During the festival week each volunteer had a task and one volunteer, Victor, was in the media team doing photography and filming. The volunteers also had courses on soft skills including conflict management, working under pressure, working as a team and working with time limits. A month-long timetable in Málaga, Spain, has 09:00 to 14:00 and 16:30 to 19:30 with these weeks:
1️⃣ Week 1: arrival of volunteers, on-arrival training, city visit, first aid course and welcome party
2️⃣ Week 2: campaign, visits to sports venues and Spanish course
3️⃣ Week 3: working groups on the ludoteca, culture and sports, and closing party
4️⃣ Week 4: project evaluation, farewell party and Youthpass ceremony, holidays and departure
Our guide on ESC Volunteering Teams explains how team projects work.
What happens after work on an ESC project?
After work ESC volunteers go home, cook, shop and spend the evening on what they enjoy, and these are the main parts of that time:
🏠 Where volunteers live: ESC volunteers usually live in a shared volunteer flat; sometimes in a dormitory or apartment-style residence, and rarely with a host family
🍳 Food: the organisation usually provides the accommodation and gives food money, so the volunteer can cook at home or eat out; the details are set out in the info pack
🪙 Pocket money: pocket money is for personal needs only, such as small shopping, cafés, social events, books, sport and cultural activities
🏡 House life: in a small village in Portugal, volunteers sleep in rooms for 2 or 3 of the same gender, share one kitchen where all can cook and must be prepared to cook for a group
🧽 House rules: the same house has a key for each volunteer and a suggested weekly cleaning programme
🎶 Evenings: classes in the traditional Salento dance pizzica on Monday in Italy, one integration evening with other volunteers with cooking in Poland, and a Cine Forum event on Monday in Spain
🌙 Free evenings: a timetable in Portugal has evenings, Saturday and Sunday free
Our guide to volunteer life abroad covers where to find support at every stage, and our page on ESC pocket money explains the amounts.
Frequently asked questions
How many hours a day do ESC volunteers work?
The hours are per week, not per day: at least 30 and not more than 38 hours per week, including language and other training activities relating to the project. A timetable in Italy has activities from 09:30 to 12:30 and from 14:00 to 18:00.
Do ESC volunteers work at weekends?
ESC volunteers have two consecutive free days per week, unless the volunteer and the organisation agree differently and explicitly state it in the volunteering agreement. A timetable in Italy has Saturday and Sunday free. A project in Tarifa, Spain, has one day off a week. A timetable in Ferrol, Spain, has sports with the mentor on Saturday, and Sunday is free.
Do ESC volunteers live alone?
ESC volunteers usually live in a shared volunteer flat; sometimes in a dormitory or apartment-style residence, and rarely with a host family.
Who do I talk to if the work is too much?
Talk first to your mentor, then to your sending organisation, and if needed to the National Agency. You can also ask the organisation for support. Our guides on your sending organisation and National Agencies explain those roles.
How do you find a project with the kind of day you want?
Youth Works Hub has a Match page that finds projects suited to you. Using Match requires creating an account on the site; signing up with Google is available but not required. Project quality varies, and researching the organisation, talking to previous volunteers and reading the call carefully before applying greatly reduce the risk.
Related pages: your first steps as an ESC volunteer · your ESC mentor · ESC pocket money · volunteer life abroad · stories from ESC volunteers · how to choose a project
👉 ESC projects: youthworkshub.org/?tab=esc-projects
