wow, where to start :)

Hi and welcome to the forum.

I take it you're currently in the US. Don't mean to be a nag, but as far as finding some sort of volunteer or other organization that could get you overseas, you may well find you'll have more opportunities with a college degree, or at least with some specific job training under your belt.

However, have you looked into something like the Peace Corps? Or any of the many aid agencies (Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, etc.) where you might be able to get some training and where your language would certainly come in handy. If nothing else, see what skills and background these agencies are looking for and that might give you some further ideas.

I started out with a university degree in German and Theater, but when I decided I didn't really want to do the waiting tables until I got my "big break" routine, I decided to get an MBA. After 15 years of accounting and finance, imagine my surprise when I found that a US-trained accountant with two foreign languages could actually find a job in Europe! The rest, as they say, is history. <g>
Cheers,
Bev

I'm with Bev, dude. You're going to need to finish that degree.

But there's no reason you can't do it overseas for half the time, and no reason you can't find and honest, humble internship that builds your CV and earns you college credit without setting foot on campus. Seriously, if you've finished your freshman year already, you could probably graduate without putting boots inside your campus again.

Even the Peace Corps is probably not an option. They expect degrees or years of experience in a field. I'm sure you have to be 21, and they are trying to get older people, not younger people, to volunteer.

I'm with gopher.

People have this romantic idea of going off to live the simple life in some developing country. The simple life is nice as long as it is an option, as long as you can decide to pack it in and go home. For most people, the simple life means struggling to house, feed, and clothe their children. It can mean working dawn to dusk, hard, just to survive.

Sometimes what people mean by leading a simple life includes running water that is drinkable, flush toilets, electricity, air-conditioning, and only having basic cable. I'm not saying you are like that, but it isn't unusual.

I recently met someone who did a volunteer stint in a small village in Africa. Whoever she volunteered with didn't put her in a reasonably comfortable place, but in a village where the nearest water (not clean, safe, water, just water) was over a mile away and had to be hauled by hand in buckets.

In addition, you would have to be self-supporting. With no skills to offer, you are going to be competing with people who will work for a lot less than you will be able to live on.

And again, you have to find a country that will let you move in and stay, when you aren't offering anything they don't already have.

If you have some money saved up, you could go traveling and volunteer as you go, serving as a native speaker in schools, for instance, so students can practice their English.

If you might want a career working for NGOs, you might contact them and ask what sort of skills they are looking for now and expect to need in the future, and consider that when choosing a major. Just don't make the mistake of thinking that knowing a foreign language makes you unique. In the rest of the world, second and even third (and in the Netherlands, fourth) languages are just adjuncts to your real specialty.

GopherGrad and Synthia both have real good points. Look into the NGOs to see exactly what they require, or just go out and get yourself a job and you may well find that you decide in a year or two that college is worth putting up with if you really want to live abroad.

Studying overseas is another option - but in many countries (certainly in most of Europe) you are very limited in the amount of time you are allowed to work if you are a student. (Often only vacations and holidays.) Foreign students are considered a major source of revenue, as they pay full fare tuition, whereas the local students are largely subsidized by the government.

To be honest, one of the biggest selling points when looking for a job overseas is some level of experience and expertise in "the American way" of doing a job or profession. An American with no job experience is in basically the same position as a local high school graduate - and most countries have plenty of them.
Cheers,
Bev

Please lighten up!
From now until you are 29 there are numerous organisations that provide overseas jobs, while experiencing the countries with opportunities to study while there and get paid .
Search the Internet for Work Study and Travel, short and long term.
You are in your prime time to experience the world, cultures, earn money, gain experience that will add to your credits, including obtaining great references.
Try this link just for one
OVC - Overseas Visitors Club - Work Travel they are all over the world and like several others help with Visas etc.
Not everything is as hard and tough as it sounds.
Good luck with your search.

Although not a simple life, what about applying for a job as a holiday rep? All the big companies should now be advertising for staff.

Michelle

__________________
www.mar-del-plata-argentina.net

A wonderful place to live

What's a holiday rep? He's in the US, which isn't full of companies offering cheap one-week charter trips to some foreign country.

And while I do get tired of telling people that their romantic ideas of moving to another country are going to be difficult to fulfill unless they have a good deal of money or choose countries according to their accessibility, I don't think it is a good idea to tell people there are lots of jobs to be had when it just isn't true. It is, I think, even less true for Americans.

One option would be to apply for a working holiday visa to New Zealand or Australia, the only countries where Americans have that option. There are also lots of volunteer opportunities for those who are willing to pay, but the OP doesn't give the impression he has a lot of money to spend on expensive programs.

I should have said Europe. He can only check out the situation as to whether the jobs are only available to Europeans.

Michelle

__________________
www.mar-del-plata-argentina.net

A wonderful place to live

I understand your sentiment , but sometimes it pays to be up to date with info too. We send 8 Youngsters on the 1st of April 2008 from the USA to Jobs in UK and Europe and there are still lots of jobs available provided they are between 18 and 29 years old there was no hassle no problems with their Visas or their arrangements . Hope that clears the misconception about American youth having problems to work in EU or in UK .