Elective fundraising tips – how to write a press release for newspaper and radio

Thursday, January 5th, 2012

One great way to raise funds for your placement is to increase awareness of your elective in the community in which you live or study. It can lead to huge public interest and in some cases, sponsorship from locals or businesses. The most interesting one we’ve heard so far is a student who managed to get the local amateur dramatic group to donate two nights worth of takings towards his placement!

The best way to get your story to lots of people quickly is to send it to radio stations and newspapers, that way all the publicity is done for you. The problem is that you are one of hundreds of elective students appealing for sponsorship in a pile of millions of potentially newsworthy stories. Why would they pick yours to publish? Well they won’t if you don’t put in a bit of effort and follow the correct procedures! The good news is that we’re here to guide you through the process of dealing with the media and give you the best possible chance of reaching the eyes and ears of your local community.

Who should I approach?

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SCOR winners are announced!

Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

The Society of Radiographers has announced the winners of their 2011 competition.

Natasha Kirby and Natasha Jevdet, both diagnostic imaging students, will each receive an international elective placement of up to four weeks to be taken in 2012.

Both winners had to submit an 800-word personal statement, including what they hoped to achieve from the elective placement, what they would give to the host country and the personal qualities that would enable them to deliver this.

Natasha Kirby, currently studying at London South Bank University, wrote of her desire to experience diagnostic radiography in Ghana. She is particularly interested in understanding how poverty, poor sanitation and educational problems are overcome to deliver an effective and safe hospital environment.

As well as looking at how the patient journey from incident to diagnosis and then treatment may vary from a cultural perspective, Natasha would also be interested to explore the use of traditional healing alongside medical approaches.

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The top 10…. Christmas presents for healthcare elective students

Tuesday, December 6th, 2011

Your elective might not be for a few months, but Christmas is the perfect time to ask family and friends for some presents that will really help you get prepared. Here is our top 10 ideas for your Christmas present list….

  1. Donate to my elective! If you want to go on an elective, and monies are tight, this is the perfect chance to target family and friends for a helping hand. Tell them to send us a cheque or transfer the money to us, making sure they note your reference number and name on it.
  2. Pens and toys for the kids - Lots of our students like to spend their afternoons working at orphanages in the cities. The kids LOVE any toys or gifts that you can give them.
  3. 1450 undercover secret laptop sleeve 150x150 The top 10.... Christmas presents for healthcare elective students

    Who would steal an old envelope?!

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The Weekly Question – How did you raise funds for your overseas placement?”

Monday, December 5th, 2011

We have written quite a few blogs recently about how to raise funds for your placement, and we can see from the number of hits that this is a subject is close to your hearts. To give you fresh perspective, we decided to ask our current students this week about how they managed to save for their placements.

Alex, who has just returned from her placement in Pokhara, Nepal, said: “When applying for some financial support towards my trip I drafted out a letter which I sent to 28 different companies asking for support. I also wrote to my local paper who agreed to cover the story, and that attracted some interest. I applied for different local grants through the council and through my university and also worked at my local supermarket at the weekend, which helped me raise some money. My local amateur dramatic group also took interest in me and hosted two plays over two nights to which both nights sold out. The two nights alone with the help of a lot of people raised me £2000!

pills2 150x150 The Weekly Question How did you raise funds for your overseas placement?”

Clinical trials worked for Matt. Image from freeimages.co.uk

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Split placements – is it worth signing up for one?

Monday, November 21st, 2011

There is no doubting that a placement in a developing country hospital can contribute enormously to both your degree and chosen career. Working with professionals in another country gives you the opportunity to experience how healthcare is delivered in an under-resourced environment, understand more about developing country diseases – some of which you may have only read about in text books –  and use and gain new skills treating advanced pathologies.

As you will know from the rotations you have completed in different departments and hospitals, no two wards or supervisors are the same. This is even more defined in a developing country where resources are dramatically decreased. To give students the opportunity to broaden their experience overseas,  Work the World recommend splitting your placement and working in different wards or hospitals within one or several of our destinations.

We get lots of questions about the benefits, cost and necessity of split placements, so this blog is designed to answer those questions. and help you make a decision as to whether a split placement is an option for you. (more…)

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Money off your placement….. an early Christmas present!!!!

Thursday, November 17th, 2011

*** Reduce the cost of your placement by £100′s!!!***

Lottie Boyer Zanzibar Full moon pyramid 150x150 Money off your placement..... an early Christmas present!!!!

How many friends can you find?

Work the World are offering £50 for every person you refer from now until Christmas – that’s 50% more than our standard referral fee!

The great news is that it is also limitless – find one friend and you get £50, but get 10 to sign up and you could earn a massive £500 off of your placement balance!

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Money, money, money…. how to get funds for your elective

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011

Travelling to distant shores to spend a month working in the developing world, visiting new places and making friends does sound like a fantastic experience, but let’s face it… the credit crunch is still chomping at your heels, your bank balance is below zero and your parents have enough financial troubles at the moment. Funding an elective overseas is not just difficult, it’s completely impossible. There’s just no point even opening the Work the World brochure….

Of course there is!

The BMJ published a great article this week about funding your elective, focusing on the important factor of budgeting – “Building a budget for an elective is feasible but requires knowledge, planning, and organisation, along with determination and nerve”. It reflects what we regularly tell our students – overseas electives are available to everyone.

Where do I start? You need to sit down and work out exactly where you want to go, how much it will cost and most importantly, what possible avenues of funding there might be.

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Work the World Brand Ambassadors.

Friday, October 28th, 2011

Are you unsure about travelling to a developing country for your elective? Are you in a quandary about where to go? Would you like to chat to someone about what it’s really like doing a work placement overseas? Well now you can!

Here at Work the World we have always recognised how useful it is for new students travelling with us to speak to someone who has already undertaken a placement. As a company, we try to prepare you as much as possible for your journey; from the differences in clinical practise to the culture shock of living and working in a developing country. But being able to sit down and have a chat with someone who has actually ‘been there and done it’ is invaluable.

This summer, Work the World launched its Brand Ambassador programme, providing an opportunity for past alumni to stay in touch and spread the word through university events and presentations. We have also recruited a select few to work as campus representatives at their universities so that if you have any questions about which country to visit or what it’s really like working on a ward in Africa there will be someone available to speak to.

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Top ten…. tips on taking good photographs

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

With the Big Picture Competition showing us just how great some travel photos can be, we thought our top ten tips this week should be about how you take a great photograph.

  1. PONGALA1 150x150 Top ten.... tips on taking good photographs

    Asia's amazing festivals are worth the trip alone

    Do your research – it’s worth having a think about your destination before you go. Many photos may catch an impromptu moment, but the photographer has given themselves the best chance of getting that shot by placing themselves in the right space at the right time. Have a look to see if there are there any festivals, parades or street markets happening and get yourself into the best vantage point ready to take some shots.

  2. Positioning – Think about the actual photograph. If you place your subject off centre, instead of right in the middle,  the story is far more interesting. The best way to think about it is as a three way grid. Place your subject on any of the intersected points  and check out how much better your picture is. There is a handy breakdown of this on ehow.
  3. Keep notes – Where were you when the picture was taken? So often you get back and look at your 1000′s of photos and have no idea where you were on that day. The camera will keep a record of the date, you just need to know your itinerary.
  4. Inspiration – What photos have you seen that you like? Check out Flickr or scroll through the images on our site. What angles have other photographes used and what subjects? You can also look at postcards when you are away and see what is considered the best shot of your subject.
  5. Jemma Bowker 11 150x150 Top ten.... tips on taking good photographs

    Elephants in the mist.

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Malaria jab could be the breakthrough we have been waiting for!

Saturday, October 22nd, 2011
Wanderlust have reported today that breakthrough research could mean the risk of malaria is dropped by half.
They report claims that results of the the largest ever malaria vaccine study were published on Tuesday by the New England Journal of Medicine. The vaccine was trailed in 6,000 children aged five to 17 months across sub-Saharan Africa, in seven countries where malaria epidemics remain rife.
The trial revealed the vaccine to cut the total number of those infected with the most serious strain of malaria by 56 per cent, in the 12 months succeeding vaccination, compared to those who did not receive the jab. It was also shown to reduce severe malaria cases by 47 per cent.
Work on the vaccine begun 25 years ago, the creation of scientists at GlaxoSmithKline, one of the UK’s leading drug companies, which have promised to sell the vaccine at no more than a fraction over cost price with profits invested straight back into further research and development for vaccines of tropical disease.

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