Work the World - The Overseas Elective Experts

We are the Overseas Elective Experts. Our story begins in 2005. We started by speaking to healthcare students and professionals like you, and it became clear that there were serious complications and pitfalls when it came to independently organising elective placements overseas.

We wanted to redefine the standards of overseas placement experiences, so that’s exactly what we did.

Raising standards

Creating a one-size-fits-all placement abroad solution wasn’t going to work. Too many people had unique priorities and areas of interest.

So, we developed a way of working that, to this day, allows us to deliver exceptional clinical experiences tailored to each individual’s goals and interests.

We also resolved to develop and sustain fair, ethical partnerships with overseas hospitals, clinics and surrounding communities as a basis for delivering the best healthcare placements in the world.

Our first overseas programme opened in Ghana in 2005. Since then, we have opened up a range of destinations throughout Africa and Asia. 

Today, we’re creating award-winning placements for more students and healthcare professionals than ever — a direct result of our commitment to delivering the best overseas clinical and travel experiences in the world. We focus solely on designing and facilitating overseas healthcare placements. Since we started, we’ve proudly tailored more than 20,000 placements in low-resource healthcare settings worldwide.

Explore destinations

Who do we cater for?

We tailor healthcare placements for students and professionals, whether you’re undertaking your placement as part of your degree, or just want a new challenge to boost your career prospects. We have hundreds of healthcare elective reviews from students all over the world.

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Handpicked Partner Hospitals 

We have long-standing partnerships with hospitals and clinics in all our programmes, and these partnerships help you get the high-level clinical experiences for which our placements are known.

You can choose from many clinical settings, like government hospitals, tertiary referral centres, teaching hospitals, and rural health posts. We hand-pick all the hospitals we work with to make sure they're well-suited to hosting students on placement.

We make sure the partnerships are mutually beneficial, too. So, we make regular financial contributions and donate lots of clinical equipment to every one of our hospital partners.

Hospital Partnerships

 

A team of experts

Our team brings expertise from an extraordinary range of different professional backgrounds. For you, that means getting a better experience than you'll find anywhere else.

Meet your team

Safety & Security 

You’ll find peace of mind knowing that our well-established safety measures will protect you, whichever destination you travel to. 

This is because our safety blueprint gives us control over each and every aspect of your experience, from your in-country team's safety training to your private accommodation. We constantly review and adapt our safety protocols in every single programme we operate in to ensure that you can relax and enjoy the experience in the knowledge that we’ve covered all bases.

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Events

Our events offer you the perfect opportunity to gather information about our range of overseas healthcare placements.

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Who are Work the World?

Work the World was founded in 2005. Over 17,000 healthcare students and newly qualified professionals have travelled with us. Our Work the World programmes are located throughout Asia and Africa.

What are the benefits of elective placements from Work the World?

The benefits of our electives include:

  • Expanding your clinical knowledge and skill set
  • Becoming more confident, independent and resourceful
  • Making yourself more attractive to employers
  • Doing some proper travelling
  • Building your personal and professional network
  • Sharpening your language and communication skills
  • Renewing your perspective on the NHS

What is the typical cost of a Work the World elective placement?

Registration for all destinations is £300. Prices then vary depending on how long you want to stay and where you want to travel. Our minimum placement duration is one week, with no upper limit. On average, electives are normally between 4 and 6 weeks.