Five out of six Estonian Refugee Council's EU Aid Volunteers deployed in Balkan countries and Lebanon are now employed and attribute their success to the program's international experience.

Senior EUAV Luke Hamilton (Protection field officer) continued his career withthe UNHCR: "In terms of my career since Montenegro, I have been working for UNHCR Nigeria as AssociateProtection Officer and in 2021, I will be getting a new position with UNHCR Lebanon!" He says the EUAV experience was a significant factor in his success with applications, especially UNHCR, as they value prior international experience in the organisation. "I am extremely grateful to the programme (and Estonian Refugee Council!) for the opportunities theprogramme has opened up for me."

Luke Hamilton in Montenegro. 

Holly Langham, who served as UNHCR Associate Programme Officer in Albania,will start a new job for an NGO working with child rights and social entrepreneurship. After her deployment, she was recruited by UNHCR Albania as a UN Volunteer and worked there remotely from Stockholm. "EUAV directly led tomy re-hiring in Tirana and I would definitely say my UNV opened doors for my new job. With Brexit and uncertainty caused by the pandemic, the new job provides me a bit of security!"  

Holly Langham in Albania.

Aikaterini Trigka explains that almost eight months after her deployment and things are entirely different than a year ago. "Last year in January, I was starting the second half of my deployment as an Associate Reporting Officer for UNHCR in Bosnia and Herzegovina under the EU Aid Volunteer programme. This year I am in Warsaw, working in a task force for a new European project, ETIAS, in Frontex. Beyond doubt, my deployment enriched my professional experience andmy skillset. I gained valuable field experience and learned new things. It gave me a different perspective as now I have more clarity about what I want to do in the future. However, it was equally rewarding on a personal level. It was a lifetime experience that I was lucky enough to share with a fellow EU Aid volunteer. Volunteering was a great experience also due to the constant support of our sending organisation."