Volunteer Research Assistant Review

I really enjoyed the placement - it was very hard work, but I learned a huge amount of new skills.

Liam and Rachel were really friendly and helpful and made sure we got to enjoy being in South Africa as well as working on the reserve. The game guards Michael and Vukani were exceptional throughout.

Our supervisors Liam and/or Leigh-Anne were generally out on the reserve with us at all times and were always open to questions and ready to help us if we had any issues.

The days were busy and at times physically challenging, but I enjoyed the hard work and being out all day. We generally had an hour or so for lunch and our evenings were free, so I never felt I was working too hard.

We were given tasks and trusted to get on with them and do them well, but weren't given responsibility for organising those tasks. As an undergraduate on their first internship this level of responsibility worked well for me.

The UmPhafa placement was instrumental in my getting a job working out in Namibia in Summer 2013 and also helped in getting my current position as a PhD student at the University of Edinburgh.

We didn't have an office as such, but the atmosphere when working out on the reserve was generally really good - we got on well as a group and had a lot of fun.

The lead up to the placement was very well organised, with an informal interview at Colchester Zoo and lots of information available, and the set up in South Africa was very good. Once on the reserve we didn't have a set work schedule, judging what needed doing day by day, but that's just the nature of conservation work. We never ran out of things to work on and we always knew why those things were important, so in those terms the organisation was very good.

Although there was no official training as such, the nature of the work meant that we were constantly acquiring new skills, and the passion and enthusiasm of all the staff at UmPhafa meant that you couldn't help but learn a huge amount.

I would definitely consider a job with this organisation if one came up that matched my interests.

Although we were in a rural area of South Africa, Liam put a huge amount of effort into make sure that we got regular trips to the local town and into organising braais and social events. We really enjoyed cooking and socialising as a group - there were seven volunteers as well as six staff, so there were always lots of people to talk to.

Cheaper than the UK, but only a little.

There was one bar in Colenso, and we made one trip over to Ladysmith - so a night out always required a drive. However, at the reserve we'd often have evening barbecues and on one occasion went on a night drive and saw porcupines - much better than a night club!

Depending on your interests, there was plenty to do on the reserve like birdwatching or just sitting on the verandah reading a book and watching giraffes and warthogs wander by. The staff at UmPhafa also put real effort into organising weekend trips for the volunteers - on one weekend we went horseriding in the Drachensberg Mountains, which was amazing!