Eka Jikidze is a Georgian volunteer who will join Centrul Educaţional de Resurse şi Training in Craiova, Romania and participate in a long-term European Solidarity Corps project funded by Erasmus +. Read what she says about her upcoming experience:

“I am Eka, a 23-years old recent graduate with a degree in Psychology. Shortly after graduating, I decided that it was now time to expand my knowledge in Psychology further by gathering new experience in working with young people to help them realize their full potential. Supporting others is a driving force for me, that is why I chose psychology and to realize it in a practical context within this project is what I expect.

I think that this volunteering is an extremely important and delicate job, requiring a great deal of flexibility, responsibility, and energy. It is a special experience that will help me learn new things, for example communicating with people from diverse social and cultural backgrounds, offering them support, and sharing knowledge and experiences with each other.

What is more, volunteering is something I see as an opportunity to advance my career before I decide specifically in which field I have more interest in and how to pursue it. It’s an opportunity to get new experiences, make new connections, and work with different people to acquire practical knowledge and skills that will help me better understand my passions.

Another benefit of the program is that, during the voluntary service, I will meet new people and make new friends. This experience will stimulate my personal growth. I am willing to facilitate activities that help young people improve their skills and support them. I would be honored to be involved in this project. I am looking forward to having a very productive reciprocal relationship with them and with other volunteers, sharing with them my knowledge and experience, which will be valuable for them, as well as for me.

Volunteering will also help me enhance my interpersonal skills and grow professionally, by, among other things, expanding my intercultural competence. I expect it to be nothing less than a life-changing experience. Spending time in Romania and communicating with people from different cultural backgrounds will make me more appreciative of different cultures, diverse points of view” – Eka Jikidze.