Where Does My Money Go?

Global Crossroad is a for-profit organization. We are extremely proud to be able to offer our high-quality and diverse programs at rates that often cannot be beaten – not even by non-profit organizations. Our competitive fees are up 200% less than prices charged by a number of major US-based, non-profit, volunteer abroad organizations.

Still, we face one good question: “Where does my money go?”

The money paid for your program fee goes to a number of sources vital to the success of your program. These numerous operating expenses include renting rooms for living accommodations, paying the salaries of various staff members, utilities, marketing. Except for marketing, all these listed expenses must be covered in all 37 countries – usually prior to your arrival and always on a rotating frequency. In effect, a limited amount of your program fee reaches the host family and your respective project.

Marketing

With today's competitive market, it is difficult to stay ahead of the curve. With tools such as Google being vital to the growth of just about any business, just one ad link (or ‘key word') can cost up to $4.00! Can you believe it!? And that is just one word ! With the growing competition among other volunteer abroad organizations, the challenging and associated costs of online marketing increases everyday! If not in the top positions of Google-powered searches, volunteers would not be able to find out about the great projects and competitive prices offered by Global Crossroad. In addition to online advertising powered by other industry-leading search engines, we also dedicate a significant amount of our advertising budget to other venues such as study abroad fairs and campus-based publicity. In total, we dedicate nearly 25% of our total income to marketing and advertising.   

Salary of United States and Overseas Staff Members

Currently, Global Crossroad operates in 37 countries around the world. In addition to our United States-based offices, we have over 100 individuals working with and for Global Crossroad – the majority of these individuals operating within the capacity of directors, managers, in-country coordinators, drivers, security, cooks, etc. All of these individuals draw a salary and must be paid to ensure the quality and endurance of our programs. Approximately 20% of Global Crossroad's total income goes toward paying the salaries of our numerous, international staff members.

Expenses of United States and International Offices

Currently, Global Crossroad has two operating offices in the United States ( Dallas , Texas and Baton Rouge , Louisiana ), one in the UK and over 20 offices located in various countries where our respective international programs are headquartered. For each and every one of the offices, associated operating expenses must be paid, i.e. rent, utilities, various taxes, maintenance, etc. More than 10% of Global Crossroad's total income goes toward covering these expenses.

Travel and Program Development

Global Crossroad selects its volunteer projects, host families, and coordinators very carefully and meticulously as the quality of our program is often determined by our in-country staff members. Upon arrival in the field, we are certain that you will enjoy both your project and your living accommodations – be it either a host family, hostel or other living arrangements. You will find yourself overjoyed by the unique experience afforded to you courtesy of our abroad experiences. But do you understand how Global Crossroad came to be able to arrange such a wonderful project and host family? Some volunteers do not take the time to consider how this came about. Take for example the cost of simply traveling to any country from the United States . Now factor in the cost of traveling to various countries – visiting each and every project, host family, etc. Now consider the time, effort and logistics to interview, meet with, and screen each individual who may prospectively come into contact with our volunteers. Would you believe that Global Crossroad's staff members travel abroad EACH year simply to screen each project and family in hopes of locating the very best arrangement for our volunteers? Nearly 10% of our entire income is dedicated to research done for purposes of Travel and Program Development.

Airport Pick-Up/Reception, Transfer, Living Accommodations, Meals

In conjunction with in-country (local) coordinators and local partners, we offer various levels of supports for each and every one of our volunteers, including: airport pick-up/reception, internal transportation, living accommodations, meals, and in-field support from our in-country coordinators/in-field staff members for the duration of each volunteer's project. Additionally, we pay for ALL of these services on a monthly basis – sometimes constituting 20-40% of each volunteer's total program fee. Often, these in-country coordinators are responsible for allocating the associated funds for each volunteer and each project.

Company Profit and Miscellaneous

Global Crossroad is a for-profit organization. In effect, we expect to make a reasonable profit while not compromising the quality and integrity of our programs OR the wallets of our participants (as you can see from our ever-competitive program fees!). With all of the above-mentioned expenses, we expect to make a modest profit of 10-15% from our total income. In addition to all of these expenses, other miscellaneous expenses include insurance, credit