Soccer Coach in Ghana
Are you a serious soccer player looking to expand your horizons and do some good in the process? Consider Projects Abroad, which offers a program where American teens teach soccer in Ghana. It’s a great way to see a very different part of the world, and to create genuine connections to kids from a very different culture. Here are some of the highlights of the program:
Work with local professional soccer coaches to help disadvantaged children improve their skills and confidence.
You’ll work at a long-established soccer club where you’ll coach young boys and give them a healthy and fun way to keep active.
The coaches will teach you correct techniques and strategies, as well as basic first aid and lesson planning.
How do I get started? Check out the Projects Abroad website.
How do I expand this narrative arc? If your narrative arc includes sports, and you want to show that you’re more than just a great athlete or super fan (or world traveler), think about expanding and deepening both with one of these opportunities:
Help your school establish a better concussion protocol with Heads Up
Start a fundraiser for a sports team in a nearby low income community (or continue to fundraise for the community where you lived in Ghana) with Support Youth Sports
Spend part of your summer attending the Wharton School’s Sports Management program
Create public art on a local basketball court with Project Backboard
If you’re great at math and love sports, consider attending Wharton’s Moneyball Summer Academy
Looking for another angle on sports management? Try the New York Times Summer Sports Academy.
HOT TIP: This program sounds pretty amazing. If you love soccer and want to add it to community service this could be a great choice for you! Keep in mind that this type of foreign travel, unless linked authentically to more ordinary but equally valuable experiences, can sometimes be discounted by college admissions officers as something that is more a signifier of socioeconomic status than genuine interest. Travel to Ghana, expand your worldview and do good while having fun. Just make sure there’s a robust connection to something else less glamorous in your narrative arc!