You must be at least 18 years old by the time of the trip to participate. You can apply if you are 17 as long as you will be 18 when the trip starts. There is no upper age limit, but please keep in mind that our trips are meant for college-aged students, and they will be given preference during the application process. Although we love and appreciate parents, they are not allowed to accompany their children on a FOCUS Mission trip.
SEE MORESEE LESS 
The Basics
Who We Work With: Project Finding Calcutta
Trip Capacity: 20
Cost: $1,400 – $1,550
Dates:
- 03/06/26 – 03/15/26: Dallas, TX 2 – Illinois State University
- 03/13/26 – 03/22/26: Dallas, TX 3 – University of Northern Iowa
- 03/20/26 – 03/29/26: Dallas, TX 4
Dates and price subject to change.
Mission trips are operated by FOCUS Missions and are not affiliated with any specific university.
About the Trip
Type of Service: Corporal Works of Mercy, Service
What’s Included: Travel insurance, pre-trip orientation, post-trip debriefing, food & lodging in-country, project materials, in-country transportation
What’s Not Included: Travel to and from mission location in the United States, Immunizations & personal travel medicines, passport and visa expenses, other personal incidentals
Promoting Safety and Mitigating Risk
FOCUS Missions holds safety for our participants as the primary concern for any mission trip we send. We offer trips to locations once they have been initially researched and vetted with people on the ground, as well as checked and monitored for safety from our security consultant.
Other precautions FOCUS Missions takes include consulting government agencies, such as the U.S. State Department, the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), and the Center for Disease Control regarding traveler health. FOCUS Missions also has a number of resources dedicated to promoting safety and mitigating risk, including training every Mission Director in safety and risk management at our Mission Director Leadership Summit, arranging insurance policies for each trip, and equipping our staff and students with safety guidelines at trip orientation.
FOCUS Missions takes great pride in partnering with local religious orders, apostolates, and organizations in every location we serve. We regularly communicate with our contacts before the mission to plan the trip and assess on-the-ground conditions. We reserve the right to re-route or cancel a trip if there is a confirmed safety concern.
Notwithstanding reasonable efforts to make our trips safe, there are inherent risks to travel and to the activities associated with our trips, and FOCUS cannot guarantee 100% safety under all circumstances. Participants in our trips knowingly assume these risks.
Frequently Asked Questions
How old do I have to be to participate in a FOCUS Mission trip?
When do the applications close?
Applications for spring break trips close on November 30th, and applications for summer trips will close on February 15th.
I don’t know how to fundraise/No one wants to give me money to go on a trip!
Every FOCUS Missions participant is trained to effectively fundraise their mission trip cost. As FOCUS Missionaries, we raise our entire salary, trusting in people’s generosity and God’s grace to provide us with our spiritual and physical needs. If you feel called to participate in a FOCUS Mission, you will have the tools and support available to fundraise for your trip. A missionary will walk with you throughout the entire fundraising process. Allowing others to support us through their financial commitments and prayers is essential to the success of FOCUS Missions!
I’m not a Catholic, can I still participate on a FOCUS Mission Trip?
FOCUS Mission Trips are designed to be effective on two fronts: we provide aid to those in most need around the world and aim at building up the faith of those who volunteer on our mission trips. The latter goal, while certainly carried out with a Catholic angle, should not discourage anyone from applying. Catholics and non-Catholics alike are invited to take part in this excellent opportunity to do as Jesus did, working with the poor and “[making] disciples of all nations.” As a volunteer, you are asked to participate in group prayer and join in on faith discussions, but you will not be forced to participate in exclusively Catholic practices (i.e. the rosary, Catholic Mass etc).
I am not a student, can I participate in a FOCUS mission?
Non-students are allowed to apply for FOCUS mission trips. However, since our organization primarily caters to college students, students will have priority in trip placements. If there is a spot available on a mission trip after all the students have been placed, non-students will then be placed on the trip.
Where can I get more information about FOCUS the organization?
More information about FOCUS can be found at focus.org.
I want to make a financial contribution to FOCUS Missions. How can I do this?
You can make a financial contribution to FOCUS Missions here.
What's included in the estimated price of a FOCUS Mission trip?
- Round-trip airfare to mission country*
- Travel insurance
- Pre-trip orientation
- Post-trip debriefing
- All food, lodging, materials, and in-country transportation
*For mission trips that take place in the United States, airfare is not included in the fundraising cost, as students are expected to secure their own transportation to domestic mission locations.
What's NOT included in the estimated price of a FOCUS Mission trip?
- Cancellation insurance
- Visa fees and associated costs
- Immunizations
- Flights / ground transportation to a given departure city
- Personal Incidentals
- Certain elective entertainment activities
FOCUS Missions strives to create the highest quality, most highly effective Catholic mission trips that exist. Funds donated in support of a mission trip are some of the most direct contributions possible for a charitable cause. For example, if we are building a certain structure, funds that are donated are brought directly with us on the trip and used to purchase from local suppliers. Likewise, we recognize that we have great responsibilities as stewards of your generosity and therefore we do our best to ensure your hard-earned funds are spent responsibly in accord with your intentions.
Are FOCUS Mission trips safe?
FOCUS Missions holds safety as a prime consideration for any mission trip that we establish. When any threats to safety are perceived our goal is to mitigate these factors to the greatest extent possible. In circumstances where we feel that a situation has developed beyond a point where we can prudently take participants, we will not hesitate to reroute or cancel a trip. Beyond extreme circumstances, here are some of the practices we have in place to mitigate risk and ensure a safe mission:
- We work very closely with pre-existing religious orders, lay ministries, our Catholic clergy who are keenly familiar with the on-the-ground realities of the environment in which we are serving.
- FOCUS Missions pays for a full-time security consulting firm to monitor all trip locations and recommend the best course of action.
- Our mission directors are put through a full course of training in Risk Mitigation practices and emergency preparedness.
- Our full-time staff members are required to be familiar with all information provided by the US Department of State and the United States Center for Disease Control prior to the trip.
- Each of our groups traveling abroad is registered with the US Department of State.
- Each student participating in mission has travel insurance coverage that includes live emergency assistance that can connect them with qualified medical professionals at home and abroad.
- Students are taken through a stateside orientation retreat that addresses specific safety considerations prior to entering a foreign environment.
Overall, we strive to meet the delicate balance between faith and prudence. Please remember that volunteering and working abroad no more guarantees a lack of security than staying at home guarantees safety. Should you have any additional specific questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us directly at: [email protected] or 303-551-7365.
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