The Peace Corps Wants Volunteers, Right?

Question

Well, I've volunteered, but not at anything I think they'd consider as anything important to them.

I've volunteered at the Animal Rescue League, Higgins Armory (the only place devoted entirely to armory.) and the local library. But I don't know if they would consider this the type of volunteering that they want. What type of volunteering are they looking for? Volunteering in general or in a specific area?

Answer 1

They took me. I had volunteered as a day camp counselor in high school and, in college, in an enrichment program the YWCA ran for under-privileged youth.

What they want is some proof that money isn't as important to you as other things, like job satisfaction and helping others. If the volunteering was related to your career, even better. (I was a secondary school teacher as a PCV; I had worked with kids as a volunteer.)

They also want to know if you can live without hot water, electricity, weekly visits to the spa and a jumbo cup of Starbucks triple mocha creme every morning. (Most volunteers have tepid running water and many have electricity, although not 24 hours a day. You have to stumble to the bathroom / outhouse by moonlight or light a candle.)

They also want a skill that a host country has asked for. If you are a nurse, teacher, accountant, farmer or engineer, you may get invited without having volunteered for anything before. You might not, especially if your other offer was $70,000 a year from a CPA or Civil Engineering firm.

If you are serious, decide what you'll do in the Peace Corps and volunteer for something related here in the USA.

Answer 2

> I've volunteered at the Animal Rescue League

Did you manage other volunteers? Did you work to educate the public about the importance of appropriate animal care? Were you in high-stress situations? Did you manage any project?

> Higgins Armory  and the local library.

Did you manage a project? Help educate the public about these organization's programs? Help people who have low-literacy skills, seniors or others access information?

> What type of volunteering are they looking for?

Again, they are looking for experience, either through volunteering or paid work, as well as academic credentials. They want people who have medical training/experience, teacher training/experience, project management experience, experience working with low-literacy populations, experience helping people train for jobs, experience training people using computers or farming or fisheries, experience teaching people to build water pumping or filtration systems, or experiencing managing a computer training program -- and all sorts of other areas of expertise. They want people who understand the unique challenges of working with a culture completely different than their own, working with ultra-religious societies, working in societies where women or ethnic minorities are denied basic rights, and on and on.

Here is a web site that can help you learn more about the skills and experience desired by long-term placement organizations such as PeaceCorps, VSO, UNV, etc, that require volunteers to be highly-skilled, and how you can start to gain such experience locally, wherever you are now, through your job, your studies, and your volunteering:

http://www.coyotecommunications.com/volu...

Answer 3

Have you checked out their website for your answers?

http://www.peacecorps.gov/