Who knew volunteering for a job could be so tough?

When Leslie and I started our initial research into volunteering for the Peace Corps, we knew we’d face challenges getting into the program.  What does the PC look for in applicants?  Or to put it more bluntly, what happens if you fall into categories that don’t enhance your resume for acceptance? Finally, are there other less obvious – but significant – hurdles to address?

Education is one of the major pillars of the PC’s mission in countries where they serve. So what background do we need for that?

1. Bachelor’s degree – checked off! We’ve got those (although from the pre-historic days).

2. Those with liberal arts degrees. Hmmm…  gets a bit more tricky here because the PC says the “best way for liberal arts majors to qualify for the Peace Corps is by gaining 30 hours or three months of tutoring or volunteer experience”.  We’ve got that experience now by teaching ESL for 6 months – but it was only part time, one evening a week.  Remember, this is the absolute minimum for consideration.  They go on to say “The more experience you have in these fields, the more competitive your application will be.”  Ah, now we’re getting into competition against other liberal arts people (I’m a political science major which is worthless in the real world). Read the rest of this article »