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).

3. Those age 50 and older.  I’m dead.  I just turned 65 in December.  “Older applicants have a wealth of life skills, professional experience, and tested maturity to offer the Peace Corps”.  Yeah, yeah, that’s what they all say, but I’m still dead because all those “old” 50 year olds will fill available slots first.  They go on to say “Five percent of current Volunteers are age 50 or older, and this segment continues to grow.”  Now I am dead because I’m in a 5% pool…

4. Couples.  “Peace Corps accepts married couples, but the placement process can take longer. Both people must qualify and there must be a matching job for each person in the same location.”  It’s getting worse and worse for us. Things aren’t looking up…

5. Finally, “many older Americans have questions about issues unique to this stage of life such as insurance, Social Security, maintaining home and financial affairs while overseas, etc.”  We have our home with a mortgage and rental properties. The PC wants to know – how are you going to financially make it without a “paycheck” for the next several years?

The PC covers your living expenses (and health insurance) during your volunteer years, but they really want to make sure your financial issues back home aren’t going to hinder your work.

So – what are we intentionally doing to beat out all those other applicants for “our” PC job?

Follow our story and see if we make it!