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I guess I really should finally finish this drat application.
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Sep 7, 2010 18:59
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Moon Slayer posted:Hey, did you ever meet that older guy who owned a campground up in Siem Riep? He came into the lounge at HQ a few times. He had done three stints as a PCV, the previous one had been in the Ukraine. Nah, I never met him. We didn't start getting RPCVs coming around the office until around the time you guys were coming in- took about a year for people to become aware of the program, I think. The only RPCV in Siem Reap I ever knew was Lisa at the JPA. No surprise on the weirdness though; a good number of the people I met passing through the office were a little bit strange. Guess it's just kinda an awkward position to be in, though That absolutely blows for the poor woman, though. It really amazed me how many more people K2 and 3 lost than K1. I guess it's just a matter of having more people in the group or less attention from the staff or something, who knows.
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Sep 8, 2010 01:48
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Going to Los Angeles tomorrow and then straight of Vanuatu on Friday! It's been a loooooong wait.
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Sep 9, 2010 08:49
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Son of Quakerman posted:Can you re-enlist when your time is up? Is it possible to just remain in the peace corps permanently? I was told you can stay for up to 5 years but in order to re-enroll it takes as many years as you served, so if you served for 4 years you can re-apply in 4, to keep "fresh" people.
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Sep 9, 2010 19:28
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We have one guy here who was supposed to COS with the rest of us in October, but he's leaving in a few days for Kenya for a full 2-year term. I think. It seems like it's a very case-by-case kind of thing.
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Sep 9, 2010 21:00
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Winna posted:Going to Los Angeles tomorrow and then straight of Vanuatu on Friday! It's been a loooooong wait. I've been meeting a surprising number of people that have volunteered in the South Pacific. I was told it was one of the rarest assignments, but I'm starting to wonder if that's true. Anyway, I hope you have a good time there, I'd love to go to the South Pacific. I just started orientation at the University of Denver. They claim to have the 3rd largest Peace Corps community in the US, so I've been meeting a lot of RPCVs and MI students.
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Sep 10, 2010 02:45
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Rush Limbaugh #1! posted:Actually, I was talking to someone who works at the main office in DC yesterday, and they said that they're having problems getting enough volunteers to fill groups. I guess it's bad enough that they're waiving language requirements for areas that traditionally have had them, like Latin America. Sweet. Im writing my application now, hopefully ill get in. I was told that Peace Corps is a good way to get into a future career with State Dept.? Which is what I want to go into after Peace Corps.
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Sep 10, 2010 04:06
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RagnarokAngel posted:I was told you can stay for up to 5 years but in order to re-enroll it takes as many years as you served, so if you served for 4 years you can re-apply in 4, to keep "fresh" people. I've never heard that... I know people who transferred into China with me, and then transferred elsewhere, and all that really mattered was the approval of the country director of the new country. One guy I'm thinking of has done 3 different programs in 3 different countries over the last 5 years, and he's had no trouble (he is also an amazing volunteer and a natural polyglot, so if you have desired skills I think it's much easier) Saint Celestine, a lot of RPCVs go on to work in the Foreign Service or in State. This is what I'm planning to do - and a nice perk to this is that your years in PC count towards your pay grade and your retirement.
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Sep 10, 2010 04:58
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Saint Celestine posted:Sweet. Im writing my application now, hopefully ill get in. The Foreign Service Officer Test is given at most US Embassies, so it's pretty easy to take while serving in the Peace Corps. Also there is a good chance you will have at least a few opportunities to interact with State Department people in-country, so take the opportunity to pick their brains for information on getting a job.
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Sep 10, 2010 05:03
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I've been wondering about this and I'm sure the answer is pretty straight forward (as in: Just say it like that) but here goes: I know you have a better chance of getting an invite if you tell them you don't care where you go to volunteer. This is true for me, I'd much rather do Peace Corps anywhere than nowhere. I wouldn't deny any invitation as far as I can foresee. However, I would prefer to volunteer either in Africa or East Asia. I would like that to be taken into account, but I don't want them to say "Well we have a spot open in X country but that's not in his preferred region. Let's go with the next candidate." What's the best way to get that across?
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Sep 10, 2010 16:56
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Just say it like that. "I have the most interest in these areas but am willing to go anywhere". I can guarantee you most peace corps volunteers have a pet wish as to where they go, and they wont misinterpret that at the interview if you make it clear it's not contingent on your acceptance.
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Sep 10, 2010 17:32
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That's what I figured but I wanted to make sure. I assumed that it was probably fairly rare when people say "I have no care where I go." and probably even more rare when people say "If you don't send me to Kinshasa I quit."
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Sep 10, 2010 17:59
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I've heard from a lot of current, and recently-returned PCV, and I've heard enough mention of [Amazon] Kindles being useful, for email and as something computer-like. I wasn't going to ask this, but I've heard from more than a handful of people mentioning Kindles being useful. I was thinking of getting one before serving, does anyone have any first-hand experience with Kindles or know other volunteers who use them in service?
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Sep 10, 2010 18:24
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In my experience, there were far more books available to read than I knew what to do with. Lots of them are crap, but I read something like 150 books in 21 months and never had to look too hard for something to read. In tiny countries maybe it's not like that (like Pacific islands) so maybe a Kindle is useful, but otherwise I wouldn't bother.
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Sep 10, 2010 19:19
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Miss Fats posted:That's what I figured but I wanted to make sure. I assumed that it was probably fairly rare when people say "I have no care where I go." and probably even more rare when people say "If you don't send me to Kinshasa I quit." They actually do ask you where you would not go because there are admittedly some valid reasons (a muslim might not wish to go to a country where he cant practice his faith openly for example).
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Sep 11, 2010 02:30
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Evil Adam posted:In my experience, there were far more books available to read than I knew what to do with. Lots of them are crap, but I read something like 150 books in 21 months and never had to look too hard for something to read. In tiny countries maybe it's not like that (like Pacific islands) so maybe a Kindle is useful, but otherwise I wouldn't bother. Yeah I imagined the ebook part is probably useless, but I heard something about internet-through-cellphone stuff that the Kindle picks up (obviously I don't understand it fully)
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Sep 11, 2010 07:56
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Pocket DeSade posted:Yeah I imagined the ebook part is probably useless, but I heard something about internet-through-cellphone stuff that the Kindle picks up (obviously I don't understand it fully) The Kindle can use its Whispernet service to access the internet through 3G networks. it's incredibly slow, and you'll want to use only basic mobile sites or text-heavy websites, but it worked great for me checking my gmail when I didn't have internet for a month recently. Really a lifesaver. There's no extra charge for the browser usage, either. I wouldn't say the ebook part is "useless"- if you just want books for the sake of books, you can find plenty at the country headquarters or trade with other PCVs, sure. But if you want a specific book, it's often hard to find them in the second-hand shops that are often the only source of English books in Peace Corps countries. I feel like that's the kind of time that an e-reader would be handy, so you wouldn't need to ship it out and have it delivered to your site.
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Sep 11, 2010 10:57
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CronoGamer posted:The Kindle can use its Whispernet service to access the internet through 3G networks. it's incredibly slow, and you'll want to use only basic mobile sites or text-heavy websites, but it worked great for me checking my gmail when I didn't have internet for a month recently. Really a lifesaver. There's no extra charge for the browser usage, either. What kind of coverage do you think that would have? Also, do you think that would be a high-risk item? (i.e. something that would be basically lifted immediately, like a laptop or jewelry?) [Silly question, I know. I'm just ignorant of Kindles, especially outside of the US]
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Sep 11, 2010 14:09
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I think it varies very, very widely depending on the country you're in. I'm sure some places have great coverage, others probably don't have any in the entire nation. That might be the kind of thing to talk about with a current PCV in whatever country it is we're discussing here. I think the high-risk status varies too, depending on the country. What I'd recommend though is getting one of the nice covers for it. I have a black leather one that I got with it off of Amazon. It lets you hold the kindle more like a traditional book, which is nice, and it protects the screen and such during travel. More importantly for your question though- with the black cover on, mine just kind of looks like a day planner from a distance. I think if I'd had mine in Cambodia, people wouldn't have even known what the heck it was if they saw it.
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Sep 11, 2010 16:36
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Just as a heads up... if you're applying for the Peace Corps and expect to teach English, you might think about putting in an application for a Fulbright ETA position. The Fulbright name carries a lot of weight, and while it's more competitive than the Peace Corps, the benefits are also better monetarily and it's only 10 months; the money is yours to do with as you choose and the opportunity to do research and travel is greater (you also can live in much better abodes). This is especially true if you're interested in Eastern Europe; Bulgaria (where I am now) expanded their number of ETAs this year and may expand further next year, and some of the new ETA spots will not have many applicants. I think Macedonia just added an ETA, for instance, and I bet there will not be too many applicants. This is better for people who are in their senior years or have just recently graduated, though you can apply at large (I did so because I missed my campus deadline after graduating). I think it's due in mid-October, but it really can't hurt to put in an application. At this point, the process takes less time than the Peace Corps. I applied for the two last Fall with the PC as my backup plan and ended up being nominated to leave for the PC in October while my Fulbright grant ended up starting in September (though I came in August).
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Sep 11, 2010 21:40
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HeroOfTheRevolution posted:Just as a heads up... if you're applying for the Peace Corps and expect to teach English, you might think about putting in an application for a Fulbright ETA position. The Fulbright name carries a lot of weight, and while it's more competitive than the Peace Corps, the benefits are also better monetarily and it's only 10 months; the money is yours to do with as you choose and the opportunity to do research and travel is greater (you also can live in much better abodes). This is especially true if you're interested in Eastern Europe; Bulgaria (where I am now) expanded their number of ETAs this year and may expand further next year, and some of the new ETA spots will not have many applicants. I think Macedonia just added an ETA, for instance, and I bet there will not be too many applicants. It looks like you need to take the TOEFL exam (and it is already too late to take it for this year). Also, do you need to state that you want to become a teachers? The site seems to say so.
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Sep 11, 2010 22:50
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Omits-Bagels posted:It looks like you need to take the TOEFL exam (and it is already too late to take it for this year). Also, do you need to state that you want to become a teachers? The site seems to say so. Neither of these are the case (especially since TOEFL is test of English as a foreign language, that wouldn't make any sense). Some countries do have language requirements, but for example amongst the 12 Fulbrighters in Bulgaria, there are only two of us with any sort of formal training and proficiency in Bulgarian (myself and a Bulgarian-born American). For example, these countries in Europe have ETA grants: Andorra*, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belgium*, Bosnia/ Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic*, France*, Georgia, Germany*, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal*, Romania, Russia*, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Spain*, and Turkey. The asterisked ones indicate countries where language proficiency is either required or preferred. In some cases, for instance the 3 new ETA grants in Laos, the grant description says something like: "All instruction is in English, but some Lao will be needed. All candidates should plan to incorporate Lao language study into their grant terms." In most cases, no previous teaching experience is required and you are not expected to want to be a teacher, but you should check the country description to be sure (the West Bank, for instance, requires a year of experience teaching EFL abroad). Out of the 10 or whatever ETAs in Bulgaria, only two have education degrees and most have no teaching experience at all despite the country description saying some is required. I have previous teaching experience in both the US and Bosnia, but not as a certified teacher in either case and I have no desire to be a teacher; I think my SOP made it clear that I want to go to graduate school after for a degree in IR. Since you only teach for a short time each week (we all teach 4 hours per day in Bulgaria Monday-Thursday and have Fridays off), you can generally pursue a separate research project... or travel if that's what you're interested in. The new ETA awards this year are Laos, Bahrain, Rwanda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Macedonia, Serbia, and Cyprus, and none of those have language requirements. Worth noting is that Bulgaria's page on IIE only lists 2 awards but USAID and the America for Bulgaria fund poured money into the Bulgarian program and expanded it to 10 this year (they had to get applicants from the Poland, Romania, and Bosnia pools because the applicant pool wasn't what they were looking for with that many grants available, though I had applied to Bulgaria), and the Fulbright Commission here is talking about extending it even further. If you're interested in Eastern Europe or the Caucasus, Bulgaria or one of the new programs are probably good bets and will likely be slightly less competitive in terms of number of applicants (you will still need an exceptional university-level record, however). The application is due next month, however, so you will have to hurry to get recommendations and transcripts in and fine-tune your SOP and Personal Statement. HeroOfTheRevolution fucked around with this message at 11:16 on Sep 12, 2010 |
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Sep 12, 2010 11:14
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Oh boy, I know someone angling for a Fulbright to Macedonia. What exactly do you need wrt to credentials in college to get ahead on the Fulbright?
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Sep 12, 2010 15:49
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To some former PCV I have a question for you. I dont have a passport and I was wondering, do you have to go get your own? I swear I heard that they issue you a passport exclusive to the country youre going to but it's one of those things where i dont know where i heard it so I question the truthfulness.
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Sep 16, 2010 00:03
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RagnarokAngel posted:To some former PCV I have a question for you. I dont have a passport and I was wondering, do you have to go get your own? I swear I heard that they issue you a passport exclusive to the country youre going to but it's one of those things where i dont know where i heard it so I question the truthfulness. That's not true, you get a normal passport (but it's a no-fee government one, so after you finish your service you're not supposed to use it anymore)
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Sep 16, 2010 00:59
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Rush Limbaugh #1! posted:That's not true, you get a normal passport (but it's a no-fee government one, so after you finish your service you're not supposed to use it anymore) So you do receive one for free you're just supposed to only use it for peace corps business? I'm just asking because my parents are insisting I get one now and I don't wanna waste money on one if I get one anyway.
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Sep 16, 2010 03:18
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RagnarokAngel posted:So you do receive one for free you're just supposed to only use it for peace corps business? I'm just asking because my parents are insisting I get one now and I don't wanna waste money on one if I get one anyway. You can use it for personal travel while you're in Peace Corps, but once you get back to America you're supposed to stop (I say supposed to here because people often use it afterwards on COS trips). It expires after 5 years anyways, unlike a regular passport which is good for 10.
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Sep 16, 2010 03:26
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Peven Stan posted:Oh boy, I know someone angling for a Fulbright to Macedonia. What exactly do you need wrt to credentials in college to get ahead on the Fulbright? It's different for everyone. I'd say most of us had high GPAs (3.5-3.8), some extracurricular activities and leadership positions so we did not look like boring pencilnecks (I played ice hockey professionally, for instance). I think it's more about the way you can write it into your SOP and Personal Statement that matters more. Since the purpose of a Fulbright is a cultural exchange, I wrote a lot about how sports helped me in understanding different cultures and facilitated a good environment between them; I think that pushed me over the edge because most Fulbrighters aren't the athletic type.
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Sep 16, 2010 08:12
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My wife and I had our interviews over the last two days. Our recruiter told us we should get our nomination in the next few weeks!
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Sep 16, 2010 19:36
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Riven posted:My wife and I had our interviews over the last two days. Our recruiter told us we should get our nomination in the next few weeks! How has it been applying as a couple? My fiancee and I thinking of applying (when we're married) and I wouldn't mind hearing about your experiences.
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Sep 16, 2010 19:56
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Not that much harder than applying solo I think. You have to apply and be accepted as individuals. The big thing is it's recommended to apply 15 months ahead instead of 12, because they have to find a placement for both of you. We didn't quite get that timeline, but we both have Masters in Education, so it's not like they had to find a business and agriculture placement together or something. Beyond the individual application, they have you answer a couple of essay questions on hinge like how you'll cope being in cramped quarters without any personal time, and also how you would cope being apart. You're guaranteed a placement together for the 24 month service, but not the 3 month training period. You email that to the recruiter and have a copy for yourself, and then there's a separate interview with you as a couple on top of your individual interviews where you discuss those things. I cant speak to the difficulty of getting placed yet, again because we both have advanced degrees in their most demanded field and because we haven't gotten the notification yet. That's all off the top of my head, if you want to know anything more specific just ask and I'll check back in. Oh yeah, they specifically asked my wife if she would have a problem with all of her accomplishments being attributed to me, depending on the culture.
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Sep 17, 2010 04:24
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HeroOfTheRevolution posted:It's different for everyone. I'd say most of us had high GPAs (3.5-3.8), some extracurricular activities and leadership positions so we did not look like boring pencilnecks (I played ice hockey professionally, for instance). I think it's more about the way you can write it into your SOP and Personal Statement that matters more. Since the purpose of a Fulbright is a cultural exchange, I wrote a lot about how sports helped me in understanding different cultures and facilitated a good environment between them; I think that pushed me over the edge because most Fulbrighters aren't the athletic type.
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Sep 17, 2010 05:20
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So in my research for the Peace Corps, one topic I've found pretty sparsely covered is the topic of host families. I know it's hard to give advice on that, since every family and every country is different, but does anyone have anyone have any horror stories? interesting stories? First or second-hand stories are helpful.
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Sep 18, 2010 15:54
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Pocket DeSade posted:So in my research for the Peace Corps, one topic I've found pretty sparsely covered is the topic of host families. The drive to my host families house after having been in Madagascar for about an hour, and having learned only "hello," "goodnight," and "where's the bathroom" in Malagasy, was perhaps the most terrifying thing that's ever happened to me.
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Sep 18, 2010 17:44
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Pocket DeSade posted:So in my research for the Peace Corps, one topic I've found pretty sparsely covered is the topic of host families. I haven't heard any horror stories, and depending on where you get assigned, you might have your own place. A friend of mine that went to Georgia had to move between several host families during his service because of various problems, but none of them were really bad. I think the worst was one family he just didn't get along with. It seemed it was the husband's idea to host him and the wife wasn't very happy about it. I also heard of a case of a guy that was sent to Kazakhstan and was taught Kazakh. However, he discovered upon arrival that his host family only spoke Russian. From what I recall, he still stayed the full two years with them.
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Sep 19, 2010 03:39
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In Cambodia, most host families were pretty good. Some were fantastic. Some weren't good and were very clearly trying to use the volunteer as a cash cow, skimping on meals and portions and things. In situations like that, though, Peace Corps Admin would step in and sort things out pretty quickly. One guy was being taken advantage of financially by his host family and admin helped him move out and into a nearby wat, where he stayed the remaining 20 months; one girl had issues with sexually inappropriate behavior by her host father (towards other Cambodians, not towards the PCV) and got herself moved out into another house as soon as one could be located. If you don't get along with your host family, they'll encourage you to stick it out and do your best to become a member of the family, but if there are actual legitimate problems then PC will definitely step in to help you out. I was supposed to be with one family and went to stay with them on site visit and everything, but in the remaining 4 weeks before Swearing In the would-be host mom started trying to drive a harder bargain with PC and demand more money... they pulled me right out and put me into a different family with virtually no problem. The best kinds of families, from my experience, are the ones with older parents who have already raised at least 1 or 2 kids to adulthood and will be comfortable having a young adult around the house. Every situation really is different though, and it's hard to say.
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Sep 22, 2010 14:24
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http://peacecorpswiki.org/Volunteer_discounts Just found this on the Peace Corps Wiki. There are some substantial discounts on outdoor gear available if you show them your Peace Corps acceptance letter. CronoGamer posted:In Cambodia, etc. I was looking over the 2008 Biennial Volunteer Survey and noticed that Cambodia got high marks in every category. What is it about the program there that you think sets it apart? At the other end of the spectrum, if anyone knows about it, Suriname is at the bottom of every ranking. What happened there? Edit: Moon Slayer, I just noticed in the OP that you said there are no goons in the MI program. I've just started the MI program at the University of Denver, so you should probably update that. Mu Cow fucked around with this message at 23:17 on Sep 22, 2010 |
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Sep 22, 2010 23:04
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Mu Cow posted:I was looking over the 2008 Biennial Volunteer Survey and noticed that Cambodia got high marks in every category. What is it about the program there that you think sets it apart? Most likely, the fact that we were the first group in the country ever. It was a cool experience and we were treated pretty nicely, not to mention the ratio of staff to volunteers was something amazing like 1:2. Part of it was that, being the first and (at that point) only group in Cambodia, we were all in it together and committed to working hard and having a good experience and the like. I'd also guess that part of it was the fact that since there weren't any older groups there, there was less potential for jaded older PCVs to bring down the rankings any. I'm not ragging on Cambodia or anything, I'm happy with the experience I had there, I just don't think there's anything special about it that sets it above other postings.
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Sep 23, 2010 04:15
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I have my interview for the PC coming up next week. What sort of questions do they ask? I figured it's going to be a lot different that a normal job interview and wanted to be prepared.
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Sep 23, 2010 16:08
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Shjade posted:I have my interview for the PC coming up next week. What sort of questions do they ask? I figured it's going to be a lot different that a normal job interview and wanted to be prepared. I haven't done the interview yet, but legend has it that these are generally the questions asked verbatim: http://www.peacecorpswiki.com/Interview_Questions
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Sep 23, 2010 16:57
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