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So this is probably unlikely given this thread is already pretty small but guess I'll give it a shot. Any Boston nominees/invitees/returning volunteers coming the information meeting in Cambridge Dec 3rd?
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Nov 16, 2010 04:51
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1. I don't know. I'd ask them because the issue might be in the details. 2. No. Everyone has their "pet region" they'd like to goto and they actually will consider it, so that's more of the standard than the rule. I think they get enough people who want to go to different regions that it balances out, plus people who don't care either way. I said I'd like to see Eastern Europe or Asia, but still would go anywhere, I'm currently nominated for Eastern Europe
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Nov 24, 2010 14:00
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Well don't panic, that'll just make it worse  In actuality you need a letter of recommendation from a job (current or former), a close friend or a current or former volunteer supervisor. A professor can be used to replace one of these (I replaced the volunteer supervisor because at the time I couldn't get in contact with any). I found the process quite painless. You might need to nudge people a bit but just ask them, "is it cool if I get your recommendation because I'm going into the peace corps?". Few people are going to say no to that, so when they say yes you just give the automated form their email and they get sent a very straight forward form of questions.
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Dec 3, 2010 09:47
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According to the website 90% of people in the Peace Corps have a bachelor's so youre uphill to start. Because it's such a unique situation, you might have to contact a recruiter, it can't hurt. https://www.peacecorps.gov/apply/now/index.cfm This form might help you, I think it gives feedback if youre lacking.
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Dec 13, 2010 21:49
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Aaaaaaaand after 6 months of on and off again torture I am medically clear. Now to wait for an invite 
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Dec 18, 2010 07:32
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Aggro Craig posted:Another PCV in my group sent me this: So You Want to Join Peace Corps Ugh those Xtranormal things are awful if you're going to use it you might as well just write it out as a blog. It's still good advice though, if a little belligerent. Edit: Actually, real chat a bit because I'm supposed to be leaving soon. I'm in nominee status still but they're finishing up my invitation (I'm supposed to talk to head of education placement Friday). I'm not delusional enough to buy into the "I want to save the world" nonsense but I want to know, what kept you guys going the time you were serving? Lot of people in this thread are kind of ambiguous about it and leave it at "know you won't save the world". I know it's frustrating, depressing and disgusting experience but what made it all worth it? There had to be something that kept you from just saying "gently caress it" and going home. Specific stories would be nice. RagnarokAngel fucked around with this message at 20:58 on Jan 12, 2011 |
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Jan 12, 2011 20:50
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Thanks those stories are really heart warming. Makes me feel a bit more confident about this.
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Jan 13, 2011 03:29
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So I'm finally an invitee . I'm going to Asia in Early April, they mailed out my packet yesterday so I'll know where specifically next week.
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Jan 15, 2011 16:11
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I got my invitation packet in the mail. I'm going to Indonesia on April 4th to teach english. Thank you to everyone for helping me through all the steps to get here, I'm gonna take it.
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Jan 20, 2011 19:11
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The website says it was setup in 2010 so yeah very recent. Kinda cool.
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Jan 20, 2011 21:48
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Odd, I didnt send one (I couldnt reach any of them) and the application let me replace one of the 3 recommendations (friend, job, volunteer) with a professor so I did. But I did have volunteer experience LISTED so maybe that's why they didnt bug me, so yeah try seeing if that will count.
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Feb 1, 2011 09:08
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Ronald Spiers posted:Does it matter what age these English students will be? Has to be high school or adult.
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Feb 9, 2011 15:42
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Omar al-Bishie posted:I tried committing suicide my freshman year of undergrad, and I've since gotten therapy and don't consider myself a risk. Will I ever have a chance of joining? I know a lot of people just kinda keep their mouth shut about this. Since your physician probably knows nothing about it s/he won't bring it up on the medical examination so they're unlikely to figure it out. You probably won't be disqualified but it means more hassle.
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Feb 10, 2011 01:09
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Moon Slayer posted:Added the medical clearance link to the OP, as well as what Iwate said about patience and flexibility being the most important part of the application process. One of these days I'll get around to updating who's serving where, I swear! You can add me for Indonesia English Teaching 2011-2013 if you want, it seems incredibly likely I'll have at least semi-regular internet access so I'd love to answer questions if possible. Leaving in a little over a month, so exciting. RagnarokAngel fucked around with this message at 20:10 on Feb 28, 2011 |
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Feb 28, 2011 20:06
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Chade Johnson posted:The latter. I will start trying to do that, do you have any tips? When I got nominated my recruiter gave me this in an email http://www.serve.gov/ type in English teaching as a keyword and your town as the location. The results aren't always stellar but it got me exactly what I needed to be accepted so give it a shot. And thanks Moon Slayer for putting me on the list
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Mar 13, 2011 07:46
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Stuntcat posted:PS: I'm going to Georgia in a month. Doing my frenzied packing thing now, just got a Kindle and pretty much adore it. Leaving in 2 weeks, if they havent yet you should get a bunch of PDFs in the email from your country director. One of them will be a packing list thats a compilation of volunteer suggestions.
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Mar 22, 2011 00:28
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Fuschia tude posted:I've never taught in my life, and I never heard anything like that during my application. You may need 30 hours of volunteer experience in general, though -- I've done a fair amount of volunteering in recent years. Are you actually in or are a returned volunteer? If there was anything that was a sticking point for education placement in my experience, that was it.
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Mar 23, 2011 16:00
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Darfuri War Orphan posted:Just got back from my interview and things went pretty well, I'd say. My recruiter did mention that while I do technically qualify for English teaching (due to tutoring experience in college) as well as Information Technology (due to my major), it would be wise for me to get some classroom experience to make my application more competitive when the time comes for nominations in May. Unfortunately, I work full time and getting time off to do volunteer teaching will likely be next to impossible. Does anyone think my chances will suffer too severely if I can't get the time in? quote:Also, if anyone can point me in the direction of a good way to find out what opportunities are available in my local area, that'd be a huge help. So far, everything I've found via Google requires some sort of certification that I don't have. I posted this last page: quote:When I got nominated my recruiter gave me this in an email Just got into Surabaya. Peace Corps accommodations for hotels in San Francisco and Hong Kong were both surprisingly classy. Ready to start training tomorrow.
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Apr 7, 2011 16:24
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Cras posted:How would a government shutdown affect the Peace Corps? I can't imagine it could affect those already serving, but could it disrupt the process for applicants/invitees? They actually talked to us about this in California during staging. It very well can affect future applicants, those already in won't be though.
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Apr 8, 2011 11:13
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Checking in with you guys, my training site ended up being fairly urban (For Indonesia) so a net cafe was easy to find. Just a few random thoughts, sorry for lack of direction just wanted a week to give my impressions to people who asked and those leaving soon. Going to avoid saying anything negative when I post because we're not supposed to and there's only 30 of us so it'll be easy to guess who did it should anyone find this. The good news is I don't really have anything bad to say. Peace Corps has been very informative and helpful and the bahasa Indonesian lessons while tiring are extremely helpful. I'm making more progress in a week then I ever did for any language in high school. Conditions here are far better than I expected. I'm not sure what I expected exactly but it's pretty comfortable here. I got lucky enough to be in the mountains so the temperature rather than being south east asia "oh god its hot" its a pretty comfortable temperature all day. Not much else I can think of at the moment really. Be glad to answer any specific questions if people have them, just wanted to check in.
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Apr 19, 2011 10:02
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CronoGamer posted:Is it your training site that's in the mountains, or your permanent site? Probably too early for them to be announcing permanent sites, I guess... Training, only been here for 2 weeks so too early, we had interviews for placement though. And we're only on the East Java province of Java Island for now. I don't know if they plan to expand as time goes on since the programs barely a year old but for now, only East Java. Evil Adam posted:I said whatever I wanted to on my blog and I'm fairly sure the higher ups saw it. Peace Corps can blow me if they think they were gonna pressure me to censor myself. I'm not censoring myself, honestly. Those were my honest responses. I just don't keep a blog because I can't write for the sake of it. Need an audience I guess. Also saves me the trouble of knowing someones watching me.
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Apr 21, 2011 12:24
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Private Label posted:RagnarokAngel, if you're still around those parts when I COS next year, think I could bum a trip down there? By all means man, would love to meet some other peace corps goons.
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May 1, 2011 02:07
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It seems to vary depending on where you are. I got a little over $100 reimbursement for the medical, that's not counting the eye exam. Ladies get more than fellas since they often need extra stuff checked. But yeah if you have insurance it's pretty cheap, just routine checkups. The only expensive part for me was a polio vaccine which is expensive and a pain in the rear end to find a clinic with it (for me, your mileage may vary). If you don't have insurance, its probably prohibitively expensive. RagnarokAngel fucked around with this message at 02:24 on May 8, 2011 |
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May 8, 2011 02:22
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Lamedeer101 posted:I'm about to start a volunteer program tutoring immigrant adults in English one on one for about 2hrs a week. Should I start the application process now, or do I need to wait until the 30 hours are complete? I don't have much other volunteer experience outside of when I was in Boy Scouts (being an Eagle Scout helps, I assume?) Go for it. I hadn't even started when I applied. The earlier you apply the better since you dont know how long delays will take. Moon Slayer posted:This is the best post in this thread. agreed.
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May 14, 2011 02:17
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elleohelle posted:Thanks for all the information here. It is really helpful. Yes. You need 3 reccomendations actually. Someone you did volunteer work for, a work boss and a friend. You can replace one with a university professor.
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May 24, 2011 06:56
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barbudo posted:I have a lot of teaching experience (2 years working for a private test prep company and I'm currently studying education and teaching in Brazil) but I've also got some competency in business and economics (about to finish an International Affairs major with a lot of coursework in economics and maybe an accounting class). Yes. You never have to commit to anything in Peace Corps, so you can stress stuff you dont want (such as this). It can delay your placement but they actually want to know this stuff. Ronald Spiers posted:Got an interview scheduled in two weeks! Excited! Hopefully I don't screw it up. Tamgerine posted:What are the odds that both me and my husband could join and get the same site? Live in a little hut together or something. Would they force us apart or would they be willing to put us together somewhere? 100% actually. Peace Corps will guarantee married couples will live together, but again this can make your placement take longer, in some cases MUCH longer. If youre teachers you may not work together, in fact its likely you wont, but youll live in the same house. Training you probably wont because housing options are more limited but at site you're golden.
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May 28, 2011 04:03
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Private Label posted:Oh god yes. I just got over some food poisoning (luckily only the second time I've gotten it in a year), but I refused to drink that stuff. We once used it in PST in attempt to cure a hang over, and even with a bunch of sugar it still tastes like you're drinking a gallon of poo poo. I now opt for the gatorade my mom sent me. Yeah, the upside of being in southeast asia is that pocari sweat is in easy supply so that's an option too.
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May 29, 2011 12:28
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Moon Slayer posted:As for actual housing, it varies from country to country. In Cambodia we lived with a host family for the entire time. Other countries help you find your own place after training. I don't remember for sure but I think the married couple in my group had their own little house. Yeah theres a married couple in our group. They will be with a host family though so they probably will lack privacy. I havent figured it out yet but the "live with a host family" seems to be either a SE Asia thing (At least here in Indonesia, living alone is considered a bit creepy) or because the programs are new, since Moon Slayer was also in on his program early, so they havent found decent housing yet.
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Jun 4, 2011 04:42
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Theyre just saying if you get any new training you think would be relevant, give it to them. If you dont, dont worry about it.
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Jun 12, 2011 01:32
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That really sucks. I got in right before that cut so I got lucky, I'm sorry for her and the probably hundreds of others who just got screwed. In good news looks like I survived training. Tomorrows swearing in and moving to post.
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Jun 14, 2011 11:32
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Pocket DeSade posted:Ukraine has the largest amount of all volunteers in the Peace Corps. It's based on the country's desires, and the Ukr Gov is just crazy about us. That might change, interestingly enough. The Deputy Director visited Indonesia and because of the security changes after that 20-20 report (has anyone experienced the new security lectures now that they revised them? God that poo poo is torture) they want to rip out the entire structure and re-evaluate their priorities. She specifically said that Ukraine gets...I wanna say 3 times more than say Ethiopa, which seems like bad prioritization. Be interesting to see what happens. Edit: also a little personal bit, just got back from IST (Apparently people in other PC countries use a different term? Its the training after you've been at site for a few months). Being back in the capital and eating lovely for you western food was the best, it's amazing what you dont realize you miss till you don't have it. Also found out I lost a whopping 60 pounds in the 6 months I've been here (and I really needed to lose it), Peace Corps really is the best diet program. RagnarokAngel fucked around with this message at 17:03 on Nov 1, 2011 |
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Nov 1, 2011 16:58
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It's quite amazing what a difference 6 months made for us. We arrived in Surabaya and stayed in the hotel for 3 days. We weren't allowed to go outside without an escort and frankly the idea was terrifying to me anyway since I didn't know the language. Fast forward 6 months, we stay at the exact same hotel but this time we don't need to even tell anyone we're leaving. I know enough of the language I don't even carry a dictionary with me anymore, and can engage people in simple conversation. The city doesn't seem as big as it was when we were cooped up in the hotel.
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Nov 2, 2011 07:37
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velcro shoes posted:So I know that federal debt is not a problem to defer while in PC, is something like a private student loan and/or credit card debt an automatic disqualifier? Debts are fine. You just need proof it's taken care of, they don't care how, long as it is. A notarized letter saying person X will do it is enough. As for the experience, do it. Always put anything remotely relevant you can to make you stand out. Don't worry about being boxed in, you can discuss that with your recruiter. Winna posted:I've shed 45 pounds scince i've been in the peace corps, all that giardia and organic from-the-earth food and kava every night is an effective diet. I imagine most volunteers she a good deal of weight depending on the country. Haha yes completely. I was morbidly obese when I left. 250 pounds, had additional paperwork where the doctor just checked off a list (Can you bend over can you walk uphill things like that. I don't see how anyone could not do these things assuming they're not completely stationary to begin with.) After 6 months at site I dropped to 190, so I'm not quite in healthy range but a HUGE difference from what I was rocking before. Not sick or anything, just a natural change in diet. Peace Corps really is the best weight loss program. RagnarokAngel fucked around with this message at 10:28 on Mar 31, 2012 |
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Mar 31, 2012 10:07
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True here too. Can't think of a biological reason for it V V
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Apr 3, 2012 16:11
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Pillowpants posted:My brother in law has been considering this for quite sometime and I have a few questions to ease my concerns. 1.I'm Transgender myself (pre-op so I'm still a dude physically) and it's "fine" if you can tolerate having to be closeted at site. Most Peace Corps volunteers and staff are going to be fine with it, since Peace Corps tends to attract some of the more liberal minded people you'll meet. At site...it's gonna depend, some countries in southeast asia like Thailand are cool with it but in 95% of cases homosexuality is either illegal or very looked down upon so I keep my mouth shut and grin and bear it. Getting asked if you intend to marry a local girl really sucks. 2.You get vacation but have to pay your own way and for me a plane ticket round trip from Indonesia would be $2000 so no dice there. thepettifogger posted:Hey guys, first post here (hopefully out of many). I buffed up my experience while I was waiting for the application to go through. I applied a year before I finished college so I actually got shipped out 3 months after finishing school. Peace Corps will let you keep updating your resume and submitting it so submitting new stuff all the time is not only permitted but encouraged. Your recruiter will defintely tell you to keep adding on to remain competitive but don't sweat it too hard, just do the best you can to fill the tutoring requirements and stuff.
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May 9, 2012 12:13
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Thesaurus posted:Does it take long to receive notification that your medical/dental packet has been received? I sent mine almost two weeks ago and haven't heard anything. Should I expect to see an update on my application status when it's received? They have to review it, make sure you got everything (it's pretty common to miss something), so dont worry too much.
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May 23, 2012 05:18
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3 (out of 18) of the last group extended for a third year. I cant glean any numbers beyond that because last group was the first one (Indonesia is new, started in 61, had to evacuate in 63 and only just now got back) and our group, the second, leaves in June so people are still on the fence.
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Nov 23, 2012 11:53
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Really? drat I would never see it that way. I think anyone who extends has more fortitude than I do.
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Nov 27, 2012 00:17
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Moon Slayer posted:A krama and nothing else? It's always the men with the biggest guts hanging out wearing sarungs 
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Jan 23, 2013 00:44
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Got CoS training on Tuesday here in Indonesia. It's kinda wild and I'm still trying to piece it together, it's amazing how fast 2 years can go.
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Mar 3, 2013 08:27
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