Peace Corps: the volunteer around the world

Cultural Event

        On Thursday, 10^th April, there was a speech from a Peace Corps officer named Travis Axton during the class. He is a regional recruiter who has served as a volunteer in Zambia, Africa during 2002 to 2004. During the speech, he talked about many things about the Peace Corps, such as what kind of organization it is, what we will do once we’re selected to be a volunteers, and the funny things he has experienced during the time he was in Zambia…etc.

       Being a volunteer in Peace Corps is not easy because there will be six steps after we submit the application form. According to Travis, the six steps will be: submitting the application, being interviewed by the officers, nomination, medical and legal review, invitation, and finally prepare to depart. Also, we have to accept the 27 months commitment (3 months training and 24 months operation) and be ready to be placed at different countries (it depends on the individual’s ability). In the training camp, the members will be taught some basic stuff about the countries that they will be serving, such as the language, and the culture. Right now, there are more than 8000 volunteers serving over 70 countries around the world in Peace Corps. 

        After talking the basic information about being a volunteer n Peace Corps, Travis talked about himself. He is actually a regional recruiter who right now serves in San Francisco Regional Recruitment Office. He has been a volunteer in Zambia for two years. (2002 – 2004) He told us that he was a political science major when he was in college. He was supposed to go to the law school after he graduated from college. However, he decided to join Peace Corps because he wanted to do something that he had never experienced before. After he joined the Peace Corps, he was sent to Zambia. In the training camp, he met up other members who would be serving in the same region. James Brown, a member that finally became his partner, is one of the members he met in the training camp. During the time in the training camp, they learnt about the basic Zambian language and its culture. He found out that there was a huge cultural different between the United States and Zambia. Travis then gave an example to talk about the differences. In the States, people usually like to look at their watch and pass by others without greeting because people in the States usually rush to work. Travis said if we do the same thing in Zambia, the people that we have been passed by will remember us because this means impolite to them. People like to greet everyone who passes by, even though that is a stranger. They usually ask some simple questions, such as are you feeling well? , how are you? ...etc. For the highest respect, people have to knee down in front of the chief and clap their hands for two minutes, but this is only in use when people meet the village’s chiefs. There were so many funny things during the period of being a volunteer and this experience makes him learn a lot. He even said that he had a culture shock when he came back from Zambia.

 Peace Corps in Africa

        Finally, he talked about the benefit of joining the Peace Corps. Basically, the member will enjoy the full cover of the medical insurance. Each year, there are approximately 2000 people applying 4000 jobs. In the conclusion, I think that joining the Peace Corps is worthiness because we can gain many different kinds of experiences during the period of being a volunteer in oversea. This experience is priceless. Also, it can help the people. There are many people who live under the poverty line in the world, especially in Africa and some Asian countries. They really need our help. This job can also make our life more colorful.

The Peace Corps Volunteer Team from MSU

The Peace Corps Website Tour

     Peace Corps is the organization that sends volunteers to different countries. There are approximately 2000 people applying for the jobs each year. However, how can we apply for it? The best way is to go to its website. The address of its website is http://www.peacecorps.gov/ . As long as we log in, we will automatically see a sentence “Life is calling. How far will you go? ” at the center of the web.  At the left hand side of the website, there are several topics that people may be interested in, such as “What is Peace Corps”, “What do Volunteer do”…etc. When we roll down a little bit, there is a button called Apply Now. That is the place for us to apply for the volunteer jobs. Also, we can read some news from its website because they always update what is going on in the organization. The website provides the basic information about the organization for the people who are interested in joining Peace Corps. Therefore, going to its website is the best way to get the information we need or apply for the jobs.