Also, you can apply to the Peace Corps at any point in your life. For instance, one volunteer in my cohort celebrated his 66th birthday just a few months ago!
The traditional Peace Corps experiences lasts 2 years and 3 months: 3 months of “Pre-Service Training” (PST) and 2 years of service. During PST, you learn the local language, are trained in how to start projects and initiatives and form close relationships with the other volunteers in your cohort (the group of volunteers you arrive with). After those three months, you learn your “site,” or where you will be living and working for the 2 years of service. Then it’s moving day! In your site, you are paired with a host organization that you work with to create and carry out your projects. You work closely with “counterparts” in your host organization, who are coworkers that have been trained in what Peace Corps is and who help you reach your full potential as a volunteer. My closest relationships here are with my two amazing counterparts. One is a nutritionist and the other is a psychologist. They are two incredibly intelligent, hardworking and all-around impressive individuals who have made an enormous impact on the health and wellbeing of the people in my city.
Peace Corps is different from many other volunteer opportunities in that it focuses on the sustainability of its interventions. There are many other organizations in the world that will organize short, two week trips to countries where you can experience volunteering, but oftentimes it is difficult to make a lasting impact in such a short time. With such a short timeframe, you barely get to know your community or its needs, let alone how to address the people you meet.
