The Peace Corps Prep program will prepare you for international development fieldwork and potential Peace Corps service. To accomplish this, you’ll build four core competencies through interrelated coursework, hands-on experience, and professional development support.
Basic requirements
- Undergraduate student at SAU
- U.S. citizen
- Good academic standing (a minimum 1.5 GPA with 1 to 29 hours attempted, or 2.00 GPA with 30 or more hours attempted)
Training and experience in a specific work sector
- 3 courses
- Hands-on experience in the same sector totaling at least 50 hours
Leveraging concrete knowledge and skills is central to on-the-ground international development work. Through this PC Prep program, you will begin to build a professional specialty, which should serve your career well whether or not you become a Peace Corps Volunteer.
For PC Prep, you need to complete at least 3 courses that align with a specific work sector (they can but do not need to come from your academic major or minor). You also must accumulate a minimum of 50 hours of volunteer or work experience in that same sector, preferably in a teaching or outreach capacity.
Foreign language skills
Requirements depend upon desired Peace Corps volunteer placement site.
- Spanish -speaking countries: two 200-level courses.
- French-speaking countries: one 200-level course in any Romance Language.
- Everywhere else: no explicit requirements, but language skills are a plus.
Most students must hone their capacity to interact professionally using a non-English language. Minimum course requirements vary by desired placement region.
- Latin America: Students indicating an intention to serve in Spanish-speaking countries must build strong intermediate proficiency, having completed two 200-level courses or learned Spanish through another medium.
- West Africa: Students indicating an intention to serve in French-speaking African countries must build proficiency in French or another Romance language, having completed one 200-level course or learned the language through another medium.
- Evervwhere else: Students indicating an intention to serve anywhere else do not have explicit language requirements to complete the Program, but they should still be encouraged to study a foreign language.
Intercultural competence
- At least three approved courses/experience that bolster you intercultural competence
Engaging thoughtfully and fluidly across cultures begins with one’s own self-awareness. With this learning objective, you will deepen your cultural agility through a mix of three introspective courses in which you learn about others while reflecting upon your own self in relation to others. The goal is for you to build your capacity to shift perspective and behavior around relevant cultural differences.
Optional: lntercultural experience in place of elective. Studying or volunteering abroad can count as an elective if it is one of the countries that has hosted Peace Corp Volunteers. The trip has to last for at least 7 days and be an approved study abroad or volunteer trip.
Professional and leadership development
- Professional resume feedback, interview preparation, and demonstrated leadership experiences
Peace Corps service and similar international development work opportunities are highly professional and selective. PC Prep requires three specific activities that will strengthen your candidacy for the Peace Corps (or any other professional endeavor):
- Have your resume critiqued by your Employment Resource Center.
- Attend a workshop or class on interview skills offered by the Employment Resource Center.
- Develop at least one significant leadership experience and be prepared to discuss it thoughtfully. For example, organizing a campus event, leading a work or volunteer project, or serving on the executive board of a student organization.
