Applying for the Peace Corps

Hey guys! It’s been a while since my last post, & given that I’m less than 5 weeks away from my departure, I thought I should get reacquainted w/ the blog. The Peace Corps just emailed me a packing list a few days ago, which along w/ telling me what to bring, advised me to enjoy current luxuries like hot water & flushing toilets. In other words they said it’s about to get real. Anyway, more on the packing list & other pre-departure arrangements on my next post. I said last time I was going to talk about the application process, so this post will be on that. A few people have asked me what you have to do to apply for the Peace Corps, so this should give you an idea of what to expect if you ever decide to join.

Originally a friend and I were both going to apply b/c we’ve always wanted to live & work abroad, & thought this would be a great way to get started. We attended a few webinars online to get more info on the PC & the application process. First of all they say about 12,000 people apply annually & 4,000 of those actually get assignments. After going through the process first hand, I can’t see near that many following all the way through from start to finish, mainly b/c of the medical requirements. Hell, my friend didn’t even make it to the part of the application where you have to apply. Eric, you punk! Also, they inform you it’s a long process that can take anywhere from 6-12 months from when you start until you actually get your assignment. It took me 10 months exactly. I applied on 8/30/10 & received my assignment on 6/30/11. It’s by far the most detailed application process I’ve ever been through. I had a friend that joined the FBI, & this was right up there w/ his…except w/out the crazy background check. He said they even asked him about me. I was like WTF, how do they know me?! If you have an Arabic name & breath US air, they know you. Anyway, you start by applying online. Not much different than any normal job application, aside from the health questions. Also, there are questions about your financial situation to make sure you’re not in crazy debt. A lot of recent college grads will try to join the PC just to get out of students loans. You can defer, but you still have to pay sooner or later. Escaping student loans is like trying to get out of child support, it aint happening. Before you can submit the online application, you have to upload your resume, write 2 essays, and upload 3 letters of recommendation. The 1^st essay is on why you want to join the PC, the 2^nd is about how you plan to adapt to living in a different country. I want to thank Eric, Miles, & my brother Abdul for proofreading them for me. One got a little too excited, correcting everything but “and” & “the.” The letters of recommendations have to be from a friend, a job supervisor, and a manager from a place where you volunteer. Thanks again to my friend Miles, my old boss Christen, & my sister-in-law Bobbie for letting me volunteer at Native Angels Hospice.

Ok, so that’s the initial part, which can take anywhere from a week to a few months depending on how long it takes to get your letters of recommendation & if you need to do volunteer work. Then, if all is well you get an interview. It’s actually a very quick turnaround after you send in your app & paperwork. My interview was over the phone and lasted over 2.5 hours. The questions deal w/ previous work experience, why you want to join the PC, & a lot (I mean a ton) of scenario questions pertaining to adaptation. They want to make sure you don’t go nuts when they put you alone w/ a tribe in the jungle & you’re sleeping in a hut on a dirt floor in a sleeping bag next to a cheetah. If you do well, they pretty much tell you immediately after the interview on the phone if you’re nominated to go forward or not. From there, you’re nominated for a specific region & job based on your skill set. It's very general. I was nominated for South American farming, then North African business development, then Sub-Sahara African fisheries.(Evidently adapting starts immediately. After the last one, I told them just send me wherever as long as it‘s not cold.) They don’t tell you the specific country until you get your official assignment after the medical/dental process. All they told me was to study French b/c it would be a French speaking country in Sub-Sahara Africa starting in June. I had to send my placement officer a skills addendum to send to the host country, to find a job match; and I had to send a signed agreement detailing my plan for studying French. Then, finally , the medical process begins.

I promised to not to do long winded post, so I’m going to do a separate part 2 on the medical process. I didn’t realize how long applying would take to explain until I started writing.  I didn't realize how boring it would be either.  I almost fell asleep writing this.  I PROMISE after the application process posts the material will be more interesting.

Why the Peace Corps?

I’ve really always wanted to do the Peace Corps. It’s one of those things you talk about from time to time that goes in one ear and out the other of the person you mention it to, b/c they don’t think you’re that serious about it. Honestly, when I mentioned it, I wasn’t even sure how serious I was. I still don’t think it’s hit me yet of what I’m actually about to do. When it does hit me, I hope it’s a euphoric moment and not a “what the f#@% have I gotten myself into” moment. I’ll find out soon enough. All I know is I needed a change. Back in May of 2010 I was out of job, and I wasn’t even upset about it. It was actually a relief. I was free from Shawshank. You know the scene in Shawshank Redemption when Andy Dufresne escaped from prison and had his arms raised to sky looking up in the rain? That was me. Liberated. Also, me being a veteran of the corporate layoff game, I saved well this time so I could take my time and make sure the next opportunity was right. So, not only did Kunta Kinte have his freedom, he didn’t even lose his foot for it. I wanted to do something totally different this time, that wasn’t just about making money, but making a difference. Being a man of few responsibilities, I wanted to take on more. Don’t get me wrong, anyone who knows me, knows I enjoy the peace of mind and freedom I have, not having any children or a spouse. Growing up in a loud household w/ my parents, 2 brothers, 2 sisters, horses, sheep, goats, chickens, and a bunch of damn Rottweilers (which would periodically kill the sheep, goats, and chickens), me giving up peace and freedom is like Gandhi giving up his.  With that freedom, I feel like it would be a disservice not to use it to experience as much in life as possible. So that’s basically why. The experience. The experience of living in another country, learning another language, being a part of a different culture, and helping to preserve it. No time is better than the current.  That's it for now.  My next entry will be about the application process.  Which was more of a grind than I ever would have expected.
 

Introduction

What’s up folks! This is my first official blog entry. I’ve never blogged before, so I’ll be learning as I go. My name is Rashad Ghaffar and I’m currently living in Charlotte, North Carolina. As some of you may know I’ve joined the Peace Corps. I thought it would be a good idea to start a blog due to the fact that the living conditions of the country I’m going to be living in might limit my communication. This way whenever I get a chance, I can update everyone at once how everything is going. I’m not really going to write a lot about me, but what I experience more from a journalistic point of view. My life is boring enough living it, let alone talking about it. I’ll try to make entries interesting and brief. I’m quiet by nature vocally, but I can write for days, so I’ll have to catch myself when I’m getting long winded. I plan on getting a descent camera before I go, so I can upload as many pictures and videos as possible. That way if I lose a lot of weight, get 10 shades darker, and come back w/ a plate in my bottom lip, wearing a loin cloth; no one will be shocked after not seeing me for 2 years. I’m scheduled to leave for Ethiopia on October 3^rd. There really won’t be too much going on between now and then, so entries will be few and far between. I’ll do an entry on why I decided to do the Peace Corps, and another on all I went through during the application process, which lasted 10 months. Thanks for stopping by, and hopefully through this blog we can all make this journey together.