My Peace Corps Timeline

This is my application timeline and projected service schedule. I plan to update it when I can.

Late June 2010:

  • Turned in all application materials (online app, recommendations, essays, etc.)

Late August 2010:

  • Phone interview with Peace Corps in Chicago
  • NOMINATION! – Tentative departure late January for Sub-Saharan Africa working with HIV/AIDS

Fall 2010:

  • Researching HIV/AIDS efforts and opportunities. Fyi if you want to be Red Cross Certified to be an HIV/AIDS instructor, check out Minnesota AIDS Project (MAP)

Mid October 2010:

  • Dental exam, medical physical/tests, eye exam completed and all paperwork turned in. This process seemed ridiculous but necessary. I had to chase down immunization records and ER notes from different clinics in IA and MN but thankfully I did not have to contact the hospital in Korea! Beyond that, my process was hassle free especially compared to many other volunteers’ experiences

November 2010:

  •  Asked to provide my transcripts showing my completed degree before I graduated?

December 2010:

  • Graduated from ISU…finally…after 5.5 years of being a student. One of my buddies who graduated with me got a PC assignment as well!

Early January 2011:

  • Faxed off my final transcript (earliest ISU could mail one was the 6th)
  • Found out the spot for which I was initially nominated was filled. Sad day.

Early February 2011:

  •  Completed my Red Cross HIV/AIDS instructor training through MAP

February 24, 2011:

  • Got a call from Placement asking if I would like an invitation to volunteer in southern Africa. I said yes

Beginning of March 2011:

  • Received my invitation packet!!!!! I found out I was invited to Swaziland. I was so happy I told a bunch of friends. Most asked where/what Swaziland is. I geographically described it as Lesotho…which is not Swaziland. I quickly realized I did not know as much as I thought (seems like I was the last to have this revelation) I read for hours at a time about anything I could find about Swaziland.

March 4, 2011:

  • I accepted my invitation

March 9, 2011:

  • Applied for a Peace Corps passport. Cool, now I have two passports.

March 12, 2011

  • I sent off my Aspiration Statement and updated resume to the PC Country Desk in Swaziland

Mid-March 2011:

  • I started searching for volunteer blogs on Peace Corps Journals. Through my cyber-creepstering I discovered that a fellow volunteer from G9 (Group 9 my group to Swaziland) lives a few miles from where I am vacationing. We decided to meet up for coffee one morning and spent a few hours chatting about our upcoming Swazi time.

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FUTURE:

A few weeks before I am to leave:

  • Receive an email to initiate travel arrangements to my pre-departure training

June 6th:

  • So my invitation packet said that I was to have my staging (pre-departure orientation) starting the 2nd of June. Since then I have been told by fellow volunteers that this has been changed. I suppose when I get my email for travel arrangements I will be told about this change.

June 8th:

  •   Depart for Swaziland!

~June-September:

  • Pre-Service Training – I will be receiving cultural and language training while adjusting in to my new country. I will be placed with a host family with whom I will have many informal learning opportunities. During this time, I will also be assessed so that I can be appropriately placed into a community and receive an assignment.

~September-November:

  • Settling In – As the name implies, this time is for settling in to my community and new home. It will kick off my next two years of service.

From then on I will be carrying out my assignment. Unfortunately, at this point it is too soon to speculate accurately as to what I’ll be doing and I still have 2 months to sit around and think about it!