Thirty Northwestern graduates joined the nearly 8,000 Peace Corps volunteers this year to help people and build infrastructure in developing countries such as Botswana and Belize.
NU ranks 16th for medium-sized colleges – having between 5,001 and 15,000 undergraduate students – in the number of graduates it sends to be Peace Corps volunteers. NU slipped three spots from last year when it ranked in 13th place, sending 34 volunteers. The University of Virginia was ranked first for medium-sized schools with 80 volunteers this year.
NU’s rank fluctuation is normal and could be the result of the large number of volunteers this year, said Courtney Cunningham, director of Peace Corps recruitment for NU. There are 7,810 Peace Corps volunteers this year, beating last year’s best of 7,733 volunteers.
The program was started in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy as a way for Americans to volunteer and serve in developing countries. Since then, Peace Corps has trained and placed more than 182,000 volunteers in 138 countries. Most volunteers work in education and health fields.
Peace Corps can be an opportunity for graduates to “get their feet wet” in professions they are curious about, said Scot Roskelley, spokesman for the Chicago Peace Corps office.
Although most students participate in the program for altruistic reasons, Roskelley said “it’s a good way to make contacts overseas.”
The program does not keep data on how many volunteers end up in occupations related to their Peace Corps work, but judging from anecdotal evidence, “if people are interested in doing international work and they go oversees and volunteer in Peace Corps, almost all of them do (international work later),” Roskelley said.
The Peace Corps application process can take from six months to a year. At least 96 percent of volunteers have an undergraduate degree. All volunteers must be American citizens.
Those with teaching and public health degrees are sought after, Roskelley said, but Peace Corps also looks at past volunteer work and experiences when considering an applicant.
Peace Corps applicants from NU tend to be “very motivated” and are willing to see through the “daunting” application process, Cunningham said.
NU applicants are attractive because recruiters know “students will have a broad-based, solid education across a variety of areas,” said Lonnie Dunlap, director of University Career Services.
“The lifelong network (of volunteers) is so invaluable,” Dunlap said.
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