Professional and Career Benefits

During Service

Peace Corps Training

Training begins in the U.S. with a brief pre-departure orientation. Then the Peace Corps provides two to three months of training in the country in which Volunteers are assigned to serve. Volunteers study together and receive intensive instruction in the local language, usually from native speakers. They learn technical skills related to their jobs, how to adopt practices to enhance their safety and well-being, and they become familiar with the country's cultural traditions.

During this period, most Volunteers live with host families to fully immerse themselves in the new culture. At the completion of training, Volunteers possess the language, technical, and cross-cultural skills needed to begin their work and are then sent to their individual sites. Over the next 24 months of service, the Peace Corps provides Volunteers with regular opportunities to reinforce existing skills and gain new skills related to work, language, culture, and safety.

After Service

Skills for the Global Marketplace

Fluency in foreign languages, international experience, and cross-cultural understanding are highly sought-after assets in today's global economy. Peace Corps provides training in a foreign language, technical skills, and cross-cultural understanding. This, combined with the experience of living, learning, and working with a community overseas for 27 months, augments any career path.

Whether you are just out of college, mid-career, or retired, the new skills you learn in the Peace Corps can help you achieve long-term career goals by enhancing your marketability to employers. Volunteers returning from abroad have used their Peace Corps experience as the foundation for successful careers in a variety of areas, from government to business to education.

Receive Advantages in Federal Employment

Volunteers who complete two years of service receive one year of noncompetitive eligibility for employment in the federal government. This means that at the hiring agency's discretion, if a Volunteer meets the minimum qualifications for a position, he or she can be hired without going through the standard competitive process. Those who are employed by the federal government after their Peace Corps service can receive credit toward retirement for those years of Volunteer service.

Career Support After Service

When Volunteers return to the U.S., Peace Corps Returned Volunteer Services (RVS) provides transition assistance related to jobs and education. RVS publishes online job announcements, graduate school information, and career-related articles and advice; sponsors career events throughout the year in Washington, D.C., and other cities; and helps returned Volunteers translate their field experience for prospective employers and other professional contacts.

Employment Opportunities at Peace Corps Partner Organizations

The Peace Corps has partnerships with other federal agencies, international and domestic nongovernmental organizations, volunteering and service organizations, minority higher education institutions, and other domestic nonprofits. Your Peace Corps service strengthens your competitiveness for employment with Peace Corps partner organizations. These nonprofit, government, and community development organizations are eager to apply your overseas experience to programs at home and abroad.
View a list of partner organizations.

Be Part of a Vibrant Network

Extend your Volunteer experience by being part of the more than 210,000 returned Volunteers, many of whom actively participate in local returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) groups.

Unique Opportunity for Short-Term Assignments

Peace Corps Response is a program that offers short-term, high-impact assignments overseas for returned Volunteers and other experienced professionals. Positions average six months in length and are designed to address development needs as identified by the host country. There are a small number of assignments, selection is competitive, and requirements are different than for a Peace Corps Volunteer.
Visit Peace Corps Response for more information.

Last updated Aug 10 2012