Peace Corps

ormer Volunteers use the skills and experiences they gained overseas to enhance virtually every sector of our society - Congress, the Executive Branch, the Foreign Service, business, finance, trade, health care, and social services.

Today 182,000 former Volunteers can be found in every walk of life, and many say their Peace Corps service had a profound impact on their careers. Former Volunteers possess a high level of confidence, independent judgment, and cross-cultural resourcefulness that are recognized by employers in all professions.

In addition, the Peace Corps provides career and educational assistance, and there are numerous groups established to help former Volunteers network and stay involved with the Peace Corps.

Through Returned Volunteer Services (RVS), the Peace Corps provides career, educational, and transitional assistance to more than 3,500 Volunteers returning to the United States each year. RVS provides free (for two years) to all former Volunteers the Hotline newsletter, an employment and educational bulletin that is published twice a month. RVS also makes available various career publications, nationwide services, and informative career workshops. Peace Corps headquarters and each regional office also house career centers that former Volunteers may use for job searching purposes.

Former Volunteers stay involved through a nationwide network of approximately 140 organizations and Country of Service groups. These organizations can assist newly returned Volunteers with readjustment and job search issues. They provide a ready-made job network of people in different fields. Although alumni groups are as diverse as the former Volunteers who organize them, membership gives a sense of shared service and common experience.

Throughout the country, former Volunteers stay active in their communities. They are helping build homes for the homeless, delivering food to the needy, and cleaning up parks and highways, for example. Many are serving as mentors and tutors for children, while others are using their language and cross-cultural skills to assist refugees and immigrants.

Part of the Peace Corps' mission is to educate Americans back home about the people with whom Volunteers have lived and worked. Former Volunteers provide first-hand experience to help other Americans understand the nation where they have served. They are frequently asked to speak at churches, conferences, community group meetings, and other forums about their experiences overseas.