It Depends.

It has come to attention that several newbie Piscorinos (PCVs) and some applicants have stumbled upon my blog seeking answers. Recognizing that they have probably been disappointed thus far I will try to enumerate some common concerns.

Let´s start at the beginning shall we? The application: Really it´s not that hard. They want to make sure that you´re intelligent, relatively well rounded, and not crazy and/or racist. Try to get your references in as soon as humanly possible. Hounding them will be good practice for Peace Corps anyway. On the medical portion, learn from my mistakes...do NOT check anything unless you know that it will actually cause a problem. Unless you want two lung capacity tests and an echocardiogram...then by all means check to your hearts content. And your essays do not have to be theses.

The interview: Again, PC is trying to make sure that you´re fairly intelligent, openminded, and not racist, crazy or running away from your life. I read somewhere that if you´ve just broken up with significant other or had another big life change they will make you wait another six weeks or so. (It took a lot of effort not to write "se dice que" en vez de "I read somewhere")They will ask you about your concerns, your educational and work background, and preferences for placement. You can find the standard questions on the PC Yahoo groups. Be flexible yet specific...especially if you know that if they offer you Chechnya for example (which they won´t), that you won´t go.

Nomination: I was nominated in the interviewer´s office. But otherwise you sit around and wait for a letter and medical/dental packet. Make sure you have recieved everything. It´s ok to bother your recruiter but don´t be an ass about it. They travel a lot, are busy, and there have about a hundred other nominees to deal with. Patience is a virtue.

Medical: Mine took from June to August, including the aforementioned lung capacity tests and echocardiogram. It´s basically a rigorous physical. I wasn´t really that surprised by any of the tests...although the packet they give you is huge. Make sure to triple-check everything and make copies. FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS! Explain to your doctor that everything is needed. You may want to explain to a boss what´s going on so that they don´t think that you´re dying from some strange disease...but your decision.

The placement office might call a few times or they might not. Be patient. I was called once and not given any clue as to my progress in the process. I also had the luck of meeting my placement officer and stiffing him on drinks. ooops. (I lived in DC. Drinking with PC staff isn´t normal and/or all that accepted)

Invitation: Again, patience is a virtue. Check your online toolkit and if it says it´s in the mail (which is just plain cruel) but you haven´t gotten it in two weeks or so...call the office.

And then the fun begins!

Packing: I only weigh 100lbs soaking wet so this produced some additional problems. You are not going to be able to bring everything you own. You will have to leave stuff home and you will live. Lotsa people say to bring fewer clothes than you think you need. I didn´t really follow that rule but I didn´t have many electronics. Wanna know what I brought for a tropical/freezing cold country? jeans, two khakis, three dress pants, two sweaters, three light weight sweaters, fleece, boots, two dress shoes, sneakers, tevas, flippies, bathing suit, shitload of socks and undies, 5 long sleeve ts, four tanks, 3 collared shirts, 4 short sleeved ts, sweatshirt, hat, gloves, baseball cap, two nalgenes, ipod, solar charger, flash drive, photos, journal, addie book, sewing kit, travel toiletries, 5 books including spanish-english dictionary, raincoat and pants, combination lock, small backpack, alarm clock, sleeping bag and liner, head lamp and extra batteries and bulbs, flashlight, batteries, duct tape, leatherman, 2 boxes of granola bars....all in one extended trip pack and rolling duffle.
All of this I could have bought in country. The items in red were essentials for me. Don´t bring white undies or socks. The solar charger doesn´t work. T-shirts are a dime a dozen here and I wish I had slippers, a thermarest, and an ipod charger. The medical office doesn´t give you tampons in the med kit. Pretty much everything else and the kitchen sink is included....condoms too. Although you may not get it the first day...so bring enough sunscreen, tylenol, tampons, and pepto for your first month.

I know I was worried about:
food: The food isn´t awful in Bolivia. Lotsa pasta, meat, and potatoes and sometimes unidentifiable organ meat. Where I live veggies are readily available
illnesses: Haven´t been drastically ill yet. Diahrea is mostly normal. The med office is spectacular.
language: Work your little ass off. Speak to everyone you can. The training staff is spectacular. But some days you will want to crawl into a little English-speaking hole.
being left to fend for myself: after three months of being watched, this takes some getting used to...but yooooooou can doooooooo it!
living conditions: I have a flush toilet and a cold shower in my OWN bathroom, big room, cook for myself.

Best advice: talk to someone who is a current/returned volunteer. It is OK if you hate being a volunteer and want to go home. Several spectacular people from our group have decided that Peace Corps is not for them and we still love them. Be patient and flexible.

Not sure this was helpful. But it depends.