I have read a lot of great feedback provided to other essays on this site, hopefully someone can also help me with my peace corps essay! The prompt and my draft are below. Thanks in advance for your help!!
While perusing one of the many Peace Corps blog sites, I encountered a blog that referenced the Chinese proverb, "It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness." This aphorism inspired me to brush the dust off my nearly two year old Peace Corps application and put an end to my fruitless cursing. While I have procured many candles and matches over the course of my education and work experience, I have had little opportunity to put them to beneficial use. Becoming a PCV will allow me to utilize the skills I've acquired from both my professional and volunteer experiences to effect change in whichever community the Peace Corps believes my abilities would best be served.
Along with affecting metaphors, I have also come across environmental projects undertaken by current PCVs - projects that I can see myself being a part of and potentially leading one day. Whether it's teaching environmental conservation in Panama or building composting toilets in Ethiopia, I believe my diverse background will lend me the expertise to successfully contribute to and complete these and any other project that I'm presented with during my service. Specifically, I believe the leadership and interpersonal skills I have gained through my experiences as a Big Sister, along with my work experience supervising high school students as a horticulture intern, will allow me to effectively communicate and integrate into my host culture and community. My experience as a PCV will propel me into my career as a successful member of the state or federal Environmental Protection Agency where I can further impact national environmental concerns.
Over the past eight years, I've had the privilege to work for seven different organizations - from McDonald's when I was fifteen, to a botanical garden, to the environmental consulting firm with which I'm currently employed. These experiences, along with my graduate coursework in water pollution prevention, land management, and conflict resolution, have prepared me for the challenges and triumphs that come with being a PCV. I imagine their will be times when each of the 10 Core Expectations will be difficult to effectively fulfill, but in particular I believe Core Expectation #5 will be challenging. The Peace Corps experience is unlike any other job because it is not simply 9 to 5, five days a week. The Peace Corps is a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week commitment that requires determination and constant diligence to the work assignment and integration into the host community. Overcoming this challenge will require flexibility, adaption to change, and a strong work ethic - attributes I have developed and cultivated through my professional and volunteer background.
The Peace Corps represents the opportunity for one the most rewarding adventures of my life, and I know that I am ready to step in and live the experiences I have read about through the journals and blogs of other PCVs. My bag of candles and matches have been carefully packed, and eagerly await the opportunity to light a path through the darkness.
Life Adventures
While perusing one of the many Peace Corps blog sites, I encountered a blog that referenced the Chinese proverb, "It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness." This aphorism inspired me to brush the dust off my nearly two year old Peace Corps application and put an end to my fruitless cursing. While I have procured many candles and matches over the course of my education and work experience, I have had little opportunity to put them to beneficial use. Becoming a PCV will allow me to utilize the skills I've acquired from both my professional and volunteer experiences to effect change in whichever community the Peace Corps believes my abilities would best be served.
Along with affecting metaphors, I have also come across environmental projects undertaken by current PCVs - projects that I can see myself being a part of and potentially leading one day. Whether it's teaching environmental conservation in Panama or building composting toilets in Ethiopia, I believe my diverse background will lend me the expertise to successfully contribute to and complete these and any other project that I'm presented with during my service. Specifically, I believe the leadership and interpersonal skills I have gained through my experiences as a Big Sister, along with my work experience supervising high school students as a horticulture intern, will allow me to effectively communicate and integrate into my host culture and community. My experience as a PCV will propel me into my career as a successful member of the state or federal Environmental Protection Agency where I can further impact national environmental concerns.
Over the past eight years, I've had the privilege to work for seven different organizations - from McDonald's when I was fifteen, to a botanical garden, to the environmental consulting firm with which I'm currently employed. These experiences, along with my graduate coursework in water pollution prevention, land management, and conflict resolution, have prepared me for the challenges and triumphs that come with being a PCV. I imagine their will be times when each of the 10 Core Expectations will be difficult to effectively fulfill, but in particular I believe Core Expectation #5 will be challenging. The Peace Corps experience is unlike any other job because it is not simply 9 to 5, five days a week. The Peace Corps is a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week commitment that requires determination and constant diligence to the work assignment and integration into the host community. Overcoming this challenge will require flexibility, adaption to change, and a strong work ethic - attributes I have developed and cultivated through my professional and volunteer background.
The Peace Corps represents the opportunity for one the most rewarding adventures of my life, and I know that I am ready to step in and live the experiences I have read about through the journals and blogs of other PCVs. My bag of candles and matches have been carefully packed, and eagerly await the opportunity to light a path through the darkness.