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[snowbound]

Does anyone know anything about this program?  My daughter, who recently got a BA in Sociology, is considering doing this program. It's at a regional state college and involves a year of classwork, plus part-time interning, then 2 years of Peace Corps, then a Masters thesis.  But I've never heard of a Masters International.  Does it mean anything?  Anyone have any experience with it?

[kedves]

I don't know anything about it, but here is a link to information on the Peace Corps site.

Is your daughter interested in a career in international development, working with an international aid organization, or something like that?

[menotti]

We have it at my school.  Yes, it's a real program.  I don't know exactly what your question is.  For our degree, it counts as the practicum requirement, so it's a little shorter than doing Peace Corps + full degree, and the PC presumably benefits from having more trained people.

[snowbound]

Thanks.  Yes, my daughter found the program through the Peace Corps link.  As for what she wants to do, the problem is she doesn't quite know.  She's been toying with the idea of a PhD program in Soc., but (as I can say in this anonymous forum that she won't read) I don't think she has the ability for it.  She has always found schoolwork very challenging and has diagnosed learning disabilities--but did reasonably well in a rigorous SLAC through working her butt off and getting the assistance she needs.  Besides, going to grad school because you can't think of anything else, or going for a PhD because it's what your parents did, is not too wise.  Most other Soc.-type grad programs are very directed (social Work, non-profit management, etc), and she doesn't know what direction she wants. 

My daughter is very socially conscious and currently has a job that corresponds with that but is not longterm.  She is drawn to the Peace Corps, but quails at the thought of being sent off to organize a community, which she feels very unprepared for and unconfident about.  (Lacking practical skills like computer expertise or engineering or whatever, that's apparently what the PC would want her to do.)  Hence the interest in the Masters International, which would give her some preparation for PC, and also for PhD if she does decide to go that route.  The whole experience would, I hope, give her more confidence in her own abilities.  Before hitting the difficult adolescent years, she was the most confident, gutsiest kid imaginable--and she's only slowly starting to rediscover that persona. 

Thanks, Menotti, for assuring me that it's a real program.  I guess that was my main question.  But any other thoughts you or anyone else have, I'd be grateful to hear.

[concordancia]

It sounds like this is just the thing for her. A little grad work and experience should also either prepare her for a PhD or help her decide for herself that it isn't the right route for her. If the second, the experience would be helpful in getting a job with an NGO or non-profit.

[kedves]

I agree with Concordancia; it sounds perfect for her, a good blend of academic and practical training, challenge and community.  Good luck to her!

[menotti]

A few other thoughts...
It sounds like a good fit.  Lots of PCVs teach English, but those that don't generally struggle with an amorphous job description.  Having some advanced skills would help with that problem (but not totally eliminate it).  It would probably also help at the other end.  RPCVs generally do pretty well ultimately, but can struggle a bit getting back into the US job market.  Having a degree would probably help with that.

PM me if you'd like to know more - I'm an RPCV as well as knowing a bit about our school's program.

[juillet]

I know in my field (public health) Master's International along with the Peace Corps are fairly common.  A lot of PCVs are interested in health care and the health of the public, and a lot of reputable, top-ranked schools of public health offer the master's international programs.

A lot of these degrees not only give RPCVs the leverage they need to get into the job market, but they are a university campus where a lot of recruitment goes on and may find it easier to find a job that way.  And if she wants to work internationally, the experience combined with the degree can be the perfect combination.

[polkadot]

Hi, this doesn't answer your question, but is tangentially related.  I did a MS before starting a PhD program, and I wish I hadn't.  It was a waste of time, and I started the PhD 2 years older and tired.  If she thinks she might want to do a PhD, she should spend some time finding direction, and a little out of school time might be better for that.  That said, she might consider programs other than the peace corp.  I know someone who had a wonderful experience on the Peace Boat.  http://www.peaceboat.org/english/index.html.  Maybe she can go somewhere to polish up her language skills or something....

I'm pasting a post from a girl from my SLAC's forum about the peace corp because it sounds like it would be useful information for your daughter:
My sister got back from her stint a year ago, and had it all, the good (great local friends, travel and completing her project) the bad (incompetent PC administration screwing up her assignment so she sat on her hands for the first year and the local mayor made her life very difficult) and the ugly (malaria). She went to a Francophone country in west Africa, and was already fluent in French (took it all through high school and college, lived in Paris for a while). She found that the adjustment was far worse for the volunteers who had poor language skills on arrival: a few years of halfhearted classroom French didn't cut it by any means.

I also met many former PCers while hostelling in Europe a few years ago. Many of the Eastern European-based volunteers were just finishing their stints, and travelling before returning to the US. Some seemed genuinely pleased, mostly the ones who went in with concrete skills and a plan to use them (an older woman who took early retirement and had business background, who set up a charity to give free advice and help to local entrepreneurs. The charity grew and thrived beyond her time there.) The younger ones who signed on for the experience but had little preparation or knowledge to pass on seemed the most unhappy with their experience. (One had signed on to teach English, but when the school he was assigned to closed the English program after his first 6 months, the PC never found him a new post. He was still struggling with the language, and bummed around for the next 2 years doing piecemeal volunteer work, but ultimately was very bitter about the experience)

Hope this helps.

[snowbound]

Thanks everyone for your helpful comments.  I will PM you, Menotti, after I've had a chance to talk to my daughter this weekend.  Polkadot, your post is very sobering--especially since my daughter would definitely fit into the category of young, inexperienced person without much in the way of foreign language and no specific skills/plans. 

[hesitant]

[ My daughter is ](Lacking practical skills like computer expertise or engineering or whatever, that's apparently what the PC would want her to do.) 

May be you can suggest that she look into assignments to former Communist Eastern European countries? I know that, on the Balkans at least, the Peace Corps recruits people to work as TEFL teachers, youth development specialists, environmental workers, etc -- all of these can be areas that a person with a BA can be useful in and comfortable with. As for organizing a community, the Peace Corps Pre-service training (which lasts for a full three months) is really good in providing the basics of community entry skills... they also have excellent program staff that will continue to wrok with the volunteers and support them while on site.

(While I wasn't a volunteer, I was involved with the PEace Corps in Eastern Europe as a trainer/training program coordinator for a decade -- PM me, if you think I can be of help)