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Is the Peace Corps any good?
A loyal MR reader writes:
I will be graduating from college next spring with a degree in Economics and fluency in Spanish. Joining the Peace Corps has always been a half-way serious goal of mine (you get to "make a difference" while effectively putting off entering the real world). What's your take on the Peace Corps? Do they actually do any good? The idealist in me wants to believe so, but obviously, I'm highly skeptical of any program started by JFK. If this isn't the best route, do you know of any alternatives that will still fulfill my aforementioned "goals?"
I neither have experience in this matter nor have I read a good book or paper on The Peace Corps. Readers?
Posted by Tyler Cowen on August 15, 2006 at 10:18 AM in Education | Permalink
Comments
Anyone who can write
obviously, I'm highly skeptical of any program started by JFK.
would be well advised to spend some time learning to think before going out and trying to "make a difference."
Posted by: bernard Yomtov at Aug 15, 2006 11:12:34 AM
:) Bernard, we all said stupid things when we were 21.
Posted by: Sebastian Holsclaw at Aug 15, 2006 11:15:36 AM
Bernard - absolutely.
Posted by: Martin at Aug 15, 2006 11:17:39 AM
I'm an RPCV, and I started drafting a long answer on this, and then gave up and made it a post at Unfogged.
The bottom line is that at least in Peace Corps Samoa, I didn't think we were all that much use to the Samoans, but I thought we were very useful to the US. If I were going to sign up with the Peace Corps again, I'd do it out of patriotism rather than charity. But I have more details at the link above.
Posted by: LizardBreath at Aug 15, 2006 11:46:15 AM
My advice as an economist and as a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer is to evaluate an opportunity to be a Volunteer in the same way you would evaluate any other job offer. There are pluses and minuses to any job. Which job is best for you depends on your particular utility function, and you are the best judge of your utility function.
"Do they do any good?" It depends. I taught high school math as a Volunteer. Do high school math teachers do any good in the U.S?
The most important criteria for having a successful Peace Corps experience is that you have to want to be there. If you are there because you think it will look good on a resume, you will have a very long two years.
Having said that, for me, being a Peace Corps Volunteer was the coolest job ever. I would not have missed it for the world.
Your mileage may vary.
Posted by: chris at Aug 15, 2006 11:54:38 AM
I've known people who served in the Peace Corps. The consensus is that they found the experience very enriching, but they cannot offer any evidence that by the end of their service they helped in any measurable way.
Some then say they are not bothered by that because while what they are doing will not have immediate benefits, there will be a great benefit in some unknown way in the future. Considering countries like Korea, Taiwan, and Indonesia have measurably changed for the better within one generation, while countries like Burkina Faso, where my cousin served, have not, I rate the experience as not helpful at all.
Posted by: Chris Durnell at Aug 15, 2006 11:57:49 AM
I'm scared of some of the Marxists and their ideas you will undoubtedly encounter.
Posted by: Chris Meisenzahl at Aug 15, 2006 12:06:06 PM
I read an unsubstantiated report somewhere that there is a sery serious liberal hiring bias, and thus someone with a conservative or libertarian outlook would have a hard time landing a position with the Peace Corps. Anyone know if there is anything to this claim?
Posted by: Sameer Parekh at Aug 15, 2006 12:11:04 PM
Absolute nonsense. I'd be willing to bet that there's a huge selection bias in who applies to the Peace Corps -- it's seen as a leftier thing to do -- but I've never hear of anyone who met the basic objective criteria (college degree or equivalent needed skills) who got turned down for anything other than an obvious reason (criminal record or such.)
Posted by: LizardBreath at Aug 15, 2006 12:15:21 PM
Bernard, we all said stupid things when we were 21.
No doubt. Me too. It does help to have the stupidity pointed out, so I could argue that I was trying to do the reader a favor, but that's not really true. The comment just grated. Sorry to be snarky.
Posted by: bernard Yomtov at Aug 15, 2006 12:27:56 PM
Do it for yourself and for your country, the U.S. needs people who understand the rest of the world. If you manage to do a bit of good in your work, that is an added bonus.
Posted by: Lars Smith at Aug 15, 2006 12:29:48 PM
Christopher Columbus arguably did not "do any good" - just wasted lots of Spanish money, in the short run.
The US space program voyage to the moon did not good in the short run (leaving aside synergistic effects). Nothing brought back from the moon justified what we spent.
Colonizing Earth 2 would arguably not do any good, since the colonists would presumably still have wars, disease, death, etc.
That suggests one should select the Peace Corps compared to other alternatives.
On the down side, the job market is hot now and it is a good time to get a paying job. That may not be where we are at in 2-3 years.
On the up side, there is something to be said for staying poor (right out of college) when it is not too jolting.
Realistically, other than right after completing school, when are you going to have another good time to volunteer for 2 years, until after the kids (your future kids) are out of school?
From a Kantian perspective, it seems best to look for a position that benefits you equally as much as the client of the charity. Complete self-abasement is not healthy.
So, if it is a volunteer position, it should open doors (help you find a spouse, teach skills you want to learn, improve skills you now have - such as Spanish).
If it looks good on your resume not just as showing you are good hearted (such as you gained 2 years of math or science teaching experience, or you set up a computer network with x computers, fiber optics, etc., or you managed care of x TB and x HIV and x malaria patients with Dr. Farmer) good.
Giving things away efficiently, so you can look back without regrets, is hard - as Buffett realized when he elected to partner with Gates.
If the Peace Corps can assure you of a volunteer position with underlying activities and likely accomplishments that are in line with your career or critical non-career objectives (e.g., spouse meeting), fine.
If the Peace Corps can only say "we will let you know later where you will go and what you will be doing when you get there" then it seems too speculative.
Posted by: cfw at Aug 15, 2006 12:31:47 PM
I'm a RPCV. Here are my thoughts.
Re: liberal hiring process. I'm fairly Libertarian and graduated from Penn State. My sister is very left and graduated from NYU. I got in. A few years later she didn't. Frankly, I think that acceptance is fairly random.
I don't think that it looks good on my resume, though it might if I applied to government jobs.
Having a job lined up when you leave college, a corporate job as high status as possible is essentially the thing to do for your resume however.
Many PCV (Peace Corps Volunteers), about 25%, seem to be long long out of college.
Different Peace Corps locations vary greatly in quality. In Kazakhstan, for instance, the local contacts are very good but the cultural education is grossly inaccurate, basically transferred straight from Africa, and the 8 weeks of Russian language instruction (with 1/3 of the time wasted on cultural nonsense) is good but woefully inadequate for a language as difficult as Russian.
Living in Kazakhstan was a VERY interesting experience, but I would have had a much better time if I had thought to learn more basic "home improvement" electrical and mechanical skills before going, bought a car battery and generator, and wired my house so that I didn't spend winter nights freezing in the dark from 5:00 on. My stupidity. Note to others, Peace Corps should recommend candidates be strong on language AND mechanical skills.
In terms of producing value, the average Peace Corps volunteer probably doesn't do much of practical value, but they do make a very large contribution to the English Language skills of recipient nations. As a strong generalization, EVERY competent English speaker in most recipient nations who doesn't live near the capital learned English first or second hand from a Peace Corps Volunteer.
As noted above, Peace Corps is also very good PR for the US, but more than that, it goes a long way towards improving people's understanding of the US, which is generally muddled at best.
Posted by: michael vassar at Aug 15, 2006 1:02:27 PM
Yep, we folks who can think are unskeptical of government programs, at least those started by JFK.
Posted by: Constant at Aug 15, 2006 1:11:52 PM
> If the Peace Corps can only say "we will let you know later where
> you will go and what you will be doing when you get there" then it
> seems too speculative.
Having just returned from Peace Corps service in Uganda, I can say that
this is pretty much how the Peace Corps does things. However, having said
that, most PCVs who I know do end up having enough flexibiity in their
posts to gear their service in a direction that interests them, either
through secondary projects or by molding their primary project in ways
that fit their skills, etc. Overall, if you think Peace Corps service
is something that you would like to do, I'd say go for it. The worst
outcome is that you hate it and choose to come home early.
Posted by: ESP at Aug 15, 2006 1:18:10 PM
There are a lot of good ways to "delay the real world" other than Peace Corps; in fact, my friend's sister literally wrote the book on the subject.
As far as the resume goes: Two years in the Peace Corps will be an excellent way to signal to potential employers that you're dedicated to global development and familiar with the on-the-ground issues. However, you will not have gained any marketable, "real world" job skills during that time and so will only be qualified for the same entry-level jobs on your return that you are now.
Posted by: Jessica at Aug 15, 2006 1:33:20 PM
Interesting comments from all, I almost have to throw in something as well:
I am actually leaving for my Peace Corps assignment (Macedonia) in 4 weeks, so I may bring forth some valid discussion. Basically, I finished my undergrad and found that I had many unfulfilled wants (a graduate education and traveling the world). The Peace Corps design a program called "Master's International", where you can begin a graduate program, finish a required amount of coursework, and receive the final graduate credit for Peace Corps service. When your done, you have a Master's degree in your field (mine is International Trade and Development) and 2 years of international experience under your belt. This may be a good option for you if you wish to get a graduate degree (and you may want to with an economics degree). Here is a list of schools and programs that you can do as a MIP: http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=learn.whyvol.eduben.mastersint.partschool
To brush on a few of the comments:
1) The Peace Corps has several different programs in each country. If you go to Africa, you will most likely be doing health education, agriculture, or teaching. you have economics degree and know spanish...You would probably go to a South or Latin American country and work with an NGO or do community / business development. Different programs provide different amounts of satisfaction....go if your interested in learning about another culture and interesting in showing others about American culture. If you're going to save the world, leave your bags unpacked.
2) Concerning you political affiliation: This is for the birds. You're accepted based on medical, dental, and legal clearance. have a good interivew. show interest in the world (is that hard?)
3) I mostly agree with Lars Smith: "Do it for yourself and for your country, the U.S. needs people who understand the rest of the world. If you manage to do a bit of good in your work, that is an added bonus."
The Peace Corps (to me) is about being a diplomat, an ambassador of the country I love, and helping people around the world understand that not everyone lives in New York City, drives a Hummer or fancy car, and enjoys the policies created in this country. We DO need more people in this country who understand the rest of the world. In my opinion, we (as a nation) are sorely out of touch with world affairs, and we need more people to step up, become educated citizens, and promote well-being to our fellow man...across the globe (sorry, that was a little TOO idealist)
Thank you for the post and time...and email me if you have any questions about the MIP program.
Posted by: troy tillis at Aug 15, 2006 1:38:41 PM
The vast majority of people on this planet live in conditions similar to what you will encounter as a PCV. Doesn't get any more real than that.
Posted by: Andrew at Aug 15, 2006 1:42:00 PM
I have met a number of PCV in my 6 years of world travel, and my overall impression is that the PC is good for them more than anything. (Teaching English is very helpful, but newbies to PC WAY overestimate the culture shock, hence learning, that they encounter.)
You will meet Marxists and their "scary" ideas, you will meet lefties and marines working at the embassy. You will meet and speak to many locals (The language facet of PC is its strongest suit -- if all soldiers in Iraq spoke Arabic things would be better.)
If you are doing it for your CV, you are wasting your time. (If you do ANYTHING for your CV, you are wasting your time, IMO. What's life about? Getting a job? Come on!) I met a girl in El Salvador who said "I've been here 9 months - that's good enough for my CV so I am quitting" She sucks, since she missed the best opportunity to get out of the US and actually understand another part of the world. Soooo few Americans actually do that. (Conferences abroad, Paris and Rome, and/or Mexican beaches do NOT count as understanding.)
So - to reiterate - PC is about you: how much do you want to grow as a person? Are you willing to change your view of the world -- not for others, but because you make a choice to do so when confronted with facts? If you want to stay a libertarian and build a CV or salary, work as an intern at an investment bank. If you want to be a world citizen, try the PC.
Posted by: David Zetland at Aug 15, 2006 1:53:40 PM
I have met a number of PCV in my 6 years of world travel, and my overall impression is that the PC is good for them more than anything. (Teaching English is very helpful, but newbies to PC WAY overestimate the culture shock, hence learning, that they encounter.)
You will meet Marxists and their "scary" ideas, you will meet lefties and marines working at the embassy. You will meet and speak to many locals (The language facet of PC is its strongest suit -- if all soldiers in Iraq spoke Arabic things would be better.)
If you are doing it for your CV, you are wasting your time. (If you do ANYTHING for your CV, you are wasting your time, IMO. What's life about? Getting a job? Come on!) I met a girl in El Salvador who said "I've been here 9 months - that's good enough for my CV so I am quitting" She sucks, since she missed the best opportunity to get out of the US and actually understand another part of the world. Soooo few Americans actually do that. (Conferences abroad, Paris and Rome, and/or Mexican beaches do NOT count as understanding.)
So - to reiterate - PC is about you: how much do you want to grow as a person? Are you willing to change your view of the world -- not for others, but because you make a choice to do so when confronted with facts? If you want to stay a libertarian and build a CV or salary, work as an intern at an investment bank. If you want to be a world citizen, try the PC.
Posted by: David Zetland at Aug 15, 2006 1:57:19 PM
Typo: "newbies to PC WAY overestimate" s/b "underestimate". Sorry!
Posted by: David Zetland at Aug 15, 2006 1:59:59 PM
I echo Chris' comments above (taught math for two years in Africa in the '80s), and I'd like to add one more general comment to the discussion: there isn't much *adventure* in life. School, work, spouse, mortgage, kids.... The Peace Corps is an adventure! Go for it if you can. It will give you much to gnaw on in the years to come.
Posted by: jeh at Aug 15, 2006 2:03:13 PM
No doubt the PC is the best way to learn to appreciate the important of a functioning market economy.
Posted by: Mr. Econotarian at Aug 15, 2006 2:29:21 PM
I didn't join the Peace Corps only because they could not guarantee the position that I wanted - helping establish venture capital/angel investing networks in Eastern Europe. This was a few years after the wall fell and I had the work/educational background (but not language background) to make a difference. I understand that they are not a placement service, but they must lose a lot of highly skilled people or put them in positions where their skills are not maximized.
Outside of this nitpicking, my impression is that it is a top notch, highly respected organization. It may not do squat for a traditional career if you get stuck doing something unrelated to your long term goals, but it will give you a life experience that will be tough to find elsewhere.
Posted by: Patinator at Aug 15, 2006 2:49:25 PM
Back in '83 I interviewed with both the Peace Corps and the Marine Corps (guess the corp thing was attractive). Picked the Marine Corps after some Marxist ranting on the part of the Peace Corp interviewer. Never regretted that choice. Then in the early '90s I spent a lot of time with Peace Corps volunteers in backwater cities in Russia. Their impact seemed to me to be very low. My best buddy spent most of his time hitting on Russian girls and setting up a consultancy gig with PW. And along with the journalists who flitted about Russia at the time, I believe the Peace Corps volunteers' politics really got in the way. How do you convert a communist country to capitalism when you really think Marxism is the way to go? It all seemed like a waste of tax payer money to me.
Posted by: Jake at Aug 15, 2006 3:15:34 PM
