program specialist

monitoring specialist

associate editor

administrative assistant

Peace Corps

During my 2 years serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (2008-2010), I gained several transferable skills and built rapport with my community. I cannot describe a typical day at work because my description would not do it justice. 

As a female, American of latin decent from New York, living on the Jordanian-Syrian border was both challenging and rewarding. My villagers were ultimately receptive of me, but were equally intrigued by my very presence. However, this did not hinder my ability to relate, empathize, and develop skillsets to meet their needs. It was a mutual experience and one that I highly recommend others to explore. 

The hardest part of the job was ensuring my intentions as an American were transparent and project specific. Often times, cultural stereotypes limited my ability to present viable options for youth programs. Despite these limitations, we were successful over time in developing trust and implementing programs in the community. 

The most enjoyable part of the job is becoming culturally proficient and sensitive. It is a mutually enriching and intellectually stimulating job. Years after my service, i remain in contact with my villagers and encourage the sustainability of projects.

Planned and instituted specific human rights procedures to uphold cultural, social and economic rights. 
Assessed impact of each human rights activity by analyzing human rights issues and related events.  Developed partnership programs with other agencies and organizations and successfully implemented joint equality and inclusion workshops and presentations. 

Prepared and assessed project proposals and identified fresh opportunities to optimize human and civil resource activities. 
Investigated and analyzed current human and civil rights issues to prepare briefing reports and papers.

In the evenings 3 days a week, served as a personal chef  to a couple and their 2 children. Provided menu, budget for each dinner meal. The parents desired a more sophisticated meals for themselves and less sophisticated menu for the children (ages 5 and 8). 

The most enjoyable part of the Peace Corps was when the managers "got it" about treating their people with dignity and respect. The most enjoyable part of the Personal Chef, was the silent satisfaction from the children because they were too busy eating and enjoying their food they couldn't talk.

Being a Peace Corps Volunteer is not for the faint of heart. It contains a lot of stressors you didn't know existed prior to the experience, as well as many unforeseen challenges that are unique to each country, community, and volunteer. However, it is "the hardest job you'll ever love". You have the opportunities to explore parts of the world you never thought you'd see, meet people you never would have met, and create lasting bonds with fellow volunteers from all across the United States. Because you're living abroad, you are provided with housing, and a living stipend to get through your 2 years of service, with an additional amount of money you will receive at the end of your service based on how many months you remained a volunteer.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Peace Corps offers an unparalleled opportunity to engage with new cultures and explore new opportunities.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
You will face unfamiliar challenges, potentially difficult living situations, and will struggle to find the best way to help your community.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
There are many different types of people who join the Peace Corps and all are different in certain ways. This can make for a varied and unpredictable experience.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Most mornings, I would get up relatively early and head to school to work with my counterpart in leading English classes. We would go over exercises with the students and review homework. In the afternoons, I would prepare for the extracurricular culture club I ran. Evenings would be dedicated to research for other programs or simple relaxation.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Working for my country's development

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Having an American boss without my country's cultural knowledge.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The office has several departments. I can talk about my department and say that it was very positive, always willing, and very collaborative. However, the cultural sensitivity of my immediate superior boss was poor. That person had a lot of knowledge; however, I never saw that person as a leader.  I remember orders, and corrections without care with a red pen and large letters, and screams in English although our language is Spanish.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Schedule from 7:30 to 4:30 with flexy time. supervision, substitution training
assessment, and creation. Field visits and everything that the boss indicates.

This wasn't a typical job. Getting up in the morning came as early as the sun rise, and then I would walk through frozen streets to a place where children with damaged bodies would learn to use them again. Profit was secondary to all activities, and my mission was to change that. The amount of women struggling to get ahead in Armenia was staggering and they devoted themselves daily to learning and self improvement, in addition to raising families, and taking care of the home finances. The workflow was directed by professionals who were always available as resources, and my co-workers were the same. The hardest part of the job was being medically evacuated during the height of my projects, and trying to keep them going from a great distance. I find myself enriched for having met everyone and having had a chance to be a cultural ambassador to Armenia with the Peace Corps.

There is no typical day at work.  Each day is a different chapter and anything can happen or nothing at all.

I learned that people are more alike than different.  I learned that there are always two ways of looking at something.

Manage your time by what is important.  Manage people by giving them what they need only if it is what they want.

My co-workers were my counterparts.  They gave me feed back and were a real comfort and a real asset to reaching goals.

The hardest part of the job was learning to get by with not understanding everything that was said or done.  To just let it flow.

The most enjoyable part of the job was feeling welcome and needed.  And experiencing a whole new culture, country, food, music and people.

I was in a position, as a political appointee, to supervise 41 employees who were "inherited" by an interagency merger with another organization. The Director of the Peace Corps counted on me for all media inquiries in this sensitive time, and I had a full secret service status to receive cables from overseas about volunteers and international agencies. Constituent services for the Director and Deputy Director were at a premium while the agency went through budget battles and faced extinction from the far right on Capitol Hill. The President gave the agency 100% support and we were able to continue our work with more effectiveness than ever.
I was in a postiion of seniority so I learned a great deal about management. The hardest part was infighting among staff. The best part was fulfillment for having my ideas respected and implemented.

What is the best part of working at the company?
I struggle to recall a positive response experience.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Constant fear of being DOGEd, realizing the company isn’t that mission focused and often puts generally young people into unsafe situations so they can act like they know better than the people they’re there to assist, some very strange coworkers, catty leadership and consultants 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Fake nice - people often talk behind each others’ backs; I had one more senior coworker openly compete with me and take work from me, which was bizarre

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Sitting around because we weren’t sure if we were moving forward with our primary task given the new administration…occasionally researching things for projects we never ended up doing.

- A typical day at work was training farm cooperative members to develop business acumen for managing the cooperative, including accounting, marketing, and business development

- I learned to appreciate different cultures, the language, and business development. This was also a great period for personal growth

- Peace Corps management was very supportive in making sure volunteers were adapting to their environments

- My co-workers were highly supportive

- The hardest part of the job was adjusting to a new culture in sometimes less than advantageous circumstances, such as modern accommodations

- The most enjoyable part of the job was adjusting to a new culture. I developed many friends which has

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Program specialist 1 salary reported	$116,801 per year
Monitoring specialist 1 salary reported	$25,000 per year
Associate editor 1 salary reported	$50,000 per year
Administrative assistant 1 salary reported	$20.43 per hour

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