What will I do in Peace Corps that is NOT in the job description?

Will I "only" be teaching English? Building latrines? Creating a business plan? Talking about HIV/AIDS... for two years straight?! As you may have already heard from a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer or a Peace Corps recruiter, the answer to your questions is, "It depends!”

Much of the Peace Corps is "TBD"

So what will you be doing that is not in the job description? So. Many. Things. The beauty is that it's up to you and your community! We don’t know what you’ll do, but we can bet you will work on projects that you never imagined.

First, know that you will not feel pigeonholed by your Peace Corps assignment. You will not be doing the same thing for 40 hours a week for two years. Far from it! Some assignments will be more structured than others, but no job is so structured that you don’t have time for anything else.

You will, of course, be expected to fulfill the goals of your assigned project and you will be not only encouraged and supported but even expected by the Peace Corps to carry out secondary projects, too. The variety of secondary projects is endless and the guidelines are minimal. Your best guide will be your community.

Look to your community for inspiration

One of the first questions you will ask upon arriving at site is, what does my community need? One way to discover the needs of your community is through a community-based needs assessment, a tool for which Peace Corps provides training. Often ideas for secondary projects come from the grassroots level or from a champion in the community, which can lead to higher levels of ownership and sustainability.

Another question to ask is, what skills or hobbies do I want to share with my community? Maybe you're serving as an English teacher but have a passion for the environment, so you start a school garden, celebrate Earth Day, or organize a community trash pick-up event. Or maybe you’ll start a band camp or baseball team; teach about computers, solar ovens, beekeeping or piano; build a library or a school out of recycled plastic bottles; or insert-something-else-you-never-imagined-doing-here.

Tap into Peace Corps resources

You may not currently have the knowledge or skills for every project idea, but you will have the time to learn and become a resource person for your community. You'll also have access to other timeless secondary projects like painting a world map or partnering with a classroom in the U.S. through Peace Corps' Global Connections program.

But wait, what if your project comes with expenses? Enter the Peace Corps Partnership Program—an excellent option for funding projects.

How else do Volunteers influence their communities? They integrate food security, malaria prevention and other common challenges into their projects. Many Volunteers run Girls Leading Our World (GLOW) camps and help start women’s cooperatives and businesses. Peruse country websites and program opening descriptions to learn more about the huge variety of secondary projects worldwide.

Seek other opportunities to get involved

If all of that isn’t enough for you, you can also support your fellow Volunteers by holding a leadership position on the Volunteer Advisory Committee, helping train new Volunteers, being a member of a peer support network, and more. The possibilities are endless.

Hopefully you’ll also explore your country and region of service, become a pro at cooking the local food, attend weddings and celebrations, read many books, take up a new hobby, and find your way into the hearts of your community members while welcoming them into yours. Yeah, you’ll be doing that too.

So, what will I be doing that is not in the job description? So. Many. Things.