Peace Corps Prep Work Sectors

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Students completing the Peace Corps Prep Certificate must select three academic courses and complete 50 hours of volunteer experience within one of the following six work sectors. 

Education     Health     The Environment     Agriculture     Youth in Development     Community Economic Development

Education

Teach lessons that last a lifetime. Education is the Peace Corps’ largest program area. Volunteers play an important role in creating links among schools, parents, and communities by working in elementary, secondary, and postsecondary schools as math, science, conversational English, and resource teachers, or as early grade reading and literacy teacher trainers. Volunteers also develop libraries and technology resource centers.

take 3 courses from one of the following areas:

  • Educational Studies
  • Computer Science
  • Educational Leadership
  • Math
  • Computer Science
  • Anthropology
  • Any Physical or Biological Science

Recommended courses:

  • SOC 3112: Sociology of Education
  • MATH 110: Concepts of Mathematics
  • ANTH 304: Language, Culture, and Society
  • GS 140: Intro to Computer Program
  • BIO 380: Tropical Ecology
  • ENVS 258: Ethnobotany
  • ENG 357: Postcolonial Literature and Theory
  • EDUC 203: Contemporary Issues in Education
  • EDUC 308: Critical Aspects of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
  • EDUC 3053: Language and Education in Africa

50 hours of related field experience:

  • Teaching in one of these or a similar forum: in a classroom, with a community outreach organization, or in a formal tutoring capacity. The subject of the teaching may be English as a Foreign/Second Language, special education, drama, or a STEM field subject
  • SLU Writing Center and Peterson Quantitative Resource Center Tutors
  • Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) Summer Mentors, who assist students enrolled in HEOP’s summer enrichment program
  • St. Lawrence University Public Interest Corps (SLU PIC), which offers 8-10 week summer internship opportunities sponsored by local nonprofits
  • Language and Cultural Exchange Program Tutor
  • Kenya Semester Independent Internship Placement
  • SLU Reading Buddies, program for SLU students to assist local school children in improving their reading skills
  • Community based learning (combined with another experience to reach 50-hour minimum)
  • For a field experience in your home area, please contact the Peace Corps Prep Coordinator for discussion and approval.

Health

Serve on the front lines of global health. Health Volunteers work within their communities to promote important topics such as nutrition, maternal and child health, basic hygiene, and water sanitation. Volunteers also work in HIV/AIDS education and prevention programs to train youth as peer educators, develop appropriate education strategies, provide support to children orphaned by the pandemic, and create programs that provide emotional and financial support to families and communities affected by the disease.

take three courses from one of the following areas:

  • Psychology
  • Pre-Med
  • Public Health
  • Gender Studies
  • Biology
  • Anthropology
  • Global Studies

Recommended courses:

  • GS 3019: Global Health and Justice
  • SOC 225: Women’s Health and Aging.
  • BIO 412: Cross-Cultural Perspectives of Healing
  • PH 216: Intro to Public Health
  • PH 3002: Health Behavior and Promotion
  • GS 264: Global Public Health: Critical Approaches.
  • GNDR 224: Global Advocacy for Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health
  • BIO 310: Human Nutrition
  • ANTH 270: Plagues and People

50 hours of related field experience through an activity such as:

  • Volunteer or work experience in such areas as HIV/AIDS outreach, hospice, family planning counseling, emergency medical technician (EMT) or CPR teaching/certification, maternal health, and hands-on caregiving in a hospital, clinic, or lab technician setting
  • Counseling or teaching in health subjects
  • Working as a resident advisor in a dormitory, as a peer nutritionist, or as a counselor for sexually transmitted infections
  • Significant experience in mechanical repairs, construction, carpentry, masonry, plumbing, hydrology, or set design
  • Kenya Semester Independent Internship Placement
  • St. Lawrence University Public Interest Corps (SLU PIC), which offers 8-10 week summer internship opportunities sponsored by local nonprofits
  • Planned Parenthood Internship
  • SLU Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Program
  • Community based learning (combined with another experience to reach 50-hour minimum)
  • For a field experience in your home area, please contact the Peace Corps Prep Coordinator for discussion and approval.
  • If you feel you are participating in a program, alternative spring break, or study abroad experience that may fulfill multiple requirements at once, please contact the Peace Corps Prep Coordinator for discussion and approval.

The Environment

Help forge a global movement to protect our planet. Volunteers lead grassroots efforts in their communities to protect the environment and strengthen understanding of environmental issues. They teach environmental awareness in elementary and secondary schools and to youth groups and community organizations, empowering communities to make their own decisions about how to protect and conserve the local environment. Volunteers also address environmental degradation by promoting sustainable use of natural resources.

take three courses from one of the following areas:

  • Environmental Studies
  • Environmental Studies - Economics
  • Outdoor Leadership
  • Sustainability Program
  • Conservation Biology
  • Geology
  • Global Studies

Recommended courses

  • EDUC 3001: Environmental Education
  • BIO 440: Conservation Biology
  • ENVS 110: Environmental Geology
  • ENV S318: Environmental Psychology
  • GEOL 103: Dynamic Earth
  • ANTH 425: Environmental Conservation in Africa
  • GS 259: Global-Local Environmentalisms
  • ECON 3015: Environmental Economics

50 hours of related field experience through an activity such as:

  • Educating the public on environmental or conservation issues, or working on environmental campaigns
  • Conducting biological surveys of plants or animals
  • Gardening, farming, nursery management, organic or low-input vegetable production, or landscaping
  • Providing technical assistance and training in natural resource management
  • Nature Up North, a campus-based environmental education and outreach program in which SLU student interns lead citizen science and nature activities
  • LittleGrasse Foodworks or Birdsfoot Farm Internship, both local organic farming operations
  • St. Lawrence University Public Interest Corps (SLU PIC), which offers 8-10 week summer internship opportunities sponsored by local nonprofits
  • SLU Sustainability Program, which offers students opportunities to take courses and engage in hands-on activities that explore sustainability issues
  • Weave News, a campus-based independent news projects focusing on underreported stories
  • Kenya Semester Independent Internship Placement
  • Community based learning (combined with another experience to reach 50-hour minimum)
  • For a field experience in your home area, please contact the PCP coordinator for discussion and approval.
  • If you feel you are participating in a program, alternative spring break, or study abroad experience that may fulfill multiple requirements at once, please contact the Peace Corps Prep Coordinator for discussion and approval.

Agriculture

Lead grassroots efforts to fight hunger in a changing world. Agricultural Volunteers work with small-scale farmers and families to increase food security and production, and adapt to climate change while promoting environmental conservation practices. They introduce farmers to techniques that prevent soil erosion, reduce the use of harmful pesticides, and replenish the soil. They work alongside farmers on integrated projects that often combine vegetable gardening, livestock management, agroforestry, and nutrition education.

Take three courses from one of the following areas:

  • Economics
  • Business
  • Biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Chemistry
  • Sustainability Program
  • Environmental Studies

Recommended courses:

  • ECON 3015: Environmental Economics
  • ENVS 360: Agriculture and the Environment
  • BIO 230: Food from the Sea (with lab)
  • SOC 233: Consuming Food.
  • BIO 101: Introduction to Biology
  • BIOCH 107: Science of Food
  • BIO 224: Plant Biology

50 hours of related field experience through an activity such as:

  • Working with a large-scale or family-run business involving vegetable gardening, farming, nursery work, tree planting or care, urban forestry, landscaping, livestock care and management, or fish cultivation and production

  • Teaching or tutoring the public in environmental or agricultural issues/activities

  • Working on the business management or marketing side of a commercial farm

  • Nature Up North

  • LittleGrasse Foodworks or Birdsfoot Farm Internship

  • St. Lawrence University Public Interest Corps (SLU PIC), which offers 8-10 week summer internship opportunities sponsored by local nonprofits.

  • SLU Sustainability Program, which offers students opportunities to take courses and engage in hands-on activities that explore sustainability issues

  • Weave News, a campus-based independent news project focusing on underreported stories

  • Kenya Semester Independent Internship Placement

  • GardenShare, a local nonprofit focused on addressing food insecurity issues

  • SLU Writing Center and Peterson Quantitative Resource Center Tutors

  • Community based learning (combined with another experience to reach 50-hour minimum)

  • For a field experience in your home area, please contact the Peace Corps Prep Coordinator for discussion and approval.

  • If you feel you are participating in a program, alternative spring break, or study abroad experience that may fulfill multiple requirements at once, please contact the Peace Corps Prep Coordinator for discussion and approval.

Youth in Development

Empower the next generation of changemakers. Volunteers work with youth in communities on projects that promote engagement and active citizenship, including gender awareness, employability, health and HIV/AIDS education, environmental awareness, sporting programs, and info technology.

Take three courses from one of the following areas:

  • Educational Leadership
  • Gender and Sexuality Studies
  • Rhetoric and Communication
  • Computer Science
  • Sports Studies and Exercise Science
  • Theatre
  • Sociology

Recommended courses:

  • ANTH 242: Childhood Across Cultures.
  • PCA 106: Performing Diversity.
  • PSYC 413: Community Psychology
  • PCA 334: Environmental Communication.
  • GNDR 290: Gender and Feminist Theory.
  • PCA 255: African-American Drama
  • PSYC 215: Cultural Psychology
  • GS 235: Power, Profits, and the Cultural Politics of Sports
  • AFS 3049: Africa Rising: Urban Youth Culture
  • CS 140: Introduction to Computer Program

50 hours of related field experience through an activity such as:

  • Teaching or counseling in at-risk youth programs

  • Activities that involve planning, organizing, assessing community needs, counseling, and leadership, in areas such as education, youth development, health and HIV/AIDS, the environment, and/or business
  • Common Ground Connections, student organization focused on global citizenship and intercultural communication
  • St. Lawrence University Public Interest Corps (SLU PIC), which offers 8-10 week summer internship opportunities sponsored by local nonprofits
  • SLU Reading Buddies program for SLU students to assist local school children in improving their reading skills
  • Weave News, a campus-based independent news project focusing on underreported stories
  • Nature Up North, a campus-based environmental education and outreach program in which SLU student interns lead citizen science and nature activities
  • GardenShare, a local nonprofit focused on addressing food insecurity issues
  • Writing Center and Quantitative and Reasoning Tutors
  • Kenya Semester Independent Internship Placement
  • Community based learning (combined with another experience to reach 50-hour minimum)
  • For a field experience in your home area, please contact the PCP coordinator for discussion and approval.
  • If you feel you are participating in a program, alternative spring break, or study abroad experience that may fulfill multiple requirements at once, please contact the Peace Corps Prep Coordinator for discussion and approval.

Community Economic Development

Harness 21st-century tools to help communities lift themselves. Volunteers work with development banks, nongovernmental organizations, and municipalities to strengthen infrastructure and encourage economic opportunities in communities. They frequently teach in classroom settings and work with entrepreneurs and business owners to develop and market their products. Some Volunteers also teach basic computer skills and help communities take advantage of technologies such as e-commerce, distance learning, and more.

Take three courses from one of the following areas:

  • Business in the Liberal Arts
  • International Economics
  • African Studies-Economics
  • Computer Science
  • Economics
  • Accounting
  • Rhetoric-Communication
  • Statistics

Recommended courses:

  • EDUC 3042: Education and Entrepreneurship
  • GS 301: Theories of Global Political Economy
  • ECON 228: African Economies
  • GS 222: Asian Political Economy in the Global Age
  • ECON 308. Environmental Economics
  • ECON 332: International Economics
  • AAC 203: Managerial Accounting
  • STAT 113: Applied Statistics

50 hours of related field experience through an activity such as:

  • Working with businesses, organizations, or cooperatives in accounting, finance, microfinance, management, project management, budgeting, or marketing
  • Starting and running your own business or other entrepreneurial activity
  • Training others in computer literacy, maintenance, and repair
  • Website design or online marketing
  • Founding or leading a community- or school-based organization
  • Campus Kitchen Project, student organization that serves weekly community meals
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Career Services Internship
  • St. Lawrence University Public Interest Corps (SLU PIC), which offers 8-10 week summer internship opportunities sponsored by local nonprofits SLU PIC Internship Program
  • Weave News a campus-based independent news project focusing on underreported stories
  • Career Connections Internship
  • Kenya Semester Independent Internship Placement
  • Community based learning (combined with another experience to reach 50-hour minimum)
  • For a field experience in your home area, please contact the PCP coordinator for discussion and approval.
  • If you feel you are participating in a program, alternative spring break, or study abroad experience that may fulfill multiple requirements at once, please contact the PCP coordinator for discussion and approval.