The Peace Corps

The Peace Corps was established in 1961 by John F. Kennedy with three key goals in mind:

• Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.
• Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
• Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

"The Peace Corps traces its roots and mission to 1960, when then Senator John F. Kennedy challenged the students at the University of Michigan to serve their country in the cause of peace by living and working in developing countries. From that inspiration grew an agency of the federal government devoted to world peace and friendship."

 

The Peace Corps is a government organization in which accepted applicants are invited to serve in a foreign country. Areas of service are requested by the participating countries and include education, youth and community development, health, business information and communication technology, agriculture, and environment. Accepted applicants volunteer to spend 27 months abroad and fully immerse themselves in the language and culture. Volunteers have served in 139 different countries, and work to create positive sustainable change in a global community. Peace Corps celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2011.

 

The application process is very long, on average 9-12 months (mine took about 20 months from application submission to departure). For more information on the application process, and the Peace Corps in general, visit http://www.peacecorps.gov/

The Peace Corps pretty much has a language of its own and is full of acronyms. Here is a list of the most common acronyms.
AC - Same as CHW
APCD - Associate Peace Corps Director
CD - Country Director
CHW - Community Healthcare Worker-volunteers in the community that spread health messages and make referrals to the CSB
CSB - Centre de Sante de Base Niveau-healthcare clinic
COS - Close of Services
ET - Early Termination
HCN - Host Country National
IST - In-Service Training
NGO - Nongovernmental Organization
OMS - Office of Medical Services
PC - Peace Corps
PCMO - Peace Corps Medical Officer
PCT - Peace Corps Trainee
PCV - Peace Corps Volunteer
PCVL - Peace Corps Volunteer Leader
PST - Pre-Services Training
RPCV - Return Peace Corps Volunteer

Sources: http://www.peacecorps.gov/
http://www.soyouwanna.com/soyouwanna-join-peace-corps-1044-full.html
So, You Want to Join the Peace Corps...What to Know Before You Go by Dillon Banerjee