Employment Guide: For many, jobs to be found abroad

To many graduates, it seems like there are only three options after college: get a job, go to… To many graduates, it seems like there are only three options after college: get a job, go to grad school or go live with mom and dad.

Rather than accept the status quo, though, some Pitt alumni have chosen to go abroad and give back to the international community through organizations like the Peace Corps and WorldTeach.

For Pitt alumna Carrie Pavlik, joining the Peace Corps wasn’t just any post-grad job.

“The Peace Corps is not about a career — it’s about your life,” she said.

Pavlik majored in communications and studio art and studied and volunteered abroad in Kingston, Jamaica, during her junior year. She decided to apply for the Peace Corps in 2005 at the beginning of her senior year, leaving for Zambia in 2007.

But just because the Peace Corps isn’t your “typical job” doesn’t mean the application process and time commitments are any easier.

“The application process is long — there are essays, a background check and medical clearances — and can last anywhere from a few months to a year depending on when programs open up,” she said. “A typical Peace Corps service is 26 to 27 months … There’s a pretty high dropout rate, but I was able to stay the entire 27 months without even coming home to visit.”

Peace Corps volunteers can work almost anywhere in the world, but can only select regional preferences and not choose a particular country.

Pavlik said she put Africa as her first choice because she “wanted a very rural and rustic experience.”

In Zambia, she worked as a Rural Education Development volunteer, which involved training teachers and developing a school library.

Although Peace Corps volunteers are assigned only to one program area — such as Agriculture, Health or Food Security — they still do service projects in various fields.

Despite some cultural differences, Pavlik found herself adapting well to life in Africa and was not ready to come back to the United States after her service.

“It’s hard to conceptualize that a few days ago you were living in a hut in Africa and now you’re not,” she said. “In a way, it seems like you never even left the United States. It’s depressing.”

After their service, Peace Corps volunteers are paid $7,425, before taxes, to assist with their transition back to the states.They might also be eligible for deferment or partial cancellation of student loans, but are advised to talk to their recruiter as to how this benefit applies to them individually.

For those who aren’t prepared to make a two-year commitment abroad, the program WorldTeach offers itself as an alternative to the Peace Corps.

Unlike the Peace Corps, WorldTeach is not an American government organization but is instead funded by the governments of host countries and fundraising by volunteers.

According to the WorldTeach website, a year in Ecuador costs approximately $4,900, but that amount of money should be seen as an affordable cost of living abroad, rather than just a fee to volunteer.

Volunteers can also choose exactly what country they would like to work in.

Pitt alumnus Tim Laquintano graduated with a degree in English in the spring of 2001 and immediately left for a WorldTeach program in Ecuador in the fall. He spent 11 months teaching English writing, conversation and literature to students.

Like Pavlik, Laquintano also spent time abroad during college. He took two semesters of Spanish at Pitt and studied abroad in London.

Still, he had some difficulty adapting to a new environment.

“For me, adapting physically was more difficult than mentally,” he said. “I was ill constantly for the first three weeks while adjusting to the food, and I had to learn to live at 8,000 feet [above sea level] … I also managed to teach a week’s worth of class with four different kinds of parasites living in my stomach.”

Despite the toll on his health, he felt his experiences abroad were worthwhile.

“I drank rum with my host father and his friends as we watched Ecuador qualify for its first World Cup,” he said. “I traveled through the jungle, through cloud forests and in the Galapagos Islands. I climbed volcanoes.”

Laquintano said that in addition to offering many adventures, the volunteering was also a great way to prepare for a career. He currently works as an assistant professor of English at Lafayette College.

“Volunteering at a nonprofit is a good way to acquire lots of responsibility — and thus good professional experience — immediately after graduating,” he said. “If you plan on going to graduate school, a year away from higher education can provide some much-needed perspective.”

Like many post-grads her age, Pavlik hasn’t had much luck finding a job given the state of the economy. Instead, she plans to eventually live on a self-sustaining rural farm.

To current students who are considering volunteering abroad after Pitt, she gives some simple advice: “Don’t wonder or worry about whether it’s the right thing for your ‘career path.’ If you’re going to let those types of thoughts get in the way, then Peace Corps isn’t for you. Even if you get sick, even if you quit after a month, even if everything goes wrong — you’ll never regret it. Just join. That’s all.”