Peace Corps Prep: Preparing St. Mike’s students for international service is as popular as it’s ever been
A year ago, Paisleigh Atwood ’24 didn’t have an inkling she would soon be living and working in a village in the mountains of Albania teaching health classes to students in Shqip, the native language of the area.
Atwood’s interest in international humanitarian work prompted her to complete a Peace Corps Prep certificate at Saint Michael’s College in May 2024 – a collaborative program between the College and the Peace Corps. At the time, it was something good to have in her back pocket, but as her December 2024 graduation neared, it seemed the perfect opportunity to take a leap – a 4,400 mile leap.
Paisleigh Atwood ’24 teaches health classes to students in Albania while serving in the Peace Corps. Atwood edited the photo to cover faces of children for privacy reasons.
Applying to the Peace Corps was a spontaneous decision for Atwood – who majored in Public Health with a minor in Anthropology – but one that has been immensely fulfilling already, just months into her two-year assignment.
“There’s something powerful about standing in front of a room full of first graders, teaching nutrition in a language that still feels foreign, and realizing the real impact probably isn’t happening in the classroom at all,” she said. “It’s happening in the moments outside of it; in conversations, in the trust built over time, in the small, consistent ways I show up.”
While an opportunity to help uplift communities around the world drove her to volunteerism, she has received as much personally from the experience. That sentiment is echoed by many who have served in the Peace Corps, including Allison Cleary, the Saint Michael’s College Digital Media and Communications professor who also oversees the College’s Peace Corps Prep program.
Cleary served years ago in the Dominican Republic, helping local farmers establish alternative protein sources through fisheries. She said she felt outrageously lucky to be placed in a rural environment where working side-by-side with farmers made her feel closer to the earth and helped her understand another piece of the world.
Established in 2015, this year marks ten years Saint Michael’s College has offered Peace Corps Prep certification. This tenth year also included the largest group of St. Mike’s students completing certification – 16 – who participated in a graduation ceremony in April.
What is Peace Corps Prep?
The Peace Corps Prep program is offered at 144 colleges and universities in conjunction with the Peace Corps, the U.S. federally funded program that sends people out to partner countries to assist local communities in targeted ways for a two-year period. In New England, there are eight Peace Corps Prep programs, and St. Mike’s is one of two offering it in Vermont.
Students choose a professional specialty from among six work sectors: education, health, environment, agriculture, youth in development, and community economic development. Students take at least three classes designated for that sector and complete fifty hours of volunteer or work experience in that field.
Some language classes are required for particular regions – two 200-level Spanish classes are required for Latin American placement, for example – but all Peace Corps Prep students are encouraged to take a foreign language as a matter of course.
A record number of 16 students obtained their Peace Corps Prep certificate at the graduation ceremony in April 2025. (Photo by Liz Murray ’13.)
Three introspective intercultural competence courses are also required. These courses present relevant cultural differences and encourage reflection about oneself in relation to others. Another way to satisfy this requirement is to take two courses and to have one substantive intercultural experience such as studying abroad.
Students should also be able to show one significant leadership experience and work on their resume and interview skills.
Many requirements for sector hours, leadership, and intercultural competence can be satisfied by what students are already involved in: Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts (MOVE) service trips, extra-curricular and sports involvement, studying abroad, and leading a club or group.
Upon completion, students receive a certificate which serves two purposes. It provides a competitive advantage for applying to the Peace Corps, and it demonstrates the students’ wide-range of skills – including leadership and global competency – to potential employers.
Why students find Peace Corps Prep valuable
Atwood found Peace Corps Prep useful in multiple ways and some requirements easy to fulfill.
“Whether you’re directly interested in the Peace Corps or more broadly focused on international development like I was, the program helps you gain and articulate valuable skills that appeal to future employers,” she said. “If you’re already involved in campus or community activities, chances are you’ve fulfilled many of the requirements without realizing it. PC Prep gives you a structured way to tangibly showcase those experiences and skills.”
She said the most challenging part can be fitting a foreign language into one’s schedule.
Tulasha Pradhan ’25 received her Peace Corps Prep certificate at the recent ceremony in April. A Public Health major with minors in Health Equity and Art & Design, Pradhan found her campus involvement also met most of the requirements. She is originally from Nepal and chose focus areas in health, environment, and youth in development.
Tulasha Pradhan ’25 receives her Peace Corps Prep certificate at a ceremony in April 2025. She is standing next to Allison Cleary who oversees the Peace Corps Prep program at St. Mike’s. (Photo by Liz Murray ’13.)
Students who speak a language other than English who plan to serve in an area speaking their native language naturally meet the foreign language requirement and may already meet some of the intercultural competency requirements.
While Pradhan’s plans aren’t to go into the Peace Corps directly after graduation, she sees value in obtaining the certificate for whatever she does next.
“I learned that all of the international, globalization, and leadership experiences could all be represented through the certificate,” she said. “I think that the Peace Corps Prep certificate is valuable because it says a lot about you and your skills and wide range of experiences to potential future employers.”
Pradhan added that she always has the option to apply to the Peace Corps later.
Cleary said the certificate can also prepare students for short term international service; domestic service through Americorps, Teach for America, or Mercy Volunteer Corps; a career in diplomatic service; or it can be useful for applying to graduate school.
She said some first-year students come in lining up their credits to obtain the certificate while others decide their senior year to go for it and use previous years’ courses and experiences to fulfill requirements.
Cleary wants students to know that while members of the Peace Corps are volunteers, they do receive a stipend covering expenses.
Given the record number of Peace Corps Prep graduates this year, Cleary said the reason may be increased awareness but also a testament to modern students’ priorities and interests.
“I think this generation is really committed to multicultural appreciation and international engagement,” she said.
Equipping students to go forth and do good
In recent months, the federal government has cut or greatly reduced some programs that render aid in foreign countries, such as USAID, but so far, the Peace Corps hasn’t been affected.
Cleary doesn’t want uncertainty to dissuade students from pursuing certification or committing to international service.
“The world will always need students who have a commitment and an informed understanding of what it means to work with another culture, another country. And, that is never going to disappear,” she said.
Cleary added that no one knows what will happen in four years, and there are currently many members of Congress – on both sides of the aisle – who have served in the Peace Corps in the 64 years since its founding.
As part of her Peace Corps training and integration into the culture, Paisleigh Atwood ’24 donned traditional Albanian garb.
Here at St. Mike’s, the Peace Corps connection runs deep.
“We have more than 80 Peace Corps alums and they’ve served in countries from Costa Rica to Guatemala, Nepal, Paraguay, Mozambique, Senegal, Jamaica – the list goes on,” Cleary said. “So, we have a long history of graduating students who are really committed to international collaboration and international field service.”
She said the Peace Corps Prep certification program helps students intentionally curate their readiness for service and is emblematic of how Saint Michael’s College is taking advantage of partnerships to offer more to students. The College offers a variety of career readiness badges and certificates, in addition to Peace Corps Prep.
Saint Michael’s College’s Director of the Institute for Global Engagement, Jeff Ayres, who is also a professor of political science and international relations, said these types of skills are attractive to businesses. He said employers are “increasingly seeking out” job candidates with grounding in classes and majors with international content, leadership experiences that encourage international exchange, and study abroad or international internships – all experiences fostered through the Peace Corps Prep program.
“Global competency and culture awareness help build leadership skills for navigating an increasingly complex and interconnected world, as students learn to think from divergent perspectives, understand different viewpoints and work constructively with peoples of diverse backgrounds,” he said.
While Atwood deepens her language skills and strengthens connections in Albania, she wishes to grow as a person and a professional and to make positive differences in her students’ lives. She said she already felt transformation happening in that very first class of first graders.
“That class was a defining moment in my Peace Corps experience because it reminded me that I’m not here to change the world, but maybe I can help one person see theirs a little differently,” she said.
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