Peace Corps & Graduate School: Eileen Conoboy

The latest Idealist.org Careers Podcast features Eileen Conoboy, Director of the Office of University Programs at Peace Corps. She speaks with Idealist’s Amy Potthast about Peace Corps and its two graduate school partnership programs, Masters International and Fellows USA. Eileen was a VISTA (Volunteer in Service to America) and a Peace Corps Volunteer (Mali, 1995-97) and has served as a Peace Corps Regional Recruiter. She has a Masters degree in International Peace Studies from Trinity College in Ireland.

Peace Corps Volunteers can earn their Masters degree as part of Peace Corps service through the Masters International program. Former Volunteers receive scholarships through the Fellows USA program. Finally, Peace Corps has two pilot programs that serve undergraduate populations on specific campuses. To learn more about Peace Corps’s graduate school partnerships, go to www.peacecorps.gov and click on “Grad School” or come to an Idealist.org Graduate Degree Fair for the Public Good, www.idealist.org/gradfairs.

Download the Episode Here (0:40:50) [19MB]

The Peace Corps is a federal US agency that sends thousands of Volunteers abroad each year to over 70 developing countries to perform tasks that the host countries deem critical in fields like public health, education, environmental protection, information technology and more. The Office of University Programs oversees mutually beneficial partnerships between Peace Corps and both graduate and undergraduate institutions. 

Find more grad school resources at www.idealist.org/gradschools