Part I
Parts II, III and IV
November 1
Dear (Recruiter 3),
I hope this finds you well. I don't expect you to receive this for a few
days-- I know what that storm has done to my own hometown and county,
and I understand Lower Manhattan is a mess and without power, too.
I am writing to you to withdraw my application. I've given it a lot of
thought, and this just no longer strikes me as the right way to go about
international service, in the context of my life. I want to thank you
for being extremely helpful these past few
months, always getting back to me, even when you didn't know the answer.
You have been kind, honest, and patient with me, and I really do
appreciate it.
Unfortunately, none of the reasons for my withdrawal have anything to do
with you, but I don't know who else to share them with, as I have not
had a productive relationship with your colleagues. That in and of
itself it one of the reasons-- if the communication
is so poor here in the United States, I have great concerns about being
in the developing world with this organization. I understand through
many RPCV friends that the experience is amazing if one can overlook the
many flaws of Peace Corps, but I'm just not
feeling entirely comfortable getting to that point.
In addition to lacking communication, some of it has just been
incorrect. When my application was first withdrawn in February, I was
told it was because of my lack of teaching experience and my lack of
environmental studies, but by then I already had three
years of teaching experience at the college level, and my BA and MS are
both in environmental topics. Both degrees say Geography, but if the
transcripts that I was required to send had been read, countless earth
science, environment and development, climatology
and human-environment interactions courses would have been noted. I was
informed that these things rendered me ineligible for any
environment-related positions, but then was nominated for exactly that
several months later.
More recently, it was frustrating to receive no contact following the
nomination for two months (save your emails letting me know that you
didn't know any more than I did, and I thank you for those), until I
heard from the Medical Services. They requested more
information about a neurological disorder that I had already explained
in the paperwork as being quelled; this is fine, I understand that it's
something that most people are not familiar with. However, the paperwork
I was sent was all related to Immunology
and Rheumatology, which is just incorrect. The medical system is
convoluted, and it was difficult to figure out which piece(s) of
identification to include in my correspondence. I can generally overlook
honest mistakes, but it has just felt like time and time
again, my personal situation and information wasn't being considered
particularly closely. Hopefully I am the only person repeatedly falling
through the cracks like this.
At this point, the March departure is getting close. I have to pay my
specialist, without insurance, to fill out the paper work regarding my
neurological disorder; I know I'll have other general physical and
dental exams to complete soon too. I've had to start
considering my future too, which most immediately included making the
decision whether to agree to teach another semester or not. I can't hold
out hope forever and just not make arrangements to continue working.
This is fast becoming an expensive commitment,
and I haven't even begun to prepare for departure, since I know nothing
about it. I'm not even guaranteed a final acceptance and placement.
The past year since I first applied to Peace Corps has been quite an
adventure. At first, it was exciting, with a successful interview and a
recruiter who was answering my initial questions swiftly and kindly.
However, this quickly turned to a very negative
experience. I don't expect Peace Corps workers to be my personal
counselor, but a little compassion would have been welcomed-- weren't
they in my shoes once? I was ignored for several weeks following the
initial withdrawal, and then of course the incident occurred
when I received a late evening phone message on a Friday, when he would
not be able to respond to me for over a week.
This breaks my heart. I wanted so badly to represent my country and to
bring my education and desire to serve to the developing world. I'm
hopeful that I'll find another way to accomplish this that is less
agonizing. I was told many times by friends in Peace
Corps that if I could just get beyond the disorganization and
bureaucratic nonsense, it was a worthwhile experience. I'm sure it is,
but the organization doesn't seem too intent on getting me there, and I
don't have the where with all to do it myself at this
point in my life. I hope the overhaul of the system eventually lends
itself to placing strong candidates in places that need them and
providing an incredible experience to all involved. Unfortunately, that
was not my experience.
Thank you again, (Recruiter 3), for all of your hard work for me. I really
appreciate that you managed to nominate me and encourage me through
this. Please let me know if there is anything else I need to do. Wishing
you well.
Peace,
Colleen
Kind of insulting: after two months of virtual silence, I received an IMMEDIATE response from both Recruiter number 3 and the placement desk in Washington, D.C. that was allegedly handling my application, confirming my withdrawal.
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dear sister-so sorry you suffered through all this. hopefully as you move into your bright bright future of loving others this pain will fade and you will find a place where you are valued for the awesomeness you bring!
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