The University of Vermont ranks No. 13 on Peace Corps’ 2011 rankings of colleges and universities in the medium size category whose students go on to serve in the Peace Corps. There are currently 34 undergraduate alumni serving as Peace Corps volunteers. UVM was also No. 13 on the national list last year, although the number of alumni serving as volunteers increased from 25 in 2010 to 34 in 2011.
UVM alumni currently serve as volunteers in Azerbaijan, Benin, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Gambia, Honduras, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lesotho, Mexico, Mongolia, Nicaragua, Niger, Peru, Philippines, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Ukraine, Vanuatu and Zambia. They work in sectors including education, English, health, small business development and youth development.
“For the last 50 years, colleges and universities across our country have been an integral part of the Peace Corps family, from developing young leaders, to hosting trainings and teaching the importance of lifelong learning,” says Peace Corps director Aaron S. Williams. “Colleges instill a commitment to public service among their students and share our belief that, together, we can work to make the world a better place.
Since 1961, 783 UVM alumni have served as Peace Corps volunteers.
The State of Vermont has two schools on the 2011 list; Middlebury College is also ranked No. 13 in the small colleges and universities category with 18 alumni currently serving as volunteers.
Nationally, the University of Colorado at Boulder outpaced other universities in providing Peace Corps volunteers, with 117 undergraduate alumni currently serving overseas. Prior to 2011, the University of Washington held the top spot for four consecutive years. Historically, the University of California, Berkeley maintains the number one all-time rank, with 3,457 Peace Corps volunteer alumni.