everyone likes to dance to a happy song.

[rocknload]

A package from the Peace Corps came today, hooray! I didn't expect it until tomorrow. Looking through it, I'm a hundred percent positive that I'm going to apply upon graduation, and reasonable confident that I'll be accepted—though the fact that they accept about a quarter of applications makes me a bit uneasy. I'll probably shoot for English education. There's a ton of positions for that, but I bet that what most of the other applicants are going for, too, since it doesn't have a specific degree requirement.

When I graduate, I'll—well, ideally, this is what I'm hoping for—have a Bachelors degree in linguistics, a minor in Spanish, two years of college Chinese, and two years of college French. (Technically that's enough Chinese to count as a minor, but since I'm applying the credits towards my linguistics major I doubt I'll be able to earn one.) Add to that a few years of work experience in land development. And I just contacted a few literacy volunteer programs around the city... I dunno, I think my odds are pretty good.

For now pretty much all I can do is switch German out for French next semester, which is kind of irritating, it seems like a waste to drop a language after only one semester, but, eh, I did that with ASL, too. And the literacy programs, which I'll hopefully sort out over the next few days.

... Basically, this whole entry is I HOPE I'M GOOD ENOUGH.

Comments

[pretzelcoatl.livejournal.com]

Which countries are you looking at for Peace Corps?

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

I don't really care. I'd very much like to end up in a place where multiple languages were commonly spoken—so I could practice a language I studied in school and hopefully learn a new one. But there's a whole lot of places like that in the world. ... Hm, China would be awesome, if I was going to be specific? Africa would also be awesome. Latin America would be awesome, and I'd almost definitely come back fluent in Spanish. Anywhere would be awesome. I'd probably go wherever the hell they wanted to send me, man.

[pretzelcoatl.livejournal.com]

Yay!

Anyway, if you want any tips later on, I have friends who did it and my cousin did it too. She loved it so much that she continued doing a similar thing with a similar organization and now she works for the State Department.

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

I'll probably start like, actually working towards it in about a year, since I think you're supposed to apply before you graduate? But yeah, thanks!

That's cool that she could do that, though, what did she do in the Peace Corps?

[pretzelcoatl.livejournal.com]

She was in Cape Verde helping with local economic development for the workers there, I think.

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

Does she speak French, then? It's off Senegal, right?

[pretzelcoatl.livejournal.com]

She may know some French, but she's mostly fluent in Portuguese (which is the national language there).

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

Is it? Aha, that's neat. I kind of want to take Portuguese; they have special classes here for Spanish speakers to learn it quickly, since it's so close to Spanish. I didn't know they spoke Portuguese there, though! Or really, any place that's not Portugal and Brazil.

[mesangecoeur.livejournal.com]

Wow, good luck. I'd considered doing it after school, and I didn't realize it was that hard to get into!

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

Well, they accept around 3000 out of around 12000 people, so it's not like a whole lot of people are trying to get in there to begin with. One thing that really appeals to me is the fact that you can defer most of your student loans until after you get back.

[iron.livejournal.com]

Oh wow, good luck! OF COURSE YOU'RE GOOD ENOUGH, DON'T EVEN THINK OTHERWISE. 8|

And oh man, I wish I could take a language in college. I really want to learn another one, but my maximum allowable credits per semester is maxed out by my major. That still leaves winter and summer but the thought of traveling through three cities every day for the entire calendar year is... not very appealing, unfortunately.

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

IT IS A LONG WAY OFF, ANYWAY.

Wow, what're you taking that takes up like everything? When I was (briefly) majoring in electrical engineering, I remember my schedule was basically like that, it sucked. My major now is very flexible—which can be read as having very very few actual requirements, so there's a ton of freedom in what I'm allowed to take, which is nice. Of course, I decided to fill the slots with absolutely nothing but language classes, but that's fine with me!

[iron.livejournal.com]

STILL. I'M CONFIDENT THAT YOU CAN DO IT.

Pharmacy. :'D I have this strict outline for what I'm supposed to take, and when I'm supposed to take it, and if I want to switch classes around between doing biology this semester instead of next fall or something like that, I have to talk to my adviser and get it approved. This is the only year where I'm doing less than 17 credits because I have AP credit for six credits worth of English (and four credits of chemistry, but they didn't let me transfer that one), and I two semesters of a language would not benefit me very much. Next year starts my 17 credit torture, with several zero-credit labs.

Lucky you! D: ENJOY IT. I was really looking forward to college because hey, I could take whatever classes I want! HAHAHAHA, YEAH RIGHT.

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

Oh, man, that sucks. I might end up taking that many credits, but at least I have a freaking choice about it, and I can drop, say, the Chinese if it's too much of a course load for me to handle. :/ And the labs count for nothing? Does that mean they're pass/fail, at least?

Heh, I actually don't even have to take any general studies classes, because that's what I went to community college, for! SWEET FREEDOM, YES.

[iron.livejournal.com]

Yeah. D: I can't drop anything because if I don't finish it, I won't get my degree. I think I have a choice of three electives at some point, but they're all related to pharmacy, so it's not like I even have much of a choice there. XD Labs aren't entirely worth nothing. Currently, my lab is part of my overall four-credit chemistry grade. The breakdown for my chemistry class is I have a three credit lecture (three hours a week), and a one credit recitation (one hour a week). That's the four credits. But then I also have lab, which I get no credits for (three and a half hours a week), but the lab grades are... 200/1000 points of my chemistry grade. I don't know about later labs, but I know I'll have at least one lab every semester. And then rotations.

FUCK YEAH! 8D Like I said, ENJOY IT.

[ex-monarchy375.livejournal.com]

Good luck! YOU CAN DO IT, BRITTANY. \o/

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

THANK YOU, I HOPE SO.

[unicorn]

I don't know if you'll need luck, but I bet you won't. YOU SOUND PRETTY SOLID THERE.

If your school is like my school you'll be able to apply the credits for a minor, though. I mean, I'll use a couple of my animal science classes for my equine minor, and if I stay in my current major they flat-out told us that we might as well double major in biochem because you only need like two more classes.

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

WE'LL SEE. I hope so. IT WOULD BE NICE.

I don't know if I can or not! This is assuming that I will have enough time to take the courses anyway, after the 100-level they don't apply for my degree anymore anyway. Are you going to major in biochem, too?

[unicorn]

DO NOT WORRY ABOUT IT NOW, ANYWAY

IF I end up staying in my current major, yeah...

[sunsetsred.livejournal.com]

DUDE

YOU IN THE PEACE CORPS WOULD FUCKING OWN

CUZ YOU WOULD LIKE. SAVE THE WORLD ALL TONY STARK-STYLE. Y'KNOW, AFTER HE REALIZED THE ERRORS OF HIS WAYS.

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

IT WOULD BE MUCH LESS COOL. NO EXPLOSIONS OR ANYTHING.

I, UH. HOPE.

[neversince.livejournal.com]

YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH GODDAMNIT.

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

THANK YOU <3