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Peace Corps Fellows Program

Looking for a way to enrich your international and intercultural perspectives after your Peace Corps service is over? Take advantage of Fellows/USA in partnership with the University of Denver’s International and Intercultural Communication (IIC) Masters Program.

MISSION AND PURPOSE
Fellows/USA advances the Peace Corps' third goal, "to help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans," by developing and maintaining educational partnerships that place returned Volunteers in internships in underserved U.S. communities.

Fellows/USA works with the University of Denver’s International and Intercultural Communication (IIC) Program in offering financial assistance to returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) pursuing their graduate studies. As Peace Corps Fellows, RPCVs earn their M.A. in International and Intercultural Communication at reduced cost. Through internships, they utilize the knowledge and skills developed during their overseas service to improve people’s lives here at home, thus advancing their professional development for careers in a wide range of fields.

The mission for our Fellows Program is three-pronged.
• We strive to offer an extraordinary educational experience for students who want to play leading roles in private, public, and non-profit institutions with transnational and cross-cultural responsibilities.
• We seek to illuminate the moral and operational dimensions of the great challenges to the multicultural and global society.
• We endeavor to serve the needs of the Denver community.

The flexibility of the IIC Program allows Peace Corps Fellows to follow their own visions, dreams, and hopes – both in the classroom and with their internship. Fellows work with the Internship Director to select internship opportunities according to their own interests and passions, whether in the public, private, or non-profit realms, and they quickly become connected to a variety of agencies that serve high-need communities in the U.S. In short, the IIC Program strives to provide Fellows with the academic training, intellectual stimulation, and professional experience necessary in order to be successful practitioners.

FINANCIAL INCENTIVES
The IIC Program reserves two 12-credit tuition scholarship awards for students in the Peace Corps Fellows Program. In competition with other admitted and continuing IIC students, Fellows are also eligible for partial tuition scholarships, work-study positions, and Colorado grants (for Colorado residents). The IIC Admissions Committee awards this financial aid based upon the dual criteria of merit and need.

Additionally, the IIC Program guarantees Fellows 10 hours of academic credit. Thus, Fellows save over $8000 through their eligibility for a 50-credit program as opposed to the usual 60-credit hour program.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
• School of Communication
(Mass Communication & Human Communication)
4 COURSES (16-20 CREDITS)

• Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS)
4 COURSES (20 CREDITS)

• Research Methods
1 COURSE (4 OR 5 CREDITS)

• Foreign Language Proficiency (This requirement is waived for those who have completed their Peace Corps assignment.)

• Internship
200 HOURS (5 CREDITS)

• Electives (Graduate-level)

TOTAL HOURS=50


PLEASE NOTE
If you are interested in the IIC/PC Fellows program, please fill out the general IIC application and note your interest in the IIC/PCF Program in your personal statement.

CONTACT
Dr. Margaret Thompson
Associate Professor & Director
MA in International & Intercultural Communication
School of Communication
2490 S Gaylord St.
Denver CO 80208
Phone: 303.871.3947
Fax: 303.871.4949
mthompso@du.edu