Project Description
Peace Corps has a long and rich history in North Macedonia. Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) have played a pivotal role in the country’s growth by offering their skills and talents for over 25 years with 845 Peace Corps Volunteers having successfully served in the country. Since Peace Corps North Macedonia’s inception, Volunteers have inspired their students, created sustainable projects and programs, and formed lasting person-to-person connections, leaving an enduring legacy in their host communities. Community Development Associate Volunteers will focus on supporting local communities and organizations to effectively manage sustainable community development. Volunteers may work at a local NGO, government municipality, secondary school (with a focus on youth development), or a combination of a few organizations; collaborate with NGO workers, youth workers, municipality public servants, and teachers. Volunteers will work to improve the contributions of organizations and community groups as identified by community needs. They will increase community engagement, especially among the youth.
Volunteers in this project participate in a range of activities that include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Supporting organizations to assess community needs.
- Collaborating with organizations to develop and implement community programs and building partnerships to meet identified needs.
- Promoting organizations’ staff capacity development by providing ongoing training and skills transfer.
- Assisting organizations and community groups with planning, grant writing, fundraising, use of information technology, volunteer management, and day-to-day tasks.
- Supporting organizations in building capacity to use digital tools for work and training.
- Providing non-formal educational activities for community members, especially youth, aimed at developing their life skills.
- Developing extracurricular activities at secondary schools aimed at positive youth development.
- Planning and organizing activities for increasing intercultural awareness for community members, with a youth focus.
- Assisting with planning and implementing community engagement and service-learning activities with community members, especially youth, aimed at their development as active citizens.
- Supporting youth centers, councils and organizations, local Scout groups and youth clubs to increase youth participation and civic engagement.
- Supporting community members in the areas of employability and entrepreneurship.
COVID-19 Volunteer Activities
As a Volunteer, you will be trained in how to best protect yourself from COVID-19 exposure and understand the impact of and steps to reduce stigma related to COVID-19. You may also have the opportunity to engage with your community on implementing or enhancing COVID-19 mitigation activities, such as COVID-19 prevention and risk reduction strategies including social distancing, hand washing, mask wearing, addressing myths and misconceptions related to these practices, and vaccine hesitancy. Activities will be tailored to address the COVID-19 circumstances in the communities where you will serve.
Required Skills
- Competitive candidates will have one or more of the following criteria:
- Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science degree in any discipline and 2 years’ management or organizational development experience with nonprofit organizations.
- Master of Arts/Master of Science degree with an emphasis in non-profit management, public administration, or organizational development.
- 5 years’ professional work experience with nonprofit organizations in a management or organizational development capacity.
Desired Skills
- Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Social Work, Sociology, Business or related field, with 1 year experience working in the following areas: youth development, leadership, development of life skills, youth camps, non-formal education, or youth participation
- 2 years’ professional work experience with nonprofit organizations in a management or organizational development capacity
- Experience with service organizations or service programs that support community members in improving their lives and foster civic engagement
- Experience as a trainer or facilitator of educational activities
- Youth mentoring or coaching experience
- Education or experience in community development, program design and delivery, active civic engagement networking, promotion and knowledge of project or grant development/management
- Fundraising/grant writing experience
Required Language Skills
There are no pre-requisite language requirements for this position.
Thanks to the diverse population in North Macedonia, multiple languages are spoken throughout the country. There are two languages taught in our program, Macedonian and Albanian. Some Volunteers will learn only Macedonian, while another group will learn both Macedonian and Albanian.
Peace Corps staff will be looking for Volunteers interested in learning multiple languages as some placements will be in communities where more than one language is spoken. Other languages Volunteers may find in their communities include, but are not limited to: Roma, Turkish, Bosnian, and Serbian. Peace Corps Volunteers who need support to learn an additional language are able to work with Peace Corps staff on a learning plan.
Living Conditions
- Living Conditions: All Trainees will be placed with host families during Pre-Service training (the first three months in country). After training, Volunteers will move to their permanent communities, where they will live with another host family for at least the first six months. In many rural communities, the host family arrangement may be the only housing option. Typical host family accommodation provides a room with basic furniture and shared bathroom and shared kitchen facilities. Volunteers should come prepared to live as their hosts do, frugal in their use of utilities because of the high cost of electricity. The housing will be modest, yet functional, healthy, and safe
- Social and Cultural Norms: Volunteers should expect to have much less alone time than they may be used to. North Macedonia is a collectivist society and Volunteers who spend ample time with their families, neighbors, and colleagues will enjoy a higher level of integration. Volunteers should be aware that it is common to smoke both indoors and outdoors and it may be hard to avoid during service.
- Diet: North Macedonia has a diverse cuisine, thanks to its hyper-local production of fruits and vegetables. Fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables are readily available year-round at local markets. Typical meals consist of chicken, beef, pork (among the Macedonian population), rice, beans, pasta, and fresh salads. Dairy products (cheeses, milk, yoghurt) are very popular and integral part of almost all courses.
- Weather: North Macedonia has four distinct seasons. Winter lasts from November to March with some snowfall and cold temperatures, similar to the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. Temperature lows during winter may be in the range of 4-14F, depending on the area of the country. Roads are frequently icy and not cleared. Many public buildings are not heated or poorly heated. Homes will also likely be colder during the winter than in the U.S. because most homes lack central heating so Volunteers rely on wood-burning stoves and space heaters. It is very common that only one room in a home is heated and the entire family gathers there. Volunteers should come prepared with very warm winter clothes and clothes that can be layered. Summer lasts from June to September and can be hot and dry. Temperature highs during summer may be in the range of 100-110F in certain locations. Air conditioning is not available everywhere, and often not used extensively as in US even if available. Fall is rainy and foggy and spring is pleasant with some rainfall.
- Dress Code: Personal appearance is important to people in North Macedonia and you are expected to dress professionally at your workplace. You will have regular occasions to dress up, so we recommend you bring more formal attire as well as professional clothes appropriate for everyday wear in the office. Men usually wear slacks and shirts (sometimes a tie), and a sweater or jacket in cooler weather. Women wear dresses, skirts (knee-length or longer) or slacks or pantsuits.
- Diversity and Inclusion: Volunteers of an American racial, ethnic, or national minority or whose religious or spiritual beliefs differ from the population in North Macedonia may experience a high degree of curiosity or unwanted attention. This can be uncomfortable, but Volunteers are encouraged to use these moments as opportunities to deepen local community members’ understanding of U.S. diversity by sharing their values and experiences. Peace Corps North Macedonia is committed to creating a supportive and inclusive environment for Volunteers of all backgrounds. Peace Corps Staff will address these topics during Pre-Service Training and identify support mechanisms for incoming trainees.
Serving in North Macedonia
Learn more about the Volunteer experience in North Macedonia: Get detailed information on culture, communications, housing, health, and safety — including health and crime statistics — in order to make a well-informed decision about serving.
Couples Information
Peace Corps North Macedonia welcomes couples. Your partner must apply and qualify for the following position:
English Language Co-Teacher
Couples may be placed in separate training communities during Pre-Service Training (11 weeks); but will serve in the same community during their service.
The Peace Corps works to foster safe and productive assignments for same-sex couples, and same-sex couples are not placed in countries where homosexual acts are criminalized. Because of this, same-sex couple placements are more limited than heterosexual couple placements. During the application process Recruiters and Placement Officers work closely with same-sex couple applicants to understand current placement opportunities. For more information please visit: https://www.peacecorps.gov/faqs/lgbtq/.
Medical Considerations
Before you apply, please review Medical Information for Applicants to learn about the medical clearance process.
To Apply: https://www.peacecorps.gov/volunteer/volunteer-openings/ngo-advising-volunteer-8250br/