Benefits

Become a Peace Corps Coverdell Fellow and receive the following benefits:

• Professional Development and Leadership Opportunities
• Active Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) community support with assistance to manage your health care, career, student loans, and taxes after service.
• Fulfilling Peace Corps Third Goal: To promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.
• Federal Jobs: The one-year noncompetitive eligibility status for federal job applications may, at the hiring agency's discretion, be extended for up to three years from close of service.
• Internship Opportunity: Fellows will spend 80 hours per semester serving their community at Pinellas Hope, a local not-for-profit organization providing safe and temporary shelter for the homeless. Fellows will focus on developing skills related to health education and promotion.
• Financial Assistance may include:
  
  • $2,000 College of Nursing Scholarship - if enrolled, scholarship is renewable halfway through the program with satisfactory progress in degree program. Total of $4,000 scholarship.
  • Out-of-State Tuition Waiver - which covers approximately 58 percent of in-state tuition.
  • Student Tutor Opportunities - in the second year of the program, the College of Nursing will prioritize Coverdell Fellows for student tutor opportunities in their academic departments (based on department need).

Eligibility

To qualify for the program, applicants must:

• Have satisfactory completion of Peace Corps Service as evidenced by the Description of Service (DOS).
• Apply for admission to the University of South Florida as an undergraduate degree-seeking student.
• Apply to the College of Nursing for the Accelerated Second Degree.
• Maintain a full-time student status.
• Participate in community-based focused internships.
• Involvement with student organizations such as Peace Corps Ambassadors at USF.
• Comply with academic and program guidelines.

*Accelerated Second Degree nursing students admitted to study on the Tampa campus, St. Petersburg Campus, or Sarasota Manatee Campus are eligible to apply.

Note: Fully online students are not eligible for this program.