Our placement officer has informed us that our skill sets did not align with the needs of the programs in Mexico. Instead, she has offered us a few more options to consider. Each option is in a different area of the world, departs in a different month, and has a different program area, so we have a lot to think about.
Assignment 1: Protected Areas and Environmental Education
Region: Central/South America
Departure: Late September
Assignment 2: Forestry and Forestry Business
Region: French-speaking Sub-Saharan Africa
Departure: Late November
Assignment 3: Aquaculture and Aquaculture Business
Region: Sub-Saharan Africa (non-French speaking)
Departure: Early February
We automatically qualify for assignments two and three. In order to qualify for the first assignment, Ben would have to document his Spanish skill set by either:
- Taking a course- a Spanish intensive offering a year's worth of Spanish (i.e. Spanish 101 and 102)
- Taking a test and achieving a minimum score on one of the following:
- On the CLEP- offered by the College Board a score of 50 or higher
- On the ACTFL a score of Novice High
So, Ben is scrambling to learn one year of Spanish lessons in one month! We found a great website called Spanish Hour that provides daily Spanish lessons and vocabulary and grammar quizzes. The lessons are geared to the requirements of the CLEP exam and you can even take practice exams to see what you need to focus on. We will be doing lessons every night from now until July 16th, when Ben is scheduled to take the exam. If Ben scores a 50 or higher, we are guaranteed an invitation to the program!
No wedding plans are changing!
If you get option 3, you'll probably be in Zambia. My husband is in the fisheries program here and I'm a health volunteer. It's AWESOME!
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