Time off Research for Peace Corps?

[Walrus]

I'm planning on joining the Peace Corps after undergrad, but when I come back (after a little over 2 years), I think I'll want to go to grad school. Has anyone else done this? Would this seriously damage my chances of getting into grad school, since I won't be doing research during my Peace Corps tour?

[BabyScientist]

21 hours ago, Walrus said:

I'm planning on joining the Peace Corps after undergrad, but when I come back (after a little over 2 years), I think I'll want to go to grad school. Has anyone else done this? Would this seriously damage my chances of getting into grad school, since I won't be doing research during my Peace Corps tour?

There was a PhD student in my former lab who did exactly this. I imagine it depends on the field you want to study, and MS vs PhD. There's a chance when you come back you'll want to do research again for a bit before applying, though, just to boost your chances. 

[lkaitlyn]

Several schools have M.A. program scholarships for former Peace Corps volunteers (and I think Peace Corps has some funding opportunities too?), so at least for M.A.s, it's definitely a thing!