According to the Peace Corps’ 2026 rankings, the UW led all large universities in producing volunteers this year. That distinction is not especially surprising: Badger alumni have ventured into the world to teach, learn, and collaborate across cultures since the Peace Corps began in 1961. Some of the first UW alumni to serve headed to locations such as Ghana, the Philippines, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. Currently, grads are posted in Benin, North Macedonia, and the Dominican Republic. To date, more than 3,400 Badgers have served as Peace Corps volunteers worldwide, placing the university second in total volunteers, just behind the University of California–Berkeley. For many Badgers, taking on what the Peace Corps calls the “toughest job they’ll ever love” is one way they put the Wisconsin Idea into action.

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