Q: Who can volunteer for the Language Bank?
A: University of Michigan-affiliated individuals who speak or study a language other than English. We are based at the University’s main campus in Ann Arbor, and our volunteers are all members of the U of M community – students, faculty, and staff. We welcome participants from any school or college, and from the Health System. If you’re not affiliated with the University but you really want to participate, send us an email at lrc.langbank@gmail.com.
Q: Do I need to know a particular language in order to volunteer?
A: No! We have over 40 languages represented across our volunteer base, and we’re happy to have more.
Q: If I sign up to volunteer, am I committing to work on a project?
A: You’ll never be assigned a project unless you want to work on one. We’ll send out a request to all of the volunteers in our database who speak the required language(s), and see who’s interested in taking it. We understand that our volunteers have many other commitments, so it’s up to you how often you choose to translate.
Q: How often will I be notified about opportunities to work on a translation project?
A: It varies. We notify volunteers about projects as we receive requests. The number of project requests we receive depends on the needs of our client organizations, as do the languages required. We most frequently have projects for Spanish, Chinese, and Arabic, and other languages are more sporadically requested.
Q: What are the expectations for Language Bank volunteers?
A: We expect that you’ll be realistic and honest in representing your skills, and in choosing to commit to a project. We ask that you only take on a translation project if you feel that you have time to complete it promptly and to the best of your ability. We know that circumstances change, but when you accept a project you should do so with the intent to complete it by the specified deadline. We also expect that you will take the project seriously and provide the best quality work you can while keeping the client’s deadline in mind. Lastly, we expect that you will communicate with the client and with Language Bank staff if you need clarification about any aspect of the project, and to keep us updated on your progress.
Q: What resources are available to me?
A: We have a list of online resources available for volunteers. You’re also free to use any of the materials, including many dictionaries and other reference works, in the LRC’s Media Library located in the lower level of North Quad. [In the past we have facilitated partnerships with faculty members and volunteers, which we hope to expand in the future.]
