Be an interpreter for a team of international election observers!
- Do you speak both English and German on a high level?
- Would you like to support a team of international election observers during the upcoming Bundestag election?
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Are you based in one of the following German cities?
Aachen / Bamberg / Berlin / Dresden / Düsseldorf / Köln / Mannheim / München - Do you have time on election day (24 September 2017)?
If so, you might just be the one we are looking for!
What is this whole Election Observation Mission about?
For a very general idea, see here.
For a detailed report from one of our last missions, see here.
AEGEE Election Observation Missions deploy a team of up to 30 young observers from all over Europe to different locations in the country. On election day – usually a Sunday, as is the case with Germany – observers visit a number of polling stations to observe the opening, voting, closing, counting and tabulation. During the day, they record all positive and negative observations which are then collected for a final, independent report.
Obviously it is of crucial importance that observers are able to communicate with their surroundings. And this is where you enter the stage.
What is your task?
As an interpreter, you ensure effective communication between your team of international observers and whomever they need to communicate with. In most cases these will include:
- election officials ("Wahlhelfer")
- voters
- political party representatives
- media representatives (in exceptional cases)
- local residents who know the way to the polling station
Next to that, expect to be asked a lot of questions about Germany, German people and the elections. Observers tend to have great curiosity not just for the strict matter of the mission, but also for its context.
You can sign up for two shifts:
- Early, from 07:00 am to 14:00 pm
- Late, from 13:00 pm to 22:00 pm (estimated; the duration of counting varies between polling stations)
The early shift tends to be more dynamic. The fact that it is shorter is due to the timing of the lunch break (between 13:00 and 14:00 pm) where shifts overlap to allow an exchange of experience with your colleague.
You can also decide to sign up for the entire day. In that case you would of course be given time to cast your own vote at a convenient moment.
What's in it for you?
Just like all the observers and organisers of this mission, you will be a volunteer. No-one involved is earning any money with this mission.
Instead, we are all here for the experience. And yours won't be the least rewarding, as you:
- practice your language skills on a professional level;
- meet the brightest young people from all over Europe (and sometimes beyond);
- learn a lot about democracy and elections;
- get a rare and profound outside perspective on Germany;
- receive a certificate in return for your contribution to the mission.
More than that, you become a member of the AEGEE Election Observation alumni community with many interesting contacts and opportunities ahead!
Sign up
Please submit your application here before Sunday, 27 August 2017. We will come back to you shortly after.
If you have any questions, please contact our Mission Coordinator Guillaume here.
We look forward to working with you in September!