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Review and Translation Program

Kiva Editing

If you have a background in editing, or you love English grammar, you may be able to support Kiva’s mission by reviewing and lightly editing loan profiles.

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What do Kiva Volunteer Editors do?

Kiva’s Review and Translation Program relies on over 400 volunteers to edit, translate, and provide a thorough policy review of loan profiles from around the world.

The vast majority of loans come to Kiva in English. Kiva Volunteer Editors review loan profiles that Kiva’s Field Partners have posted to the Kiva website, gently editing for grammar and punctuation while preserving the voice of the Field Partner. They ensure that each profile is intelligible to lenders and complies with Kiva’s policies. Each profile provides a brief overview of the borrower’s background and their loan use. You can review examples on Kiva’s Lend page. In return for the time and effort they spend editing for Kiva, volunteers have the chance to use their language skills to help create opportunity around the world.

Volunteers review and edit Kiva loans on their personal desktop or laptop computers wherever they have an internet connection, e.g. their homes, offices, local coffee shops, airport lounges, the beach, etc., using Kiva’s review and translation platform. Complete review on devices other than desktop or laptop computers is not possible at this time, as key policy fields are not enabled for mobile phones or tablets.

Loans are posted by Field Partners daily and are reviewed in order of priority based on when we receive them. The platform gives Kiva’s trained editors a great deal of flexibility, as they can self-assign loans to review at any time of the day or night.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for experienced editors with personal or professional interest in international development. We prefer that Kiva Volunteer Editors come from an editing background, but this is not a requirement to volunteer. Microfinance and other international development backgrounds are also welcome. Applicants should be:

  • Proficient in English
  • Experienced editors or other significant writing experience preferred
  • Detail-oriented
  • Able to commit to at least 2 hours per week (i.e. about 40 loans per month) for a minimum of 6 months, though one year is preferable
  • Responsive and proactively communicative via email
  • Comfortable with new technology
  • Able to access a desktop or laptop computer and internet -- loan profiles cannot be reviewed properly on a tablet or mobile device
  • You must be at least 18 years of age to apply.
Ready to apply?

Kiva Translation

If you are proficient in English and another language (French, Portuguese, Russian, or Spanish), you may be able to support Kiva’s mission by reviewing and translating loan profiles.

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What do Kiva Volunteer Translators do?

Kiva’s Review and Translation Program relies on over 400 volunteers to edit, translate, and provide a thorough policy review of loan profiles from around the world.

Kiva Volunteer Translators translate loan profiles and review them to ensure that each profile is intelligible to lenders and complies with Kiva’s policies. Each profile provides a brief overview of the borrower’s background and their loan use. You can review examples on Kiva’s Lend page. In return for the time and effort they spend translating for Kiva, volunteers have the chance to use their language skills to help create opportunity around the world.

Volunteers review and translate Kiva loans on their personal desktop or laptop computers wherever they have an internet connection, e.g. their homes, offices, local coffee shops, airport lounges, the beach, etc., using Kiva’s review and translation platform. Complete review on devices other than desktop or laptop computers is not possible at this time, as key policy fields are not enabled for mobile phones or tablets.

Loans are posted by Field Partners daily and are reviewed in order of priority based on when we receive them. The platform gives Kiva’s trained translators a great deal of flexibility, as they can self-assign loans to review at any time of the day or night. 

Kiva currently has volunteer teams for translation from French, Portuguese*, Russian, and Spanish into English.

*Due to low Portuguese loan volume, translators must also be proficient in Spanish.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for applicants who are proficient in English and who have extensive experience in one (or more) of Kiva’s translation languages. Kiva strongly prefers applicants who have translation experience. However, applicants who do not have translation experience but are highly skilled in the source language, and have extensive experience living or working abroad, may also be considered. Applicants should be:

  • Proficient in English
  • Proficient in French, Portuguese, Russian, or Spanish
  • Experienced translators; coursework strongly preferred
  • Detail-oriented
  • Able to commit at least 2 hours per week (i.e. about 20 loans per month) for a minimum of 6 months, though one year is preferable
  • Responsive and proactively communicative via email
  • Comfortable with new technology
  • Able to access a desktop or laptop computer and internet -- loan profiles cannot be reviewed properly on a tablet or mobile device
  • You must be at least 18 years of age to apply
Ready to apply?

Kiva Loan Review Team Leaders

If you have translation or editing skills and are interested in leading a team of up to 35 volunteer translators or editors, you could support Kiva’s mission by providing guidance to volunteer teams.

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Important Dates

 
Deadline

May 31, 2021

Start Date

September 2021

Term

September 2022

What do Kiva Volunteer Loan Review Team Leaders do?

Kiva’s Review and Translation Program relies on over 400 volunteers to edit, translate, and provide a thorough policy review of loan profiles from around the world.

Kiva Loan Review Team Leaders cultivate team engagement and harness the skills of Kiva’s dedicated volunteers, who review Kiva’s borrower stories through an innovative crowdsourcing model. They provide leadership, motivation, and support to a diverse, multicultural, and global community of volunteers in order to keep loans flowing from the field to the Kiva website. They foster connections between the volunteer community and Kiva headquarters. This is a remote volunteer position.

Loan Review Team Leaders act as a first line of support for editors and translators to keep Kiva’s processes efficient and sustainable. They craft customized updates and develop creative approaches to strengthen team engagement. They maintain regular email contact with team members to field basic questions, provide guidance, and solve problems. They promote the use of Kiva’s loan review resources and escalate policy and technical questions to Kiva staff.

Loan Review Team Leaders help shape the future of the Review and Translation Program at Kiva. They exchange ideas and perspectives with other team leaders and Kiva staff in regularly scheduled conference calls. They also help develop, document, and share best practices for team leaders.

A successful candidate will have these essential skills and qualities:

  • Proficient in English
  • Can commit to 4-6 hours a week for 13 months, including availability for approximately 3 conference calls per quarter with fellow Team Leaders/Kiva staff
  • Is a strong communicator and supremely organized
  • Can consistently adhere to deadlines and keep up with remote communications across multiple channels
  • Can forge effective working relationships with remote colleagues; is comfortable providing instruction and feedback over email
  • Enjoys working collaboratively in a team environment
  • Enjoys establishing and reaching targets, both for themselves and for their team
  • Has mature judgment and can work with little supervision
  • Is comfortable with internet, email, basic word processing and spreadsheet programs; regularly checks and responds to email
  • Is able and willing to use personal desktop or laptop computer and internet for this role (our platforms will not fully accomodate tablets or smart phones)
  • Location: Anywhere, but willing to accommodate occasional conference calls where other time zones are prioritized.
  • You must be at least 18 years of age to apply.

* In addition to the application steps outlined below, successful Loan Review Team Leader candidates will need to complete an interview process.

Ready to apply?

Volunteers make an impact

400+

Volunteers located worldwide

17,000+

Average loans reviewed per month

27M+

Words edited/translated per year

Steps for applying

In order to volunteer with Kiva, you will need access to the internet and a laptop or desktop computer.

View all steps

Step 1: Indicate your interest

Please submit your name, email address, and answer a few brief questions to add your name to the waitlist.*

 

Step 2: Apply

We will email you when applications open and invite you to submit a completed application. Be sure to answer each question thoroughly so we can get an accurate understanding of your skills and background. You will also be asked to complete a loan review exercise.

 

Step 3: Test

If your application is selected for the next round, you will be asked to complete a written editing or translation assessment. This will be sent to you and re-submitted to us electronically.

 

Step 4: Offer

Upon successful completion of all previous steps, candidates will be invited to sign a volunteer agreement and begin training. As the entire program is remote, training will take place online.

* Due to the high volume of applicants, you may not receive an invitation to apply for several months. If you are curious about the status of your application, please reach out to volunteercoordinators@kiva.org to receive an update.
All Loan Review Team Leader applicants on the waitlist will be invited to apply once the application opens.

To learn more about Kiva’s Review and Translation community and read what volunteers are saying about their experiences, visit the Testimonials page.

Want to see volunteers’ favorite loans? Visit Kiva’s Volunteer Favorites page.

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Ready to make a difference?

Apply now!

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