At the commission Vanishing Languages and Cultural Heritage (VLACH), we are offering the possibility to graduate students, junior scholars and members of the language communities that VLACH currently focuses on, to complete a one to three-month internship.Within VLACH, interns are able to work in an interdisciplinary (linguistics, cultural studies, ethnology, cultural anthropology, ethnomusicology) and multicultural team documenting vanishing languages and cultures in different parts of the world, which offers a view on inter-cultural relationships viewed from the point of the linguist, cultural anthropologist, as well as music ethnologist and digital humanist.

What we offer:

During your internship, you will be able to receive an insight in the different departments of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, among them, the Digital Humanities, the Phonogrammarchiv, etc. Furthermore, you will be introduced in VLACH’s language documentation and annotation methods (transcription system, metadata annotation etc.) and strategies by a tutor assigned to you who will follow your progress until the end of the internship. The internship will also provide you with an understanding of different transcription systems.

We will support you in

  • improving your know-how in transcribing Slavic, Romance and Greek varieties (see also our transcription guidelines) and video-editing for public outreach
  • gaining insight into the work and collaborations with the language communities for the documentation, planning and dissemination of documentation materials made available through the VLACH open-access platform
  • the process of mastering the methods of working with the digital tools currently implemented by VLACH in the publication of field research data
  • participating in the VLACH dissemination activities for public outreach

By becoming part of our current IRDICH team you will be working with the available field research language data, which, with the help of digital tools will be made available for public outreach. In order to achieve this goal, you will be supporting the IRDICH team in their task of internal and public communication, event management and other outreach activities (networking and knowledge transfer).

Applicant's profile:

Students of all majors and graduates related to the above mentioned disciplines are welcome to apply for this internship. Due to our current thematic focus and working priorities a good knowledge of English as well as at least one southeast european language are required. We encourage candidates with degrees in the above mentioned disciplines or experienced in documentation activities related to the field of Slavic, Greek Studies, Southeast European Studies or Balkan Studies to apply. Applicants working on Balkan languages will have precedence (see also the IRDICH languages listed here).

Assessment:

Individual interviews and/or tests may be conducted for further assessment.

How to apply:

  • a short motivation letter
  • a biographical statement (max. 8 lines)
  • (if applicable) an abstract of the ongoing research on vanishing languages

In the abstract, please include your full name, status (e.g. MA, PhD student etc.), as well as your current institutional affiliation (if applicable).

Please specify in your application which languages you are especially interested in.

In case you have any additional questions regarding the internship or the application process, feel free to contact vlach(at)oeaw.ac.at