ACTFL/ILR OPI Freelance (Contract) Tester/Linguist Application

Thank you for your interest in working as a contractor for the American Council on the
Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).

ACTFL is a professional organization serving foreign language teachers. We also do

extensive work in language assessment and research. ACTFL is well known for having
developed some of the most respected foreign language proficiency tests in corporate,
academic, and government settings. To learn more about ACTFL please visit our website,
www.actfl.org . To learn more about the ACTFL ILR OPI tester program please visit:
www.actfltraining.org. Please be sure to look at the information under the heading
ACTFL/ILR OPI Tester Training.

ACTFL is seeking freelance, independent contractors to be on call as needed to conduct oral

proficiency assessments over the telephone. This testing work with ACTFL and our testing
affiliate, Language Testing International, is offered on a freelance, per diem basis only.
Contractors will not be employees of ACTFL. ACTFL makes no guarantee of minimum
number of hours of work per month or minimum amount of income. Most testers get 5
hours or fewer of work per month. The continuation of this work is contingent upon
continued funding.

In addition to being a native speaker of the language in which you seek to test, the
following minimum qualifications are required:

• US Citizen or Green card holder living in the United States or Canada (as well as
those holding valid unrestricted US work visas)

• Landline telephone and high speed internet access

• Bachelor’s degree (or higher)

• Experience in the language field (can be substituted with extensive work experience
in another field but interest in language)

• Weekday availability between the hours of 9AM – 3PM Eastern Time in which to
conduct testing

As a language tester/Linguist for ACTFL, you will trained by ACTFL to conduct the Guided
Oral Proficiency Interviews (OPI) using the US Government’s ILR protocol. These tests are
delivered via landline telephone, and they assess oral language proficiency – speaking
ability – only. They do not assess written or reading proficiency in a language. However,
testers are expected to have native level proficiency in target language reading and writing
as well as speaking.

ACTFL/ILR OPI Freelance (Contract) Tester/Linguist Application

 Please fill out the questions in this brief form as honestly and completely as possible. If you
have any questions, you will have a chance to enter them on the last page of the form.

Personal Information and Education:

1. Please enter your contact information below. If you reside in Canada or other foreign country,
please enter additional information in the City/Town field (Town/Province)
Name:
Address:
City/Town:
State:
Zip:
Email:
Phone number:

2. What is the best time for us to reach you at this number (for example, Mondays and
Wednesdays between 8:00am and 4:00pm)?

3. What is your current status in the US (i.e. US Citizen, Green Card Holder, Visa Type)

4. What is your highest level of education?

5. In what country did you receive the majority of your education? What was the language of your
education?

Experience in the Language Field

1. For which language are you applying?

2. In skills in this language are you proficient?

• Speaking: __________

• Reading: __________

• Writing: __________

3. How do you use this language on a daily basis?

4. How familiar are you with the culture(s) where the target language is spoken?
5. When was the last time you lived in a place where the target language is natively spoken?

6. In what other languages would you be interested in doing testing/projects? If Arabic, please
include dialect.

Please describe your experience in the following areas:

Language Teaching

Translation

Interpreting

7. Have you worked as a language tester before? If yes, please describe.

8. Do you work in any way with language learners from the US military or government? If yes,
please describe.

9. Do you have previous experience with OPI testing and/or the ILR scale? If yes, please
describe.

10. All training is conducted in English and testers are expected to have advanced professional
communicative ability in English. Please describe your proficiency and abilities with the English
language.

Availability

1. All testing is conducted between the hours of 9-3 (Eastern Time) Monday – Friday. Testers
must be able to commit to being available for at least 10 hours per week during this time.
What is your availability and time zone?

Time Zone: _____________________

Monday: _______am/pm to _________ am/pm

Tuesday: _______am/pm to _________ am/pm

Wednesday: ________ am/pm to _________ am/pm

Thursday: _________am/pm to __________ am/pm

Friday: _________ am/pm to __________ am/pm

2. How long can you commit to being available at the times you indicated in question 1?
(example: 2 months, 6 months, 1 year, indefinitely, etc.)
 3 Most testers will not receive consistent work from this opportunity but rather will receive
short bursts of work every few months. Even when not receiving work, it is expected that
testers provide their availability. Please describe your available to handle such a
situation.

4 Do you have plans to be out of the country or otherwise unavailable for any period of
time from now through April 2012?

Technological Proficiency

1. Do you have a landline telephone at your home or office (or where ever you plan to carry out
testing)?

2. Please describe your general aptitude for technology.

3. Please rate on a scale of 1-5 how comfortable you are using internet based applications (5
being the most comfortable).

Travel

1. Do you travel out-of-town frequently?

2. If selected, tester trainees must travel to White Plains, New York for four days of training. Do
you have any factors that would limit your ability to travel independently (i.e. small child,
cultural issue)? Please note that you will be reimbursed for travel expenses.

3. Are you able to attend mandatory training on June 23-26?

4. How did you hear about this opportunity?

Please use this space to write any questions that you may have.