If you are 18 years of age, a United States citizen, highly skilled in English and any foreign language, and have a desire to use that language in the service of others, you are eligible to become a NLSC member!

We accept speakers of any language.

Yes, but only when you participate in an assignment in support of a federal agency. You will be paid an hourly stipend as a federal employee for time spent working on an assignment.

We are not an organization that hires for full-time or part-time language-related positions.

The NLSC does not currently offer internships.

• The opportunity to become part of a service-oriented network of like-minded Americans with skills in multiple languages who are interested in serving a greater good
• Access to language maintenance programs and Member engagement activities

NLSC Members may participate in assignments, focus groups and other activities. NLSC Members may serve in the U.S. or internationally, depending on the needs of NLSC client agencies. NLSC service is voluntary; therefore, it is not mandatory to accept an assignment.

Membership is free. There is no cost to join or to participate as a Member.

All Members offer their time voluntarily to the NLSC. Most of the interactions take place via email and telephone.

A small percentage of the Members actually participate in assignment. Members who are selected for assignments are hired in order to receive compensation for their time and expenses. The compensation is a stipend, though, simply meant to supplement any income NLSC Members may forgo while volunteering their language skills. NLSC Members participating in assignments are appointed as temporary federal employees in order to receive the stipend, but the assignments are not “jobs;” they are short-term, compensated volunteer assignments.

While not on assignment, Members are contacted by the NLSC Interactions & Engagements team via email, telephone and other Member-only platforms. The NLSC also conducts Meet & Greet events for Members from time to time in various metropolitan areas, providing an opportunity to meet one another and NLSC staff. Platforms such as the NLSC’s Facebook group and the NLSC Member Center are available to NLSC Members for training, networking, and program updates.

Members have been asked to voluntarily complete feedback forms in order to improve the usability of NLSC operations, participate in focus groups to improve the strategic messaging for in-language advertisements, all in an effort to make the organization more dynamic.

In most cases, less than two hours are required to complete the application package and participate in a screening via telephone.

Communication between the NLSC and its Members is primarily via e-mail or by phone, as well as on NLSC Members-only platforms.

The National Security Education Program is the Department of Defense sponsor for the NLSC program. NSEP was established by the David L. Boren National Security Education Act (NSEA) in 1991 to offer: (1) scholarships to U.S. undergraduate students to study abroad in areas critical to U.S. national security; (2) fellowships to U.S. graduate students to study languages and world regions critical to U.S. national security; and (3) grants to U.S. institutions of higher education to develop programs of study in and about countries, language, and international fields critical to national security and under-represented in U.S. study. For more information go to www.nsep.gov.

In 2003, Congress tasked NSEP with exploring the feasibility of establishing an organization of Americans with skills in critical languages that would serve in times of emergency or national need. NSEP prepared a feasibility study and follow-up planning that led to the Congressional action in 2006. In the 2006 Defense Authorization Act, the U.S. Congress included language directing the Secretary of Defense to initiate a pilot program that established a Civilian Linguist Reserve Corps. The government has since renamed that organization as the National Language Service Corps (NLSC).

The NLSC uses the Federal Interagency Language Roundtable Proficiency Guidelines (http://govtilr.org/Skills/ILRscale1.htm) (the “ILR Scale”) in speaking, reading, and listening as a basis for determining eligibility for Charter Membership. The NLSC requirement is 3/3/3 proficiency (speaking/reading/listening) in your foreign language and in English.

Foreign language proficiency is assessed by asking all NLSC applicants to complete a series of self-assessments to provide an indication of where they fall on the ILR scale. A number of Charter Members of the NLSC will be asked to undergo formal proficiency testing to verify the self-assessments. A number of factors may require formal proficiency testing, including the need of the NLSC and its partner agencies to have formally tested members available for activation exercises, as well as quality assurance of the language proficiency certification process.

English language assessment will be waived for applicants who graduated from an accredited high school or college in the US. If you did not do so, you will be asked to undergo the same self-assessment process as for your foreign language skills. Finally, a number of Charter Members may be asked to undergo formal proficiency testing in English.

You may, at your own expense, seek language testing from vendors such as the Educational Testing Service, which offers the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), Language Testing International (http://www.languagetesting.com/), or the center for Applied Linguistics (www.cal.org).