Yes, many Organization for Transformative Works (OTW) volunteers dedicate their time to more than one role. We do ask that you consider the time demands of the roles you’re interested in and how much time you have for the organization.

All our position descriptions include an estimated time requirement. Although taking on more than one role can be helpful, we also want to protect volunteers from burnout. Therefore, some also specify limits on how many additional OTW roles volunteers in those positions may hold. Volunteers should also consider discussing taking on extra roles with their committee chairs, especially if you are still in training for a current role — some committees ask volunteers in training not to accept other roles until their training is complete.

All of the OTW’s volunteers work asynchronously online, so you don’t need to be in any particular location. As long as you have stable access to the internet and a device suitable for the type of work detailed in the role’s position description, you’re in the right place (and you’ll get to work with people from all over the world).

Yes! We welcome volunteers from all backgrounds all around the world. We have many users, members, and volunteers whose first language is not English. Many of our committees and projects enjoy having volunteers who can speak more than one language.

English is the main language we use to communicate with each other in the organization, so you will need to be able to work in English, but it doesn’t have to be perfect! If you have questions about applying for an open role as a non-native English speaker or for any other reason, let Volunteers & Recruiting know.

This depends on the role you’re interested in. Once you press submit, you should see information about what happens next. Then, you’ll receive an automated confirmation message to the email address you provided in the application. For some roles, you’ll also receive an automated email at this point, asking you to complete a sample task or answer additional questions as part of your application. Make sure to submit any supplemental application forms by the stated deadline or your application will be considered incomplete.

Once recruitment ends, Volunteers & Recruiting will send everyone’s applications to the relevant committee leaders. Some committees may ask shortlisted applicants to complete sample tasks or answer additional questions through a questionnaire, and some may conduct text-based synchronous interviews. We will inform everyone of the results of their application as soon as we can.

We’d love to welcome all volunteers looking for new experiences, but some of our roles do need volunteers with certain skills and experience. If your profile does not perfectly match the role, you’re welcome to still apply and explain how any related experiences or skills will make you a good candidate. All applications will detail the experience and time requirements for the position.

We advertise open volunteering positions on the OTW’s social media sites and list them on our volunteering homepage, so keep an eye on these for roles that match your qualifications.

You can also receive news about volunteer opportunities directly in your email inbox through OTW News by Email. We typically accept applications for open positions for one week. To ensure you are notified in a timely manner about volunteer opportunities, make sure to subscribe to either All Individual News Posts or Recruitment Posts. If you chose Monthly Digest, you may be emailed after recruitment closes.

You might also be interested in Fanlore, the OTW’s fandom preservation wiki, and helping add information there. A good place to start is the New User Portal. If you’d like to contribute to the AO3’s code, you can do this through our GitHub without formally volunteering. Please see this page for more details.

If you have questions about the requirements for a role, feel free to contact Volunteers & Recruiting.

We are currently only accepting applications for the listed roles. Part of our process is to only recruit for roles which are accepting new volunteers and are ready to train and bring them on board.

We advertise open volunteering positions on the OTW’s social media sites and list them on our volunteering homepage, so keep an eye on these.

You can also receive news about volunteer opportunities directly in your email inbox through OTW News by Email. We typically accept applications for open positions for one week. To ensure you are notified in a timely manner about volunteer opportunities, make sure to subscribe to either All Individual News Posts or Recruitment Posts. If you chose Monthly Digest, you may be emailed after recruitment closes.

You might also be interested in Fanlore, the OTW’s fandom preservation wiki, and helping add information there. A good place to start is the New User Portal. If you’d like to contribute to the AO3’s code, you can do this through our GitHub without formally volunteering. Please see this page for more details.

If you have more specific questions about any roles, you can contact Volunteers & Recruiting.

You are welcome to use whichever name you like when you volunteer, as long as it follows the OTW Name Policy. Some volunteers like to tie their work to their fandom identity and others prefer to use their legal name, especially if they plan to use their volunteer service on their resume or CV. (You don’t have to volunteer using your legal name for this purpose. Volunteers & Recruiting can confirm your work with your employers.) You are welcome to do either or to choose a completely new name to use.

If you are applying to be a Tag Wrangling volunteer, it is permitted for your OTW name to be different from your AO3 account name. However, please be aware that your OTW name will be associated with your AO3 name within the OTW in the course of your wrangling work. If at any time after you are accepted as a Tag Wrangler you decide that you would prefer not to have your current AO3 account name connected to your OTW service, you may request a new AO3 account specifically for use with your wrangling work.

Please note: A limited number of roles do need you to use your legal name, as they involve work with outside organizations. This will always be mentioned in the position description or the application.

It is also a legal requirement for the Board of Directors to use their legal names. Candidates for the Board of Directors must run under their legal names. However, they will only need to change their OTW Names to their legal names after they are elected.

Yes, you can change your name or details after you apply or during the course of your volunteer work. Your new name will need to follow the OTW Name Policy.

If you find that you cannot fulfil your volunteer duties within the time requirements expected of your position, you can ask to take a hiatus from your committee chairs.

If you would like to retire from volunteer work, you may also do so at any time, even if this is shorter than the term length mentioned on the position description.

Yes! The term listed on the position description is just the minimum requirement. In fact, we have many volunteers that have been with the OTW for more than a decade!

You can apply with any email address you have reliable access to. Your email address will be visible to some volunteers in charge of processing and reviewing your application. If you don’t want to connect your fannish identity with your legal name, don’t use a personal/work/school email address.

Please add emails from *@transformativeworks.org to your Safe Senders list so that you receive messages from our volunteers.

All applications should receive an auto-reply with the next steps in the process. To make sure you get these emails, please add emails from *@transformativeworks.org to your Safe Senders list.

If you have not gotten the auto-reply within 48 hours, check your spam filters and then please contact Volunteers & Recruiting. Let us know what position you applied for, as well as the name and email address you used on the application.

If you have received an auto-reply email and you are waiting to hear back from the committee you applied to, please note that most volunteer applicants get responses 4 weeks after the position has been closed. You can confirm the time estimate for responses on the auto-reply email. If it is past that time, please contact Volunteers & Recruiting. Let us know what position you applied for, as well as the name and email address you used on the application.

You will need stable access to the internet, as we use web-based software and e-mail to communicate. For data security reasons, volunteers must conduct and manage volunteer work using the OTW’s email service provider. Some roles may also need access to different websites or software. Access to these tools is free or paid for by the OTW.

We can only accept volunteers who are 18 years of age or older.

No, volunteers in the OTW do not get paid for their work.

But the OTW also does not expect volunteers to pay for expenses incurred in the course of their work for the organization. The OTW covers the costs for online tools and software needed to carry out organization work. We will also reimburse pre-approved and necessary expenses.

Some roles for the OTW use tools (software) that may not work well with some assistive technology. Our work is largely text-based, and some roles can be fast-paced, and need immediate online interaction in the form of text-based chat.

If you have questions about tools needed for certain roles, please contact us and we will do our best to help.

Contact Volunteers & Recruiting via the contact form and we’ll be more than happy to answer them for you.