Wycliffe Bible Translators - Good News in Anyone's Language

Graduate International Program

Former GRIPer, Susie, in Chad with a literacy worker and his family.

If you are a recent university graduate and are willing to give between one and two years to the Bible translation task, we will train you to work alongside a team in a language development project and share the load.

You'll be involved in the rewarding challenge of helping to give a people group the Word of God in their own language.

Download the GRIP Fact Sheet (pdf 400kb)

To be a 'GRIPer' you need:

to be a recent university graduate, or just graduating, with a degree in mathematics, a
branch of the sciences, engineering, computer science, languages, linguistics, biblical studies, education, adult literacy or anthropology.
to be a committed Christian, with a real concern for those without the Bible in their own language.
to be under 30 years of age, either single or married without children.
to be looking for an opportunity to travel and have a useful experience at the same time.

We help you work out the cost of the training, the airfares and the cost of living in your chosen country. Wycliffe doesn't pay salaries to any of its members, so you will have to trust the Lord for funds.

Your Contribution
The normal program takes 15 months. This includes 6 months of in-service training and 9 months on the field. The scheduling of training is flexible, according to the GRIPer's needs and the availability of staff. The training program covers linguistics, intercultural studies and language learning. Sociolinguistics, literacy, semantics and translation may be included where appropriate.

If you are available for longer there is a 2-year option, with 6 months training and 18 months on the field. Two years are required for survey work.

Comments from a former GRIPer

' ... I chose the assignment which involved assisting a newly assigned team with their initial linguistic research in northern Cameroon. The team situation worked very well - I was able to concentrate on linguistic research, which enabled the family I worked with to focus on getting to know the people and the area, including such important activities as public relations and language learning.
By the end of my two year assignment, I had completed a description of the phonology of the language, and left a proposal for an alphabet and writing system. It was a fantastic way for me to be able to put my university training to a real use, and I feel privileged that God allowed me to use my talents to make a significant contribution to this particular language project, and consequently to the work of Bible translation in Cameroon. Although some aspects of my time there were difficult, overall it was a wonderful experience, and I am so thankful for such a unique opportunity to serve God in this way.' Cathy