What is Bissan Badran actually doing?

In our ‘What are you actually doing…?’ section, members of the university community talk about their work.

How many people are there in total on the Language Assistance team, and what exactly do you do? 
What specific support do you provide?
The Language Assistance team consists of student assistants and student volunteers who want to help their fellow students overcome language barriers. I’ve only just joined the team in November and am one of two student assistants. My colleague, Sassan Eskandarian, an Integrated Design student, is taking a break throughout November due to an internship and will be back in December. 
We answer students’ general questions and provide support with everyday study issues; for example, we help with understanding texts and course assignments, correct written work for grammatical errors, and translate documents such as personal statements. We also help with filling in forms in German or, where necessary, accompany HfK students to important meetings or appointments. I’m also happy to help with writing artist statements or descriptions of artistic works.

How did the Language Assistance service come about 
and how long has it been running?
The Language Assistance service has been running since March/April 2020. The idea for it came from Prof. Dr Andrea Sick and Dr Kathrin Gollwitzer-Oh. Language Assistance is affiliated with the Vice-Rectorate for International Affairs. The support unit, consisting of Kathrin Gollwitzer-Oh and Abida Malik, coordinates the project. The aim of Language Assistance is to support all students at the HfK, particularly in their day-to-day university life.

What sort of cases do you usually come across? 
Have there been any unusual incidents? 
What has been your experience so far? 
I’m usually asked if I can help with describing artistic works; so far, that’s been my absolute favourite task. I’m studying Fine Art at the HfK myself, so I know how important it is to write an accurate description of a piece or an artist’s statement. I think it’s an advantage that I’m studying Fine Art myself and have a connection to art.

Which languages can you help with?
I speak English, German and Arabic and can help my fellow students with these languages. To expand our services to include further languages, we are currently setting up a student network comprising volunteer HfK students who have specific language skills – such as Japanese, Mandarin, Arabic, Spanish and Chinese – and are keen to help their fellow students overcome language barriers. This will ensure that all international students at the HfK can receive support when needed.

How exactly does communication work at the moment?
Due to the current situation, the Language Assistance team is currently meeting weekly via video conference to discuss current tasks. Students can also get in touch with us via video conference or simply send an email to language_assistance@hfk-bremen.de.

How did you get this job? What appeals to you about it? 
And what else do you get up to at the HfK?
I’m currently in my fifth semester studying Fine Art in Kati Barath’s class (painting and animated films) and usually spend a lot of time at the university. So having a part-time job at the university suited me down to the ground. I really enjoy being able to help other HfK students overcome language barriers and assist them with translating texts, and it’s lovely to be doing something meaningful.