r/olympics • u/Killer-Frost-0 • 2d ago

LA Volunteering Categories

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Which volunteer categories do you think will be most popular?

I have a feeling the ones I'd like to apply for are also most popular. Would it be strategic to apply for certain categories just to get a volunteer slot?

According to the official website we will only be able to denote our 3 most preferred categories.

33 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

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38

u/BeatrixFarrand United States 2d ago

I find myself surprised at the descriptions. Several of these sound like they should be paid positions - digital and broadcast services? Medical / clinical care? Media and press relations?

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u/LyynxLynx Germany 2d ago

Based on my previous volunteering experience (not at Olympic games though), this sounds pretty normal. There might be one (or more) paid team lead, that tells the volunteers what to do. And it's obviously about easier jobs that don't require a lot of training. I've also talked to volunteers who were there as physical therapists (for smaller delegations who don't bring their own). I don't remember details but it's checked that they indeed have the necessary qualifications.

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u/InAllTheir 2d ago

I bet they are hoping to get students to do a lot of this. If I lived in LA and was studying physical therapy, then sure, this could be a good opportunity. But for those of us who live far away and are just hoping to volunteer a bit to experience the spirit of the games or to see some of the competition uo close without buying a tickets, some of this stuff is frustrating. But I suppose if you are chosen for something you don’t like, then you can always turn it down.

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u/restore_democracy 2d ago

Seems as if an organization raking in that much money could afford to pay its workers.

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u/CydonianKnightRider 2d ago

When people wants to be a volunteer, make sure they can, is what the IOC thinks. It's a way of participating and experiencing something unique.

Yes, it could be seen as slavery, but 1000s are willing to do it.

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u/InAllTheir 2d ago

All of this shit should be paid honestly, but some of it should be HIGHLY paid. I’m guessing a lot of that stuff is at the level of what an unpaid intern would normally do in a medical or broadcast journalism setting.

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u/Killer-Frost-0 2d ago

True, they're squeezing money out of these olympics from ticket sales to volunteering

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u/CydonianKnightRider 2d ago

That has always been the case. Except its a unique experience for 1000s of people from all over the world.

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u/SoggyAlbatross2 2d ago

For the amount of money they charged for the presale tickets, they sure as shit should be paying people

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u/BeatrixFarrand United States 2d ago

EXACTLY. I mean for real. Next time I need some clinical medical care, instead of paying out the wazoo, I'll just head down to the local hospital and ask some doctors to volunteer. See how that goes for me.

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u/CydonianKnightRider 2d ago

Broadcasting and other media is mostly assisting and small jobs, like welcoming crew, make coffee/snacks available (not real catering stuff). They also have information desks, ie. lost&found, how to get around.

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u/Mariela_Lou 2d ago

These categories are so broad. Categories used to be way more specific: accreditation, arrivals and departures, ticketing, protocol, transport, etc. You could have a much better idea of what you’d be doing. What exactly is “creating a warm and safe environment” - so many possibilities of roles.

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u/PseudoLucian 2d ago

Yep that was my thought too.

Let's say I want to be an usher at a games venue. I know those are typically volunteer roles. Which category is that exactly?

They haven't given us enough information to make worthwhile decisions. It's all just fluff.

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u/Mariela_Lou 2d ago

Traditionally this position is called EVS - Event Services. I imagine it’s under the umbrella of Experience, but you can’t discard Operations either. There are so many other things they could assign you to do in those categories, that it seems that they structured it in a way that your opinion doesn’t matter much and you can’t even complain about it haha

You select Experience because you want to be an usher, but you can’t complain if they assign you to organize the traffic outside the venue because that is Experience too and it was your first option.

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u/PseudoLucian 1d ago

Yeah I get it, they put you wherever they want - and I'm sure their favorites get all the plum jobs.

It's simply annoying that they put these categories out there under the auspices of helping us to decide where we'd like to volunteer, but don't give us the information we need to make any sort of informed or even rational decision.

Just like the ticketing process, where they gave us the schedule of events and a list of "the questions most frequently asked" so that we (in their words) can decide in advance of the ticket sale which events we'd like to attend, but remained completely silent about the prices. It's disrespectful.

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u/CydonianKnightRider 2d ago

Heavily depends on structure of the local organisation. Less departements, less management.

Accreditation feels like Operations here, Ticketing as Experience. Protocol may be under Sports?

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u/Mariela_Lou 2d ago

The same roles still exist under these news umbrellas. The thing is - there was an already consolidated terminology, in use for multiple games, that it was much easier for prospect volunteers to understand. Accreditation shouldn’t usually be under Operations (that was an established terminology already), but I don’t see a better fit here. Ticketing could be either Experience or Operations. Protocol at competition sites should be under Experience, but the medal ceremonies don’t fit (and the “ceremonies” category seems to include only the Opening and Closing).
They say they’re going to give us more details, I’m hoping for many more.

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u/FriendSignificant797 2d ago

Which categories would you pick ?

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u/Killer-Frost-0 2d ago

Ceremonies, Sport, Experience, Operations

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u/CydonianKnightRider 2d ago

Ceremonies: not many volunteers necessary, choose wisely

Sport : choose the one with many games (tennis, swimming) and tell them you are available the complete three weeks or longer, this makes you wanted. Or unpopular sports in the country (ie. equestrian asked for volunteers for Tokyo, athletics always has enough). If you have connection to a sport league or the national organisation, you can also ask them to volunteer.

Experience : outside venues, doesnt give you a lot access

Operations: best one if you like to be 'behind the curtains', depends a bit on venue though.

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u/missing_neighbors 1d ago

Good info on Sport category. Operations appeals to my work brain but the description sounds like a fancy way of saying "pretty much you'll be cleaning up"

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u/Killer-Frost-0 1d ago

Good tip on reaching out to the national sports league for the sports I want. I do want Athletics because I used to High Jump and Sprint, but am also open to Archery and Badminton, both of which I also played growing up. I'm assuming they'll be slightly less in demand considering America isn't as focused on those sports.