Expert Audio Transcriber, UAE Arabic (Emirati)

Perle; United States; Remote; USD 28,000 - 55,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid pilot task

Per-task or per-minute compensation

Flexible scheduling

Direct work with linguistic leads and

Job summary

Perle is seeking expert Emirati Arabic transcribers to convert audio into precise transcripts. You will work at expert linguistic judgment levels, handling dialectal orthography, code-switching with English, and time-aligned transcripts for AI labs.

Native UAE exposure, strong Modern Standard Arabic, and a track record of accurate transcripts under deadlines are required. The role offers paid pilots, flexible scheduling, and collaboration with Perle’s linguistics team.

Qualifications

• Native fluency in Emirati Arabic with UAE immersion or residence.
• Strong command of Modern Standard Arabic for orthography.
• Familiarity with Gulf dialect variation across emirates.
• Comfort with Arabic-English code-switching in daily speech.
• At least two years of professional transcription or related work.
• Ability to meet quality standards under deadlines.
• Experience with web-based annotation tools is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Transcribe audio into accurate, time-aligned transcripts per style guide.
• Apply conventions for speaker IDs, disfluencies, and non-speech events.
• Make orthographic decisions for dialectal and code-switched speech.
• Flag ambiguous segments and audio quality issues per project conventions.
• Self-review submissions against quality bar and engage with QA on edge cases.

Skills

Emirati Arabic fluency

MSA proficiency

Khaleeji dialect knowledge

Code-switching familiarity

Transcription experience

Annotation platforms

Tools

Annotation platforms

Job description

THE ROLE

We are hiring expert UAE Arabic (Emirati) transcribers to convert audio recordings of native speakers into precise, conventionally formatted written transcripts. The work powers speech recognition, dialogue, and evaluation systems for major AI labs. Audio ranges from clean studio recordings to natural conversational speech in real-world acoustic conditions.

You will be working at the level of expert linguistic judgment. This is not data entry. Decisions about orthography, code-switching, speaker attribution, disfluencies, and non-speech events shape the quality of every model trained on your output.

DIALECT AND SCOPE

Emirati Arabic (Khaleeji), spoken across the seven emirates with distinctive Gulf vocabulary, phonology, and intonation. Project audio reflects authentic Emirati speech patterns including older generational forms, Bedouin influences, and code-switching with English and Modern Standard Arabic.

Primary speaker regions: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Northern Emirates.

WHAT YOU WILL DO

• Transcribe audio recordings into accurate, time-aligned written text following Perle’s project-specific style guide
• Apply correct conventions for speaker identification, overlapping speech, disfluencies, fillers, false starts, and non-speech events such as laughter, background noise, and music
• Make principled orthographic decisions for dialectal, colloquial, and code-switched speech
• Flag ambiguous segments, uncertain speakers, and audio quality issues using project conventions
• Self-review every submission against Perle’s quality bar before delivery
• Engage with QA reviewers on edge cases, calibration sessions, and style guide updates

MUST HAVE

• Native fluency in Emirati Arabic with residence or extensive immersion in the UAE
• Strong command of Modern Standard Arabic for orthographic representation of dialectal speech
• Familiarity with regional variation across the seven emirates and adjacent Gulf dialects
• Comfortable transcribing the natural Arabic-English code-switching common in Emirati daily speech
• At least two years of professional transcription, captioning, court reporting, broadcast, translation, or linguistic annotation experience
• Demonstrated accuracy at the word level under deadline pressure
• Comfortable with web-based annotation platforms and variable-speed audio playback
• Reliable high-speed internet, quality headphones, and a quiet workspace
• Ability to commit to defined volume per week during active project phases

NICE TO HAVE

• Background in Gulf Arabic linguistics, media, education, or government translation
• Prior experience annotating Khaleeji or pan-Gulf speech data
• Familiarity with Arabic NLP conventions and dialectal orthography standards
• Familiarity with IPA or other phonetic transcription systems
• Experience with verbatim versus clean-verbatim transcription conventions

HOW WE WORK WITH YOU

• Paid pilot task before full onboarding so both sides can calibrate
• Per-task or per-minute compensation, with rates tied to audio complexity and turnaround
• Flexible scheduling, with volume scaling up and down based on active client projects
• Direct working relationship with Perle’s linguistic leads and QA team
• Eligible for invitation to additional Perle expert projects across related domains

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Perle hires experts on the basis of skill, language proficiency, and demonstrated quality. We welcome applicants from every background and every region where our target languages are spoken.

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