Become a volunteer Crisis Counselor for Crisis Text Line, a free, 24/7 text line for people in crisis in the United States. This service is powered by volunteer Crisis Counselors who work remotely—anywhere with a computer and secure internet connection works.
"I volunteer for Crisis Text Line because practicing empathy and reflective listening makes me a better friend, partner, and employee.” — Crisis Counselor, Student
How Crisis Counselors work
Volunteers answer texts from people in crisis, bringing them from a hot moment to a cool calm through active listening, collaborative problem solving, and safety planning. Learn more from Crisis Text Line founder/CEO’s TED Talk: https://www.crisistextline.org/volunteer/
We need you at night
Are you a night owl or early riser? Looking for an odd-hours volunteer opportunity in crisis intervention? You’ve found the right place! When the rest of the country is sleeping, 2/3 of crisis situations, and by default texter volume, occurs at night. Our greatest need for Crisis Counselors is between 9:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. CST.
Crisis counseling is a big commitment
Crisis Counselors commit to volunteering 4 hours per week until 200 hours are reached. Ideally, you'll be expected to fulfill your commitment within one year. Before you begin as a counselor, you’ll also need to complete a training period to give you all of the expertise you need to successfully and empathetically navigate crisis intervention.
This 30-hour training is free for you, but it costs Crisis Text Line $1,008 to train each Crisis Counselor, so volunteers need to commit to seeing training through to the end and serving out their 200-hour commitment. You’ll walk away from training knowing reflective listening, collaborative problem solving, and crisis management. (These are skills that will help in your personal relationships too!)
Also, you can train from anywhere and can highlight this intervention training on your resume when interviewing for jobs, applying to grad school, and building out your LinkedIn profile. This opportunity will help you hone your skills in communication, counseling, and intervention as you work alongside volunteers who are also social workers, therapists, and psychiatrists.
“Being a Crisis Counselor teaches me so much around believing in hope, trusting the process, and deepening compassion — for others and for myself.” — Crisis Counselor, Student
Ready to become a Crisis Counselor?
Crisis Text Line accepts applications on a rolling basis and begins new training cohorts every two weeks, although space is limited.
To apply, applicants must be 18 or older and have a U.S. Social Security Number. You must also submit 2 references. To volunteer, Crisis Counselors must have access to reliable Internet access and a personal computer.
Here's how to get started:
STEP 1 - Complete the 30-minute Crisis Counselor application and consent to a background check: https://signup.crisistextline.org/
STEP 2 - Complete the 30-hour web-based crisis counseling and intervention training.
STEP 3 - Take your first counseling shift and start changing lives!
Don't forget to Respond to this Need, so you can track your service hours. You will need to send copies of your training completion certificates and screenshots of your Profile Hours Per Month tracking information after a text session is completed to communityengagement@southalabama.edu in order for us to be able to verify your hours. Please track and submit the actual amount of time spent volunteering.
As an additional reminder, because the process for getting started is outlined above, you won't receive a follow-up e-mail from the hosting agency when you Respond to this Need.
