Susan Vavra, B.S., CVA, HelpLine Coordinator, Lee Shefferman, M.S., Graduate Assistant, John Mark Baze,
Claire Connolly, Lindsay Doyle, Mike Hershberger, B.S., Liz Hudson, Katie Klauke, Meagan McGriff, Brian Peek,
Amy Roberts, Kristin Shaner, Marika Solhan, Michelle Taft, Nisha Tennell, and Shanna Wright, B.S., HelpLine Volunteers
Student Counseling HelpLine
Texas A&M University
Student Counseling Service
College Station, TX
The Student Counseling HelpLine provides support, information, referrals, and crisis intervention for a campus of over
43,000 students, those concerned about these students, and some community residents. The Student Counseling HelpLine
has been in operation since January of 1995. It is primarily staffed by undergraduate, graduate, and former students of
Texas A&M University.
Prospective HelpLine volunteers fill out a written application and then have an hour to hour-and-a-half initial screening
interview with the HelpLine Coordinator. Whenever possible, a current HelpLine volunteer will also sit in the interview so
the applicant can ask him or her any questions about their experience in the program. The beginning of the interview
includes a detailed overview of the program and training.
During this initial screening interview, prospective volunteers are given several scenarios and are asked how they would
handle that call. Typical scenarios include one about an unplanned, unwanted pregnancy, one on coming out issues, and
one selected from the prospective volunteer's application or disclosed earlier during the interview.
The applicant is also asked to tell us about a crisis from their own life that they have gone through, how they resolved it,
and what they would have wanted from a HelpLine had they called during that crisis. We consider this one of our most
valuable interview questions because if someone tells us about a current, unresolved crisis, he or she may not be a good
match with crisis intervention work.
We give information to the applicant about our philosophy and procedures and describe why we do not give advice or
share personal past experiences with our callers. We also ask how they deal with stress because we know that working a
crisis hotline will add some stress to their life. Finally, we ask them about any questions, comments or concerns they have
and give information on the selection process.
This workshop provided written screening materials and demonstrated interviewing techniques for finding quality
volunteers. Demonstration role plays taught participants how to differentiate between good applicants and those who
would not be a good fit with the program. Materials related to the training program were also shared with participants.
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