Become a Hotline Counselor or Peer Educator

Do you find it rewarding to help others? Do your friends seek you out when they need to talk? If so, Middle Earth may be for you!

The Middle Earth Peer Assistance Program consists of a hotline as well as an outreach education program. The hotline receives over 100 calls per month, which range from adjustment issues, stress, and test anxiety to more complex issues such as loneliness, gender issues, depression, suicide, and loss of friends and family members. Middle Earth peer educators serve as the public face of Middle Earth, doing presentations and raising awareness about a variety of issues related to college life. Peer educators are also trained as Middle Earth Players, learning an interactive peer theater technique that they use to educate the campus community. Peer counselor and peer educator trainees go through a semester-long training course. In this course, entitled "Theory and Practice in Peer Counseling and Peer Education" (ECPY 400), students learn basic listening skills and participate in classes which address campus issues.

How to Apply

We are seeking students to work on our hotline and in our outreach program. Gaining experience at Middle Earth is excellent preparation for a variety of fields, including psychology, psychiatry, social work, education, and other related fields. Applications may be downloaded (click the link below) or picked up at the University Counseling Center reception desk or in room 202 at Middle Earth, in the Health and Counseling Building. The deadline for applications is April 15 for admission to fall semester training and November 15 for admission to spring semester training.

To enroll in the credit-bearing training courses that are affiliated with Middle Earth (ECPY 400, 403, 404, 405, 406 and 497), students must first apply to and be accepted by Middle Earth for training.