Note: "Opportunities" and "Needs" are the same. Some sites use one word, and some sites use the other. We use the two words interchangeably in this article. They mean the same thing. 

Once you've found the right volunteer opportunity, it's easy to respond to it and let the agency know that you'd like to volunteer. This article focuses on how to respond individually (not as part of a team) to both non-shift and shift needs, as well as how to unregister from a need. 

Click here to learn how to sign up a team.

To access the need-information page, click the View Details button for the need (shown below).

The need-information page provides additional details about the volunteer opportunity. 

Note: Click here for more information if you are redirected to your dashboard with a message that you don't have qualification access to needs.

  • All needs include the option to respond individually (provided that registration for the need has not been closed and the need isn't full). Some needs may also include the option to respond as a team; see this article for more information on team responses.

Responding Individually to a Non-shift Need

To respond individually (not as a team) to a need that does not have multiple shifts:

  1. Click the Respond button, located in the top right-hand corner of the need-information page.

    Note: If you do not see a Respond button, click here to learn about other button text that may appear. 

  2. On the response page that is displayed, you can type any additional notes for the agency manager. If other questions have been added for this need, you may be required to answer them.
  3. Click Submit Need Response.

You are returned to the need-information page, and the Respond button is replaced by an Unregister button.

You'll also receive an email confirmation of your need response, and the agency manager for the need will be notified that you have signed up.

Responding Individually to a Shift Need

If a volunteer opportunity has multiple shifts available, you'll need to select one or more shifts before completing your need response. When you click on the need-information page, you'll see a list of shifts, along with the option to Respond Individually.

To respond individually (not as a team) to one or more shifts of a need:

  1. Click Respond button described previously.
  2. Select the shift(s) you want to volunteer. Note that past shifts are shown in faded text and cannot be selected. Also note that you can see the day of the week for shifts, making it easier for you to select the days you want.
  3. You can also choose to "Respond to All Shifts" by moving that toggle to YES. Be careful when using this option when many shifts are available, so that you do not overextend yourself.
  4. Below the shift-selection area, you can type any additional notes for the agency manager. If other questions have been added for this need, you may be required to answer them.
  5. Click Submit Need Response.

You are returned to the need-information page, and the Respond button is replaced by a Manage My Responses button, which you can click to update a response or unregister from a shift.

You will also receive an email confirming your need response, and the agency manager for the need will be notified that you have signed up.

Note: You can unregister for a need or shift at any time, as long as the need is in the future. Click here to learn how to unregister.

Back in the needs listing, the View Details button is replaced with a Confirmed button.

Note: The colors of the buttons are determined by your system administrator and may not match the ones shown here.

How to add shifts to your calendars

When you respond to an opportunity, the "Thank You For Volunteering" pop-up includes a +Add to Cal link. If you respond to multiple shifts, then a link for each shift appears. 

When you hover over the +Add to Cal link, a dropdown appears for you to select where you want to save that information. 



Once you click the link, the calendar or program opens with details for that opportunity, including a link to it. In this example, we opted to save the shift details to Google Calendar: 

Once saved, the event appears in the calendar view as shown in this example of a "Week" view.

Responding as a Team

See Responding to a Need as a Team to learn more about team responses.

Unregistering from a Need

You can unregister from a volunteer opportunity as long as the opportunity is in the future. If you are a team leader, you will need to designate another team leader before unregistering from a need. Click here to learn how to unregister from a need as a team leader.

Unregistering as an Individual

To unregister from a need or shift:

  1. From your profile menu, click Need Responses.
    Your Volunteer Responses table lists all of your past volunteer responses.

    Note: Expired needs are shown in faded text with a gray background. You can click on any active, current need to view the need description.

  2. Find the need, and then click Unregister from the Options dropdown. (Click image for a larger view.)
  3. Click Yes to confirm that you want to unregister.
    Warning: If you have already submitted volunteer hours for the need or shift from which you're unregistering, those hours will no longer appear in your hours record or on your volunteer resume.

You can also unregister from a need by opening the need-information page and clicking the Unregister button.

Unregistering as a Team Leader

A team is required to have a team leader. If you are a team leader and wish to unregister from the need yourself, you will need to designate another team leader before unregistering from a need first.

Note: Click here to learn how to unregister an entire team.

To unregister as a team leader:

  1. Go to your My Teams area and click on the team name. You can access the My Teams area in several ways: by clicking My Teams from your profile menu, by selecting Manage Team in your Need Responses area, or by opening the need and clicking the Manage Team button.
  2. In the Leader column, mark the checkbox for the person you wish to assign as the team leader, and unmark the box for your name.
  3. Click Update Team.
  4. Click the X in the Options column to remove your individual need response.
  5. Click Yes to confirm.

Note that, once you have unregistered from a team, you will no longer be able to access it in your My Teams area.

Response Button: Other Text

Depending on the need capacity and restrictions, you may see a button other than the individual and team response buttons when viewing a need-information page. Other button possibilities are shown below.

ButtonDescription
The open registration period for this need has ended, and registration is no longer open.
The need has met its volunteer capacity, and the agency is no longer taking volunteers for it.
The need (or shift) has met its volunteer capacity, but a waitlist is available. Click Waitlist to be added to the waitlist; the button will change to read Added to Waitlist, and you will get a confirmation that you have been added. To remove yourself from a waitlist, click the Added to Waitlist button.

Note: The waitlist option is not available for team sign-ups.

Qualifications are required in order to respond to the need; click here to learn more.