Working in the beautiful and historic Smithsonian Castle, volunteers in the Telephone Information Program handle public inquiries from around the world on all aspects of the Smithsonian—its exhibitions, activities, administrative functions, and services.  Working as a Telephone volunteer is a fantastic way to get an in-depth look at the Institution as a whole and to learn about what really goes on behind the scenes.  The program operates Monday through Saturday.

A minimum of 1 year of service is requested of volunteers who successfully complete the training program. Weekday volunteers are expected to fulfill a minimum assignment of 3 hours weekly. Saturday assignments are scheduled on alternating weeks. Duty shifts are
10am to 1pm or 1pm to 4pm.

Applicants must attend an interview, classroom instruction (including homework assignments and a final exam). On-the-job transition training is completed working one-on-one with program staff. Classroom instruction typically requires one day a week for five consecutive weeks, followed by on-the-job training. See details below.

Pretraining Interview To participate in the training program, a pretraining interview is required as well as successful completion of a background investigation. Upon receipt of a completed application, the training coordinator will set up a weekday or weekend interview with applicant to discuss volunteer expectations, training parameters and dates, and to confirm availability.

Training Satisfactory completion of all classroom sessions for Volunteer Information Specialists and on-the-job training is required for participation in the Telephone Information Program.

For more information, please contact:
Program Coordinator: 202.633.5265 (voice/tape)
E-mail: volunteerinfo@si.edu