What is Walden?

Walden Peer Counseling is an anonymous and confidential hotline and walk-in peer counseling service staffed by Yale undergraduates. The hotline operates from 8pm to 8am every night, and the office is open for walk-ins from 8pm to 1am, every night, during the regular academic schedule and when classes are in session. The number for the hotline is (203) 432-TALK (432-8255), and the office is located on Old Campus in the basement of Welch, room A-05. For security reasons, there is no universal key-card access. If you wish to drop by as a walk-in, simply call (203) 432-TALK, and a counselor will let you in. We are available to talk about anything that's on your mind. If you have any questions about Walden, please call (203) 432-TALK any night between 8pm and 8am during the regular academic schedule and when classes are in session, or e-mail our adviser, Carole Goldberg, at carole.goldberg@yale.edu

Reaching Walden

We encourage all students in need of a sympathetic ear to contact Walden. Our number is (203) 432-TALK (8255), and our office is on Old Campus in the Welch Basement, room A-05. Counselors are accessible by phone from 8pm-8am seven days a week and our office is open for walk-ins from 8pm-1am seven days a week during the regular academic schedule and when classes are in session. To reach the hotline, simply dial (203) 432-TALK (8255) from your cell phone, or 2-TALK (8255) from a campus phone. For security reasons, there is no universal key-card access to Welch. If you would like to drop by as a walk-in, simply call (203) 432-TALK from your cell phone when you arrive at Welch, and a counselor will let you in. If you do not have a cell phone, you may call 2-TALK from the blue security phone outside Welch, or from your room phone to let us know you are coming over. A counselor will meet you at the door. You do not need an appointment, and counseling is free. Anonymity and confidentiality are assured in all cases except, very rarely, when personal safety is threatened.

There is no topic you cannot discuss with a Walden counselor. The counselors are rigorously trained to help Yale students with a wide variety of issues. Some topics that regularly come up include eating disorders, stress, depression and suicide, questions about gender and sexual orientation, questions about race, questions about religion, sexual harassment and assault, alcohol and substance abuse, STIs and contraception. Callers also frequently want to talk about about relationships with family, friends, significant others and roommates. Callers frequently have questions about the resources at Yale for dealing with specific problems, and counselors have lists of those resources available to them, as well as information about resources outside of Yale. Walden counselors are also trained to respond to problems that may not fit the above mentioned categories.

When you call Walden, a counselor will answer the phone by telling you that you have reached Walden. The counselor will be supportive and encouraging, and will not judge you for anything you have to say. Walden is a safe place for everyone, and issues and concerns discussed with a Walden counselor will not be repeated outside of Walden. Walden counselors are committed to anonymity and confidentiality, and if you call Walden, your rights to those will be protected. You will not know who the counselor is, and the counselor will not know who you are. In the rare case that a counselor believes he or she recognizes a caller's voice, he or she is trained to let the caller know right away, and either transfer the call to another counselor or ask the caller to call back. He or she will not reveal the caller's identity, not even to the other counselors. During the regular academic schedule and when classes are in session, there are always two counselors available between 8pm and 1am, and one available from 1am and 8am. If you are uncomfortable speaking to a particular counselor, you may ask to speak to another counselor, or call back on a different night. No matter what, the caller's comfort is of utmost importance. Walden counselors will be respectful and caring, and will not pressure you to talk about anything you do not want to talk about.

Those who call Walden should feel free to talk about whatever is on their mind. The counselor will listen carefully to what they have to say, ask thoughtful questions, and provide information about various resources. The goal is to help the caller explore all facets of a situation, to inform the caller about available resources, and to help the caller weigh the benefits of various solutions to his or her problem. Walden's philosophy is that it is up to the counselee to decide what course of action is most appropriate for him or her. Walden counselors are undergraduate students and are not qualified to make diagnoses or judgments about solutions for callers. Walden counselors do not suggest courses of action or treatments, and they do not give advice. If a caller is seeking additional help, Walden counselors will provide information about resources that offer ongoing care.

Walden counselors welcome any call or walk-in, and are happy to talk to students about anything in a non-judgmental manner. Walden is required to be a one-time service, and Walden counselor will be happy to do whatever they can to help you. As undergraduate students, Walden counselors are not qualified to conduct any sort of long-term service with our counselees. If you think you need someone to talk to more frequently, a Walden counselor will be happy to direct you to resources that can provide ongoing counseling.

Please feel free to drop by our office or call us for any reason whenever we are open. Our number is (203) 432-TALK (8255) and our office is Welch A-05. We are in the office from 8pm to 1am seven days a week, and the hotline runs from 8pm to 8am seven days a week during the regular academic schedule and when classes are in session. In our office, we have a variety of pamphlets and other resources available to anyone who needs them, and Walden counselors will be able to provide information about other resources. We welcome all contacts, either by phone or in person.

If you have any other questions about Walden, please feel free to call (203) 432-TALK (8255) between 8pm and 8am, or to e-mail our adviser Carole Goldberg. Carole is a psychologist with Mental Health and Counseling, and the director of the SHARE (Sexual Harassment Assault Resources and Education) Center. She can be reached at carole.goldberg@yale.edu.

Walden History

Founded in 1975, Walden is the oldest undergraduate peer counseling organization in the country, and the oldest, longest-running peer counseling group at Yale. It continues to be a model for similar organizations at colleges and universities across the United States.

Who Are Walden Counselors?

Walden counselors are Yale undergraduates who have completed at least one year at Yale. We are men and women whose ages range from sophomores to seniors. We come from a variety of socioeconomic, racial and religious backgrounds, and from countries all over the world. We participate in a variety of campus activities from varsity athletics to a capella and more. Our majors range all over the sciences and the humanities. Walden, in effect, is a microcosm of the wider Yale community. What brings us together is a talent for listening closely without judging, and a desire to help our peers in the Yale community. Moreover, we all take our job at Walden very seriously—we only recruit counselors who are willing to make Walden their top priority, go through extensive training, and make the necessary time commitment to our services. Protecting the confidentiality and anonymity of our callers is something we take with utmost seriousness. To that end, we don't ever tell anyone outside of Walden (not even deans and professors, or people outside of Yale) anything we hear in our role as counselors, in all cases except in a matter of personal safety. As a further precaution, we take pains to protect our callers' confidentiality through our own anonymity. Thus, not even our friends know we are Walden counselors. In short, we are compassionate, kind-hearted, open-minded Yalies whose goal is to provide an important resource to our peers.

Walden counselors are typically recruited in the spring. Because of the sensitive nature of our work, we are very selective, and do not take counselors who do not meet Walden's qualifications, or who are unable to make Walden a priority among their commitments. All of us, even returning counselors, are required to be on campus as soon as dorms open in the fall for rigorous training. We are trained in non-judgmental, non-directive counseling by professionals from YUHS and the New Haven area. Our training consists of role-plays, lectures and discussions on how to deal with a myriad of concerns typically faced in a university setting, including but not limited to stress, eating concerns, depression, and diversity-related issues. It is also impressed on us that no two peers' situations will be exactly alike, and that there are no universal solutions. To that end, we don't give advice. Instead, we focus on listening carefully to what a counselee has to say, and to help the counselee come up with a solution that will be appropriate and/or acceptable for him or her. Our training continues throughout the year at our weekly meetings, where we frequently have guest lecturers and engage in activities that will help us deepen our knowledge of various issues and improve our counseling skills.

We are fortunate to have a longstanding relationship with Carole Goldberg, a psychologist with Mental Health and Counseling and director of the SHARE (Sexual Harassment Assault Resources and Education) Center, as Walden's adviser. If you have any questions about Walden counselors, please feel free to e-mail her at carole.goldberg@yale.edu.

If you are interested in becoming a Walden counselor, please click here.