Restricting signups is available on the Pro Plan. Qualifications for recruiting and screening volunteers are available on Grow and Pro.
Why restrict volunteer opportunities?
Not every role is right for every volunteer. Driving a van, handling cash or working with animals might need training, a certification or a conversation first. Restricting an opportunity means only volunteers you’ve qualified can sign up, while everyone else still has a clear way to apply or learn what’s needed.
Unlike onboarding, which applies to every new volunteer, a qualification adds another step for the specific roles that need it.
Qualify volunteers first
Before you restrict an opportunity, create a qualification under Qualifications in the admin main navigation and qualify the volunteers who are ready. A qualification can be open or closed to applications and still be used to restrict signups. Only archived qualifications can’t be selected.
Articles → Creating a qualification and opening volunteer applications and Qualifying volunteers for an application
Restrict an event or repeating event
For events and repeating events, the qualification applies to the whole event, so only volunteers you’ve qualified can sign up.
When you create the event, choose the qualification under Who can sign up. All volunteers is selected by default.
If the event already exists, open it and go to Details. Under Who can sign up, choose the qualification and save your changes.
Restrict positions in a schedule or event with shifts
In schedules and events with shifts, you restrict individual positions, so only the roles that need it are limited and the rest stay open.
Open the schedule or event and select Positions in the top right. Select the pencil beside a position, then under Who can sign up, choose the qualification, for example Qualified for Ushers. Start typing to search if you have a long list. Select Save.
Positions set to All volunteers stay open to anyone who’s otherwise eligible. Don’t see the qualification you need? Select Manage qualifications → at the bottom of the list.
See where a qualification is used
In your Qualifications list, a link icon appears on each qualification that’s restricting signups. Hover over it to see how many positions or events it’s linked to. This is helpful before you archive a qualification, since you’ll need to remove those links first.
What volunteers see
Volunteers who are qualified can sign up as usual. Those who aren’t can still discover restricted opportunities, depending on your visibility settings.
If the qualification is open to applications, volunteers who select Sign Up see your message and an Apply button.
If it’s closed, they see a message explaining they need to be qualified first.
Hide restricted opportunities
Restricted opportunities stay visible by default, which helps with recruitment.
To hide them from volunteers who aren’t qualified, open the event or schedule, go to Details, and under Visibility choose Qualified only. Then select Save.
Only volunteers you’ve qualified will then see the event, or the restricted positions in a schedule or event with shifts.
Customize the signup restriction message
You can customize the message volunteers see when they aren’t qualified yet.
Go to Settings > Rules and scroll to Signup Restrictions.
You can customize separate messages for:
Qualifications open to applications, where volunteers are invited to apply.
Closed qualifications, where volunteers learn what they need to do first.
Common questions
Can I use the same qualification in more than one place?
Yes. Qualify volunteers once, then use it on any events and positions that need it, like every role at one location.
Do Requirements restrict signups?
No. Requirements track training and renewals but don’t stop anyone from signing up. Use a qualification for that.
Do I need to use onboarding first?
No. Some organizations use onboarding for everyone and qualifications for specific roles.
Others, like festivals that recruit fresh each year, use a qualification as their main recruitment step, including for returning volunteers.
Does the qualification need to be open to applications?
No. A qualification can be open or closed and still restrict signups, and you can keep qualifying volunteers after it closes. Only archived qualifications can’t be selected.
What if I leave it set to All volunteers?
For events and repeating events, the event is open to everyone who’s otherwise eligible to sign up. In schedules and events with shifts, only positions with a qualification selected are restricted.