Should I add my volunteer work to my resume? This practice can be a great addition, especially if you don’t have much work experience. Volunteering can be an excellent showcase for your skills and success. And when combined with a bit of interaction with paid work experience, it can make you a perfect candidate with a powerful and confident resume. Our resume service team has faced such a task many times, and we are ready to share some tips.
How to List Volunteer Work On Resume
When Should I Indicate Volunteer Activities on My Resume
It can be beneficial in several cases, for example:
- You are a student with little or no experience
- You recently graduated from college and lacked professional experience
- You are thinking about a career change, and your current habits are not quite suitable for the desired profession
- You had a long break from work or you’ve been unemployed for a long period of time
Volunteering experience can help you achieve what you want, but it is also essential that the practice matches the requirements of the desired profession.
How to Add Volunteer Experience to Resume
There are some critical skills or experience that candidates must have to qualify for the position. Suppose you have a similar experience in volunteering. In that case, you can highlight the information in a separate heading, “Related Experience,” and describe the skills appropriately using keywords from the job description.
If your experience has nothing to do with the desired position, you can still indicate it. Often, this experience allows candidates to gain some soft skills, such as teamwork, the ability to resolve conflicts, and the like. Likewise, many organizations have a positive attitude towards employees who make society better. Another plus is that volunteering allows employees to connect with potential clients of the organization.
In the case of unrelated volunteer work, you can include this experience in a separate category, such as “Volunteer Work” or “Community Service.”
Read Also: Education vs. Experience: Which Matters More for Your Career?
How to List Volunteer Work on Resume Properly?
Besides using keywords, there are a few more essential rules for how to specify your work experience:
- Include volunteering experience and work experience – describe the organization’s name, your role, and responsibilities.
- When describing volunteer work, be sure to highlight skills and achievements.
- Show the result of your actions by talking about achievements. It’s even better if you measure your results in numbers or percentages.
Incorrect examples of volunteering descriptions:
- Wrote articles for the platform.
- Worked in a team, resolved conflicts.
- Invited people to our organization.
- Helped raise funds for the organization.
Correct volunteer experiences examples:
- Improved the interface and wrote over 150 articles for the platform, which increased its visits by 15%.
- Showed leadership qualities by managing a team of 35 people, and together we created several creative solutions for our organization: (name them)
- Gently and successfully resolved conflicts both within the organization and between clients, allowing our company to develop and show 25% more good reviews.
- Developed a program for attracting volunteers, which made it possible to understand our goal and values better, and in a month, our team has grown by 30 people.
- Planned fundraising events: auction, charity fair, performance. These events helped our organization raise about $ 90,000.
Other Tips for Putting Volunteer Work on Resume
Before writing, define the most important keywords from the job.
They especially relate to the experience and qualifications required. It initially gives you an idea of how to incorporate the candidate’s expertise correctly and whether it should be done at all. Remember that the correct wording and the inclusion of key phrases in your resume can be decisive factors while going through the applicant tracking system.
Review your resume before applying to different companies.
Most likely, the requirements for each are different. Therefore, the skills and achievements gained in volunteer work need to be adapted to the vacancy requirements. Remember to use keywords again. Customize your volunteer section on your resume and find out more information on the company’s website. Perhaps you will find those qualities or experiences that will be valuable for the desired company.
Include volunteering experiences only if you need to.
Volunteering indeed provides invaluable knowledge and skills that can come in handy when applying. However, this information takes place. And if you have extensive work experience that will be more valuable than volunteering, then consider not including volunteering at all on your resume. By quoting volunteer experience on a resume, you are sacrificing professional expertise. Recruiters only spend a few seconds reading your resume so that a professional background can be crucial for you.
Bottom Line
Including volunteer work on a resume is a highly personalized choice. Your situation is unique and may not be like the people you know who made this or that choice. Try to plan your resume and make a rough draft to evaluate the document. If your resume is more than one or two pages long or looks shaky and dry, then maybe it is worth redoing some of the details? Or you can ask ResumeEdge for help. Our team provides high-quality services, and we can always advise you on how to act correctly in a given situation.
