When including volunteer experiences on your resume, you demonstrate your ability to develop positive attitudes and patterns of engagement that can be transitioned into employment opportunities. Volunteering can foster social trust, self-confidence, leadership skills, and critical thinking skills. Volunteer experiences give employers a sense of the meaningful roles you fulfilled and the responsibilities you took on. Including your volunteer experience on your resume provides potential employers with insight into your interests, shows that you can expand your network, validates that you can build strong relationships with your community, and secures good references.
Looking for more Volunteer Opportunities in Windsor-Essex? Check out our Volunteer Opportunities webpage.
How to explain your volunteer experience as it pertains to the job you’re applying for:
When explaining your volunteer experience, make sure to include the skills you developed, the contributions you made to your community, and any achievements that you had as they pertain to the job you are applying for. Include the responsibilities you had in your volunteer role. For example, if the job posting is looking for a Coordinator, you might want to include any team leadership skills you learned and implemented in your volunteer position to demonstrate the similarities in the roles.
How to set up your volunteer experience on your resume:
Section your resume to include a header titled Volunteer Experience. Start with the most recent volunteer work that you are still actively a part of and follow a layout like or similar to this:
project title, date (month and year started and completed) -if you are still volunteering, include start date and indicate you are still actively volunteering, position, city, province.
Below is an example that can be followed:
Have any questions or any additional tips? Please contact: info@workforcewindsoressex.com
Taking Your Job Search Online is developed in partnership with South Essex Community Council and funded by United Way/Centraide Windsor-Essex County and the Government of Canada’s Emergency Community Support Fund.
