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How to Include Volunteer Work on Your Resume

April 15, 2017 by Vicki Tillman Leave a Comment

Done some cool service work? Here’s how to include volunteer work on your resume.

How to Include Volunteer Work on Your Resume VickiTillmanCoaching.com

How to Include Volunteer Work on Your Resume

One of the most frequent concerns my career coaching clients express- whether they are professionals changing careers or recent college graduates- is having enough experience for a new job.

  • The seasoned professionals fear that they are locked into their present field.
  • The recent graduates have little job experience to show on their resumes.

What to do?

Show volunteer work!

I tell them: Volunteer work can be recorded on your resume in the same way that you showed your other work experience.

Here is how to include volunteer work on your resume.

1) Get started: Make a list of service work that you have done in recent years. This work can include:

  • Non-profits
  • Community organizations
  • Church or religious organizations

2) Give each service you have done a *job title*. This can be unofficial as in *Sound Technician at Town Holiday Events* or officially-given names *Treasurer for Snerdlyville Community Church*.

3) Write a job description for each volunteer job title. As in any job experience, you will use these tips:

  • Describe your jobs in terms of:
    • accomplishments
    • leadership
    • problems solved
    • challenges overcome
    • results and positive impact for the organization or community. Make clear what was changed by your work
    • note that it was a volunteer (unpaid) position
  • Include numbers, if possible, such as “Created program to feed 20 families in neighborhood weekly” or “Helped 10 troubled youth graduate each year”.
  • Note #hours you spent in total for a single project or weekly hours for more ongoing projects.
  • Include action verbs. This post includes some *power words*.
  • Include job-specific words. Look at the job description for the position you want. Catch the keywords that are important to the job. If the organization you are hoping for uses Applicant Tracking System, the keywords will help your resume get flagged for a viewing by human eyes (otherwise, the ATS will simply pass it by).
  • If you can specify the percentage of time you spent on each of the tasks you describe.
  • Don’t forget to include dates of service (just like you do on any job experience).

4) Add your new volunteer experiences to your career experience section of your resume. Simply integrate the volunteer positions into your job list.

5) Tweak your resume so that you have several versions. For each position you are interested in, adapt the resume by removing volunteer positions that have nothing to do with that job. BUT don’t sell yourself short. When in doubt, include the volunteer position (as long as you are still on a one-page resume required by many hiring professionals).

Trail Guide to Career Exploration for Adults VickiTillmanCoaching.com

I remind my clients that while we often volunteer to make the world a better place, we also reap the reward of making our resumes *better places, too*.

You can get started with your own career-change exploration by downloading: Trail Guide to Career Exploration for Adults.

For more tips and help in changing careers or starting out after graduation, contact me soon!

How to Include Volunteer Work on Your Resume

Filed Under: Career Choice Tagged With: career change, Career Coaching, Resume, volunteer work on resume

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32 Easy Do’s and Don’ts to Power-up Your Resume

September 29, 2016 by Vicki Tillman Leave a Comment

Time to re-do that old resume? Here are 32 easy do’s and don’ts to power-up your resume.

32 Easy Do's and Don'ts to Power-up Your Resume VickiTillmanCoaching.com

32 Easy Do’s and Don’ts to Power-up Your Resume

My clients who are in job transitions often feel nervous about their resumes. Usually it’s not because they have nothing meaningful to put on the resume. Nope! They are stressed about the format, wording and details.

Here are 32 easy do’s and don’ts that I share with them:

Do:

  • Read the job description and adapt the resume to it, if possible. Use keywords that help the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) identify your resume as relevant for the job (job titles, skills related to the job, leadership qualities and other “soft skills”)
  • Proofread and then have someone else proofread
  • Glance over your finished resume and ask yourself, “Will it catch the hiring personnel’s attention within 6 seconds?”
  • Keep it to 1 page (adjust font size and spacing- but don’t make the font too small)
  • Use a simple, clean font (no fancy or goofy stuff)
  • Use single spacing
  • 1-inch margins
  • Send as PDF if emailing the resume
  • Include
    • Name
    • Contact Information- email, phone, snail mail address, website
    • Profile (This is your one-sentence elevator speech or branding statement.)
    • Skills/Areas of Expertise- include professional, technical and networking/soft skills
    • Experience- jobs and internships (If you don’t have much job history, include significant experiences such as missions trips, significant travel, or significant charitable work.)
          • Describe your jobs in terms of accomplishments, leadership, problems solved, challenges overcome, results and positive impact for the organization
          • Include numbers, if possible, such as “Increased sales by 50%” or “Reduced error rate by 20%”
          • Explain if there is significant time between jobs
          • Watch your grammar- keep verb tenses same
    • Awards
    • Education (and Professional Development, if applicable)

Don’t:

  • Create a fancier format of resume than the position warrants- an artist or graphic designer should present a wildly creative resume look, a lawyer should not
  • Use photos or icons if the job is not a creative position
  • Give an email address that is silly or difficult to copy or remember
  • Include Objectives (they went out of style)
  • Include Date of Birth (unless you want to)
  • Include high school name if you already have a college degree (unless you REALLY want to)
  • If you use bullet points, try not to include more than 5 bullets in a section
  • Use slang, contractions or abbreviations
  • Use the word “I”
  • Exaggerate

Try:

  • 2-column format (You can buy templates on Etsy if you need help.)

Power Vocabulary for Resume

Accomplished  

Trail Guide to Career Exploration for Adults VickiTillmanCoaching.com

Get started on your career-change journey with the Trail Guide to Career Exploration for Adults.

Achieved

Analyzed

Arranged

Assisted

Collaborated

Communicated

Completed

Composed

Conducted

Contributed

Coordinated

Created

Directed

Demonstrated

Determined

Developed

Enhanced

Evaluated

Executed

Explored

Facilitated

Founded

Generated

Guided

Identified

Implemented

Improved

Increased

Influenced

Initiated

Leadership

Led

Maintained

Managed

Mentored

Networked

Obtained

Organized

Overhauled

Performance enhancement

Pioneered

Planned

Problem solving

Processed

Productivity enhancement

Programmed

Promoted

Reduced

Reformed

Repaired

Represented

Resolved

Spearheaded

Stimulated

Strengthened

Team building

Trained

Won

Now it is your turn! Get busy with your career change and your resume. Contact me for wise guidance on your adventure!

32 Easy Do’s and Don’ts to Power-up Your Resume

Filed Under: Career Choice, Life transitions Tagged With: Career Choice, Life transitions, Resume

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Testimonial

  • Vicki began coaching me when my world was shattered by life altering circumstances. She provided guidance as I sorted through the ruble and discarded dysfunctional pieces that weighed me down. She gave me support and direction as I struggled to rebuild my life. She continues to encourage me to develop healthier thinking patterns and invites me to recognize God’s hand working even in the midst of the most difficult situations. She is amazingly patient and her wisdom is invaluable in cutting through surface distractions to expose the true underlying issues. I have been truly blessed by Vicki’s insight, perspective and counsel.

    - SM

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