Volunteer to boost your career

There’s no question volunteering is great for your wellbeing and for the wider community, but it can also be a boon to your career. From growing your personal and professional networks to helping you stand out from the broader jobseeking crowd, the benefits of volunteer work are many.

Whether you’re looking to get your foot in the employment door, craving a career change or hoping for a leg-up in your current career path, consider donating some of your time and energy. Here are just a few ways volunteering can help you reap career rewards.

1 Expanding your network

Volunteering leads to meeting new and often like-minded people, so it’s an invaluable networking opportunity. Aside from the friendships and general good-deed camaraderie that may arise, the exposure to different people means new connections – both personal and professional. Your new contacts may have experience with, influence in or information about your field or job of interest. They might also be able to point you towards professional organisations, industry associations, internship programs, other professional contacts or even employment leads to help you in your career pursuits.

To bolster your prospects, cultivate these relationships, whether with your volunteer supervisor, people within the organisation or your fellow volunteers – the more people you have looking out for your professional interests, the better. You never know… today’s volunteer supervisor may be tomorrow’s job referee.

2 Enhancing your LinkedIn profile and CV

Volunteer work can add significant value to your professional profile – it can round out your CV and LinkedIn profile page, for starters. Highlighting the (unpaid) work that you do on your own time demonstrates that:

• You show initiative and commitment, and make valuable use of your precious free time.
• You think of others, not just yourself.
• You have interests beyond making money.
• You’re able to manage your work/life balance.
• You’re willing to share your skills with charities, non-profit organisations and the wider community.

Ultimately, these attributes can help you stand out from others with comparable skills who are also navigating the job market.

Experience as a volunteer can make a positive impression on hiring managers. You’ll come across as a well-rounded professional – possibly one that people are more likely to hire or promote. In fact, research has shown that people who volunteer are actually happier with their work/life balance, and experience less burnout and stress. That’s appealing to potential employers.

What’s more, if you’ve got holes in your CV – maybe you were made redundant, took a gap year, spent time as a stay-at-home parent or were terribly unhappy doing what you were doing – volunteer work can help to fill some of those conspicuous hiatuses. Plus, sharing stories of your volunteering escapades makes for interesting conversation during interviews, too.

3 Gaining experience, strengthening existing skills and learning new skills

If you’re not sure what you want to do with your career, or are considering a career change, volunteering provides the perfect opportunity to get your feet wet in something new without having to make a long-term commitment. You’ll not only gain worthwhile experience, but you’ll get to find out whether you actually like the work. For example, perhaps you’re an accountant feeling a bit burnt out by the numbers game and want to explore your love of animals. Before applying to veterinary school, try volunteering at your local animal shelter to see whether it’s really for you.

Volunteering enables you to practise and reinforce your existing skills – maybe you’re a strong leader or a natural when it comes to fundraising. You can use these skills as a volunteer, which will in turn serve you well in your workplace. Think of it as additional job training.

A change of scenery can also help you foster new skills. Perhaps you’re an incredibly shy person, but now you’re knocking on doors and talking to a variety of different people as a volunteer for a political campaign (and developing your social skills). Or maybe you’ve always worked independently and now you’re getting to see what it’s like to work as part of a team.

Whatever your career aspirations, volunteering can only help you get there. You’ll also be doing some good while you’re at it.