How Volunteering Can Benefit Your Career!

• February 10, 2025

  Posted by: Gloria Dovoh

  Do you ever wonder how volunteering can help your career search? Have you felt that volunteering isn't worth it if you're unemployed?

  Volunteering has many benefits overall, and can directly help you find a job, discover your passions or to feel accomplished. It also helps build transferable skills, teamwork and collaboration, and can positively impact the community.

  From the many benefits, here are top five ways volunteering can help you find a career.

  1. Building Transferable Skills

  The best way to gain skills is firsthand practice! Volunteering offers on-the-job training that connects you with your preferred industry and helps you get involved. The skills you can develop are endless, depending on the volunteer position you choose.

  Some soft skills that you will learn can include communication such as presentation and phone etiquette, organizational skills, problem-solving techniques, teamwork and collaboration, leadership, time management, adaptability and flexibility, good work ethic including reliability and professionalism, empathy and patience.

  Hard skills will be job-specific, but some general ones you may learn can be things like: writing techniques, data analysis, copy writing (e.g., editing, content creation/management, research), and money handling.

  Volunteering is the best way to learn new skills, or to hone your current skills. If you feel that your resume has gaps, or you want to get into an industry that you have no current experience, volunteering can give you that experience and those skills to enter your preferred field more easily.

  2. Discovering your Passions

  Being a volunteer lets you dip your toes in all your interests. Getting a job in some fields is difficult, and you may not know if you will enjoy the work. Volunteering in various sectors can help you try out many different things at once. You may discover passion for roles that you weren't aware of before. Or you may realize that a current passion is not transferable to a job scenario. You never know until you try!

  3. Flexibility

  If the industry isn't what you imagined or the work isn't a good fit, being a volunteer gives flexibility to move within industries, or change industries completely with no repercussions. With a paid position, leaving too early or "job hopping" is viewed as unprofessional. However, with a volunteer position you have the rare opportunity to move with your current passions and help where you feel is needed which can help you make decisions about your career direction.

  4. Develop an Understanding of the Industry or Sector

  In a volunteer position, you have the unique opportunity to get advice and information from current professionals. You gain first-hand experience working in the industry, shadowing careers of interest to you. This provides you with an understanding of specific roles and responsibilities related to the position. You may learn something new about the industry, or about yourself in the process. Additionally, being connected and creating relationships with your colleagues and clients will help you branch out your network and may lead to an unexpected job opportunity.

  5. Feeling Fulfilled

  Being a volunteer is satisfying work, seeing the help you're providing to the community. Feeling proud of the work you're doing is one of the biggest benefits. Some jobs can be "just for the paycheque", but volunteering is the opposite. It's done with altruism, for the love of the community. Feeling fulfilled can have many benefits including: having high self-worth, clarity, confidence, improved quality of life, stronger personal and professional relationships, having meaning to your actions, and overall happiness and contentment.

  Having high self worth and confidence can greatly aid in hiring and retention. Feeling happy and having a good quality of life will show employers that you can do the job well, and that you are reliable.

  This list is not exhaustive, and there are many more ways you can turn your volunteering experience into a career boost. If you are having difficulties finding a job, consider volunteering! It shows dedication, willingness to learn, and may just introduce you to a new opportunity that you haven't heard of before!

  Volunteer Today!

  Ready to experience the power of volunteering? Visit the Volunteer Opportunities page on our website to explore over 200 volunteer opportunities available near you.

  Start making a difference in your community while reaping the benefits that come along with it!

  Click here to find your perfect Volunteer Opportunity!

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  Some more helpful information!

  How to use our Volunteer Opportunities page Interested in volunteering but not sure where to start? A few steps to help get you started

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