Volunteering is More Than Just Resume Padding

Many would assume that the main reason teens volunteer is to beef up their resumés. While that is an important benefit, it is not the only perk of working for free. When polling students about why they volunteer, resumé-building only comes in at second. “[Volunteering] benefits me not only because it pads the résumé, but also because I feel like I’m getting over myself for once and finally just helping people,” grade 12 student Matt Oetelaar explains, “It’s a good feeling.”

This attitude is echoed by many students, a lot of them saying that the positive feeling they get from volunteering makes them want to continue doing other good deeds. “Something about doing good deeds brings such satisfaction to me,” says Rayna Tonellato, another grade 12 student. “Other people automatically trust you more when they know you’ve already done things for other people out of generosity,” she adds.

Beyond the trust factor are the networking opportunities many volunteer positions offer. Meeting new people and making contacts can be very handy in today’s world. Supervisors can provide you with references (which are critical for jobs and scholarships), other volunteers can offer you new opportunities that you might not have known about otherwise and you never know who you’ll meet when volunteering!

Moreover, there are a few unknown pluses of volunteering that often get overlooked, such as learning new things from unexpected sources and learning what types of jobs you might (or might not) want. Volunteering as a martial arts instructor, high-school student Becca Cloves elaborates, “It’s kind of fun and a lot of the kids are really intelligent and teach me things. It’s like having a zillion little brothers and sisters. I also got some stuff out of it about what I want to do for a job. I don’t want to be a teacher now!”

So don’t be surprised if your volunteer experience turns out to give you something more then just a nicely padded resumé.