College Strategies

Lesson 7: Part Time Jobs: the Good and the Ugly

Volunteer Work

If you have some extra spare time on your hands and do not terribly need the money; consider volunteering in something you enjoy. There are several benefits to free labour, usually it is easier to get hired for example! It can give you a lot of good skills and relevant experience that you can put on your resume. Doing too much volunteer work can also make a future employer wonder why you weren’t able to hold down a paying job. To avoid them thinking that do not always mention something was a volunteer job! Make it sound like a real job but don’t explicitly state it. Sometimes it is good not to mention something, now of course if you are asked do not lie! When they do some fact checking and see you lied, you can forget about the job. Nobody wants to work with someone who is dishonest from day one.

Employers often value if someone has done volunteer work, so it can work in your favor. A lot of graduate schools definitely look at it and it can give you a significant edge, especially if you volunteered in a similar field. If you are for example planning to go to medical school, go and volunteer at your local hospital or hospital for sick kids if you love kids.

It is easier to find a volunteer job in the direction or field you are interested in than a ‘real’ job, if you are seriously considering grad school, definitely consider volunteer work if you cannot get something paid in your field. Do this only if you have solid time management skills; you do not want to have all the volunteer hours but no grades to get into a professional or graduate school at the end of the road! Common mistake made is that people tend to overwork themselves. Calculate in time you need to do homework and to have time for yourself. After that, whatever you have left, donate it to a volunteer job or a proper job. Never forget to think of yourself first when it comes to time. There is really no point in having three jobs and at the same time fail every test you take because you don’t have time to study for them.

To find volunteer work you can go to your career center as well. Sometimes there are designated institutions on a campus that take in volunteers. They often advertise on bulletin boards and message boards across campus. Also go to student organizations, they usually need volunteers for events and advertising. The plus side to those jobs is that you usually get free food or a t-shirt or something those lines. Since you get to attend the event it can also just be a good time, while you are packing on the leadership skills and volunteer hours. Try to run for positions in student organizations. These appointments look amazing on your resume and you are sure to get valuable skills. Do avoid them though if you are not planning to be absolutely dedicated, it is easy to loose your title, job and good name in the entire college if things go wrong.

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