When you think of boosting your resume during the summer, the typical option is getting a summer job. Though getting a summer job is a great opportunity to earn some cash and boost your resume, there are also many other options you can choose from instead. You can volunteer to improve or learn new skills, learn skills common at various workplaces, develop your soft skills, or start a new hobby. You can also update your resume and career-associated social media for future networking opportunities.
Volunteer To Improve Or Learn New Skills
Volunteering provides great opportunities to improve or learn new skills. Many organizations are willing to take on volunteers to learn new skills such as graphic design and copywriting. You can apply for volunteer positions on TalentEgg, Bmeaningful, and Charity Village.
If you are lucky, your volunteer experience with these organizations could give you a better chance to work for them as a paid employee. Some organizations also have paid positions, and employees often start as volunteers to get experience working with them before eventually gaining employment. By volunteering, you can gain new skills and potentially, new jobs.
Learn To Use Software That’s Common At Various Workplaces
With many workplaces becoming increasingly virtual with the still-ongoing pandemic, it is helpful to learn software that is commonly used in these online workplaces. This includes learning to use Content Management Systems (CMS for short) including WordPress and Asana. Communicating with co-workers is also essential and learning to use platforms such as Slack and Discord will help you stay in touch with your teammates when completing projects. If you participate in projects involving much design work behind the scenes, you could learn to use common software such as Adobe Photoshop or Canva. Knowing how to use these software will give you opportunities to apply for various remote and in-person jobs.
Take The Time To Develop Your Soft Skills
Though developing or improving hard skills is important, soft skills are also just as essential to workplace success. TalentEgg offers eLearning programs to support the school-to-work transition and early career development of Canada’s top talent. Courses include “Anti-Discrimination, Diversity, and Sensitivity At Work Training,” “Dealing With Difficult People,” and “Online & Virtual Success.” If you strengthen your soft skills, you make yourself a more valuable employee to potential employers because you show your willingness to learn and work well with others.
Start A New Hobby
Starting a new hobby might be good for your resume. Some of these hobbies can align with the positions you are applying for, making it easy for employers to see that you are familiar with the position’s associated areas of expertise.
Having hobbies on your resume can also show off your soft skills and social skills including communication. Activities including public speaking, volunteering, and book clubs are great examples to list on your resume because they involve so much in-person interaction and communication to accomplish various tasks.
Set Up Networking Opportunities
You can always use the summer holidays to prepare for upcoming job fairs in the fall and winter. These efforts include updating your resume and portfolio if you haven’t done so already, and updating associated social media such as LinkedIn. It is always good to keep your resume and portfolio updated since those are often the first things future employers examine to see if you have the potential to work for them. If there are any specific employers that you want to work for that will be part of those upcoming job fairs, you can use the summer beforehand to acquire skills that will fit the positions they have available and add those to your resume as well.
There are many opportunities to boost your resume besides getting a summer job. Volunteering can help you improve or learn new skills, and potentially get you employment in the future. Using the summer to develop your soft skills or learn skills common at various workplaces will give you opportunities to apply to a wider variety of work. Starting a new hobby can help you learn new skills that could be appealing to employers. Updating your resume and career-associated social media will also help you set up good networking opportunities at future career fairs, making you more appealing to possible employers.