5 Volunteer Opportunities That Will Lead to a Paying Summer Job

By Lauren Young on June 17, 2014

As our current unemployment rate of 6.3 percent remains right now in our economy, finding jobs isn’t as easy as your 45-year old parents make it out to be. And while this can be extremely frustrating (speaking as someone who is still currently trying to be hired this summer) having some experience, even if it’s unpaid, can sometimes make the excruciating job searching quest easier to handle and to get hired. So if you’re looking for some volunteer work that could pump up your less-than-outstanding resume, here are some organizations that will provide you with valuable experience and references next time you go into an overcrowded Arby’s for an interview.

If you identity a little too much with Charlie Kelly’s resume, maybe it’s time to add some volunteer experience to your own.
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1. The SPCA or your local animal shelter: The Society  for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or the SPCA, aims to help dogs and cats find homes while recruiting volunteers to help with cleaning up their cages, helping with washing food dishes/toys, folding laundry, interacting with customers, and participating in off-site adoption events at the local PetSmart. Volunteering at your local SPCA or animal shelter is great experience if you want to work with animals as a career objective or just as proof that you can effectively take care of animals, talk to potential owners, and clean efficiently.

2. The Library: Air conditioning and pounds of Stephen King literature? Sounds good to me. Chances are, your local library is hiring volunteers year around and are always in need of college students to aid in stocking book shelves and helping lost 9-year olds find where all the “Captain Underpants” books are. If you’re an English major or just love the smell of books, this is great experience to add onto your resume as you’ll be in contact with thousands of novels, hundreds of pre-teens asking for the John Green section, and several book sales urging library-goers that “The Grapes of Wrath” wasn’t excruciating to read at all.

3. Grassroots  Campaigns: Interested in political activism and human rights? Then volunteering for Grassroots Campaigns will offer you experience in interacting personally with advocacy groups, political parties, and candidates in order to enact political policy and reform. As a side note, this organization also hires, so you may be able to fight for your chosen cause while being paid to do it. Past and present clients of the Grassroots Campaign include The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Freedom to Marry, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and The Nature Conservancy.

4. The American Red Cross: Prepping for a career in medicine? The experience you’ll receive volunteering for The Red Cross will definitely aid you in your future medical career and will also teach you subjects in psychology, biology, and education. Being a volunteer for this organization will show your future employers that you are hard-working, reliable, and nurturing, which are all great qualities to have as both a doctor and potential Burger King employee (for now, at least).

5. Soup Kitchens: Working in a soup kitchen offers great experience if you can’t seem to get a call back from Applebee’s or Taco Bell. Not only will you be serving others in need, but you’ll be gaining experience working with food, its preparation, and basic cleaning routines that will help land you a summer job at virtually any fast food chain.

Finding a job is tough, despite what your dad says and how he paid his way through college working as a busboy. Our economy is worse than ever, and that’s why adding volunteer experiences on your resume will give you a leg up in terms of competition and experience when it comes to finding a job for the summer or one that will eventually help you earn your college degree.

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