Assignment Title: How to Pursue a Ministry Career in 6 Steps (Plus 4 Jobs)
Course: CHMN 699 - Internship
Student: Kristine Sage
2022
Professor: Dr. Mary Smith
Liberty University
How to Include Church Volunteer Experience on a Resume (With Examples)
To create an effective resume, there are several experiences, skills and competencies to consider
including. Including your volunteer work on a resume is a great way to show your passions,
dependability and motivations to hiring managers. For individuals with church volunteer experience,
understanding how to include this valuable information may help your resume stand out to future
employers. In this article, we discuss the importance of including volunteer experience on your resume,
offer a step-by-step guide to help you include your church volunteer work and offer additional tips and
examples of church volunteer work on a resume.
Why is it important to include your volunteer experience on a resume?
Including your volunteer experience on a resume may help you stand out to hiring managers by
displaying your community-driven mindset, passions and work ethic. Because volunteer positions do not
compensate you for your work, they may provide hiring managers with information about the fields and
topics that are most important to you and your willingness to develop skills and advance your career
through volunteering.
Including volunteer work on your resume is also a great way to include relevant skills you may have
gained during your experience, such as:
Leadership
Project management
Dependability
Teamwork
Organization
Communication
Problem-solving
Critical-thinking
How to include church volunteer work on a resume
Consider following these steps to help you successfully include church volunteer work on your
resume:
1. Decide on the format
Before adding your church volunteer work to a resume, it's important to decide how you'd like to
format this information. To do this, you have the following options:
Include your church volunteer experience in a work history section: If you have relevant work
experience in addition to your church volunteer work, you may include both types of positions within
your work history section. This option is a great way to supplement your work history with your relevant
volunteer church work.
Include your church volunteer experience in a volunteer history section: If you'd prefer to
include your volunteer experience in a separate section on your resume, consider listing the positions
after your full work history. You may title this section, "volunteer work" or "additional activities." If your
non-volunteer experience isn't as relevant to the position for which you're applying, this option is a
great way to further emphasize your position-related experience as a church volunteer.
2. List your volunteer positions
After deciding which format you'd like to use for including your relevant church volunteer work,
consider listing each of your positions in reverse chronological order. For each position, be sure to
include your volunteer job title, the name and location of the church or organization and the dates you
were active as a volunteer. You may include six to eight bullet points describing your key responsibilities
for each.
When describing your duties in a bulleted list, it's important to provide as much detail as possible
without excessive jargon or wordiness. Try to include all relevant information without overcomplicating
your sentences and do your best to focus on the responsibilities that most relate to the position for
which you're applying.
3. Include relevant skills
It's important that you include skills developed from your church volunteer experience throughout
your resume. Consider incorporating skills in the descriptions of your key responsibilities or listing skills
you've developed during your volunteer work in a skills section of your resume. If you decide to use a
skills section, try to list four to six church volunteer skills that are most valuable to the position for which
you're applying and do your best to connect them with the information provided in your work history or
volunteer work section.
4. Provide references
Often, providing references for your church volunteer experience can demonstrate your
dependability and integrity to hiring managers. Consider including a separate section on your resume for
professional references who can attest to your abilities as a church volunteer. Be sure to include their
full name, your relationship and their contact information.
Tips for including church volunteer work on a resume
Here are some additional tips to help you include church volunteer work on a resume:
Substitute volunteer work for work history
If you have little or no prior work experience, consider substituting the information in a traditional
work history section with your church volunteer experience. There are many skills and traits you may
have developed throughout your volunteer work that may contribute to your success in the position for
which you're applying and listing volunteer work in this way may help your resume appear complete and
professional.
Include measurable achievements
When listing your church volunteer experience, it's important to include measurable achievements
in your descriptions. Try your best to start your sentences with achievements that include specific
numbers or data, rather than simply listing your duties. This may help potential employers better
understand how you would apply the skills and knowledge gained from volunteering to succeed within
their organization.
Add secular value to your church-related skills
There are many spiritual or religious responsibilities that may transfer successfully to secular
positions. If you're applying for a secular position, consider tailoring your church-related skills to meet
the needs of the position for which you're applying. This may help hiring managers better understand
the secular value of your church-related skills and understand how you would use your spiritual or
religious knowledge and experience to succeed in a secular role.
Enhance readability
It's important that you maximize the readability and visual appeal of your resume. Consider
proofreading your resume for spelling or grammatical errors, complex language that you can simplify or
large blocks of text that you can segment into smaller paragraphs or bullet points. It's also important to
use a font that is bold, simple, and easy to read and to avoid any special characters or symbols.
Examples of church volunteer work on a resume
Below are some examples of church volunteer work on a resume:
Church volunteer experience in a work history section
You may use this example as a reference when including your church volunteer experience within
the work history section of a resume:
Work history
Little Dino's Daycare | Long Beach, CA
Childcare provider | 9/1/2019–Present
Observe children to proactively identify emotional and behavioral development and provide
guidance accordingly
Improve education by implementing customized lesson plans to cater to different styles of
learning
Inform parents of daily activities, positive developments and behavioral issues
Provide excellent levels of care to children ages four and under
Promptly and efficiently provide nutritious and age-appropriate meals and snacks
Monitor and encourage developmental milestones through educational activities and
stimulating playtime
Long Beach Church | Long Beach, CA
Church volunteer | 8/1/2016–8/1/2019
Increased youth attendance at church events by 5% after planning and implementing youth-
based activities
Provided $15,000 in funding by researching, applying for and accepting youth program grants
Increased efficiency by assisting in Sunday worship service seating
Maintained positive and productive relationships with local and national churches
Added eight volunteers to the committee through congregational outreach and campaigns
Church volunteer experience in a volunteer history section
You may use this example when including your church volunteer experience in a separate volunteer
history section of a resume:
Volunteer history
Church of Saint Peter | Atlanta, GA
Church volunteer | 1/5/2017–Present
Provided valuable support to ministry teams in performing church activities, administrative
support and congregational outreach
Lead a team of ten youth ministers on a four-month mission's trip to South America
Successfully educated and trained new volunteers about church procedures, missions and
values
Raised $40,000 through fundraising efforts to donate to local children's hospital on behalf of the
congregation
Lead and provided guidance to up to fifteen high school students during weekly youth study
groups
Planned and coordinated activities for Palm Sunday
Saint Mary's Church | Atlanta, GA
Administrative volunteer | 12/1/2014–12/1/2016
Successfully implanted new record-keeping procedures and improved organizational system
Updated over 200 church member records and updated contact information for each
Reduced spending by 15% after restructuring budget and accounting systems
Successfully recruited fifteen administrative volunteers
Raised nearly $10,000 in donations from donor prospecting and communication activities
