6 Tips to Write a Volunteer Coordinator Resume That Will Get You Hired

Overview

• What a volunteer coordinator does
• Why it’s important to be passionate about an organization’s mission
• How to highlight volunteer achievements

For those interested in the world of nonprofits and charities, becoming a volunteer coordinator can be an attractive career choice. This path is perfect for those who have organizational skills and excel at encouraging people to volunteer their time to help a cause.

To find employment as a volunteer coordinator, the most important step revolves around creating an outstanding volunteer coordinator resume. Knowing how to display your expertise and what makes you a great fit for the position can help you secure the right job. Read on to learn how to craft a winning volunteer coordinator resume.

A volunteer coordinator plays a critical role in a variety of organizations that use volunteers. They manage business activities involving volunteers, including:

• Finding and recruiting volunteers
• Providing a volunteer orientation so volunteers understand what their responsibilities will include
• Creating schedules
• Understanding the skills and interests of volunteers and using that information to put them in jobs that work best for them
• Maintaining contact with volunteers to keep them engaged with the organization
• Creating a positive and productive work environment for volunteers
• Tracking the tasks performed by volunteers and providing insight and feedback

The role of a volunteer coordinator at a nonprofit will also vary depending on other factors, such as the size of the organization. Larger organizations might have marketing teams, for example, while a small group might ask the volunteer coordinator to create campaigns to promote volunteer opportunities.

To create the perfect resume for a volunteer coordinator position, there are a few guidelines and suggestions you can follow to help you put forth the best possible application. A well-developed resume will accentuate your accomplishments and what you can contribute to the business. The right resume is not necessarily a summary of all your job experience, however. Instead, it’s a promotional document that helps draw attention to how you best meet the needs that the organization has for this specific position. Below are steps for writing an effective volunteer coordinator resume.

There are three main formats you can use when creating your volunteer coordinator resume. The following list provides key information on the different formats, but you may also want to review a resume sample or template to determine the format that best fits your resume.

• Traditional. The first format is reverse-chronological. It lists the jobs you’ve held in order, starting with the most recent. This style of resume works particularly well for anyone who has an emerging career. A professional with several promotions throughout their job experience can easily highlight the steps they’ve taken to reach their current position and what they’ve accomplished.
• Functional. The second format is the functional resume. This resume highlights specific skills that the candidate has, then lists job experiences that developed or called on those different skills. For candidates who may have quite a bit of experience working with nonprofits and charities, this type of resume can help call attention to the skills they’ve developed on the job that make them an excellent fit for the new position.
• Combination. The third resume style combines the two previous resume formats. Those who have considerable expertise and experience in a particular field, for example, might use this type to emphasize their industry-specific skills and then list their work history. A resume example following this format might have a section at the top of the resume highlighting important skills, such as “volunteer management” and times when they used the skill. Underneath, they would list their specific work experience in reverse-chronological order.

Think about what you can include on your resume, such as extensive volunteer experience, and select the format that helps you best call attention to these details.

To help you secure a volunteer coordinator job, you’ll want to emphasize why you’re so passionate about the organization and, in particular, their cause — which could be anything from working with children to improving the environment. You’ll want to do a little background research on the organization and mention specific facts to show them why you would be an asset as a volunteer coordinator. If you can, provide context into your passion, possibly including experience related to their cause.

Like any organization, they’re also interested in employee retention, and those passionate about their cause will be more likely to continue working for the business in the long term.

Your resume should also contain relevant contact information in an easy-to-find manner so no one has to go looking for it when they want to reach you. As a volunteer coordinator, you’ll want to know how to easily contact your volunteers — and your potential employer feels the same!

Include your name, email address, mailing address, and phone number. You may even consider including relevant social media information, such as your LinkedIn profile, particularly if it contributes to your application.

You’ll want to highlight relevant work experience, including years of experience related to volunteering and helping with nonprofits. Depending on the resume format you select, this might look a little different. However, it’s important to follow a few important guidelines:

• Focus on highlighting important information surrounding your past jobs without going into too much detail, particularly if the job is not directly relevant to the application.
• Don’t forget to highlight appropriate volunteer coordinator office skills, such as knowledge of Microsoft PowerPoint and organizational skills.
• Remember soft skills, such as interpersonal skills and communication skills, as well. Give examples of how you used these skills in your resume or include them in your cover letter when appropriate.
• Refer to the job description to note the important competencies they want to see in applicants. Use any important keywords mentioned in the job description to tailor your resume. Human resources (HR) professionals like to clearly see how a resume aligns with the organization’s needs.

Your volunteer coordinator resume should also highlight any achievements you have had as a volunteer. Recruiters and organizations interested in finding people to help manage their volunteer programs will want someone who has stood out in outreach and social service.

When considering the different types of achievements to highlight, ask yourself the following questions:

• Did you work with customer relations or public relations for a charity or nonprofit and communicate with the general public about anything?
• Did you help an organization with fundraising and hit any goals?
• Did you help grow a volunteer database by motivating more volunteers to join?
• Did you put your problem-solving skills to use to help a nonprofit overcome any type of obstacle?
• Did you organize any events, such as a high school car wash or charity event to benefit a local nursing home?

Finally, you want your resume to reflect your education and what you can bring to the organization from that perspective. Let those reading your resume know about any degrees you have earned and if you received any honors. Also, include any volunteer training or certifications you’ve completed, such as any volunteer management training programs or a certificate in volunteer administration.

When it comes to finding a volunteer coordinator job, Joblist makes it easy. Our job search platform will pair your background and resume with job postings in your desired location. You can also save searches and jobs to apply to later. Just answer a few short questions using our quiz and get a personalized set of job matches instantly. It has never been simpler to find the volunteer coordinator job for you.