{"id":3210,"date":"2021-12-20T03:43:28","date_gmt":"2021-12-20T03:43:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/?p=3210"},"modified":"2026-04-01T01:58:58","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T01:58:58","slug":"volunteering-an-alternative-way-of-gaining-experience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/candidate-resources\/volunteering-an-alternative-way-of-gaining-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"Volunteering \u2013 an alternative way of gaining experience"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Is a lack of work experience stopping you from getting the job you want? Are you returning to the workforce after a break and worried about being out of work for too long? Or perhaps you want to explore a different career without leaving your current role?<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Volunteering can be an excellent way to bridge your skills and experience gap while giving back to the community. Many organisations welcome volunteers in a variety of roles, so it is likely you can find an opportunity that suits your interests. If the experience is relevant to future job opportunities, you can include it on your CV or resume.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Benefits of Volunteering<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>In addition to gaining practical experience, volunteering can help you develop:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Connections<\/strong> \u2013 Build your professional network and practice social skills<\/li>\n<li><strong>Soft skills<\/strong> \u2013 Improve time management, teamwork, problem-solving and communication<\/li>\n<li><strong>Confidence<\/strong> \u2013 Especially valuable if you have been out of the workforce or have limited experience<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>Finding Volunteer Opportunities<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Before you start searching, consider:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What types of work would help fill your skills gap?<\/li>\n<li>What roles interest you most?<\/li>\n<li>What skills and experience can you offer?<\/li>\n<li>How much time can you commit\u2014full-time, part-time or casual?<\/li>\n<li>How long do you want to volunteer?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Volunteer opportunities exist in many sectors. Here are some useful resources:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Volunteering Australia<\/strong> \u2013 National volunteer positions<\/li>\n<li><strong>SEEK Volunteer<\/strong> \u2013 Opportunities across Australia<\/li>\n<li><strong>NSW Volunteering<\/strong> \u2013 Roles within NSW<\/li>\n<li><strong>RSPCA NSW<\/strong> \u2013 Animal welfare volunteering<\/li>\n<li><strong>Go Volunteer<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Meals on Wheels<\/strong> \u2013 Supporting seniors with meal delivery<\/li>\n<li><strong>Local Neighbourhood Centres<\/strong>\u2013 Community volunteering<\/li>\n<li><strong>Food Rescue Central West<\/strong> \u2013 Volunteer roles in food recovery<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Volunteering is a practical way to gain experience, build skills and expand your network. It can also boost your confidence and open doors to future job opportunities.<\/p>\n<p>\u2705 <strong>Ready to start?<\/strong> Explore volunteer roles today and take the first step towards building your experience and career.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Is a lack of work experience stopping you from getting the job you want? Are you returning to the workforce after a break and worried about being out of work for too long? Or perhaps you want to explore a different career without leaving your current role? Volunteering can be an excellent way to bridge&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":7047,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","footnotes":""},"categories":[57,58],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3210","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-candidate-resources","category-career-support"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3210","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3210"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3210\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7048,"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3210\/revisions\/7048"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/7047"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3210"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3210"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skillset.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3210"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}