The Benefits of Volunteering and Work Experience- Why They Matter for Your A-Level Journey

As an A-Level student, you’re probably focused more on your studies and exams. However, something that you and other A-Level students all want, is to get into university.

Unfortunately, a full focus on studies and exams isn’t the only thing that you need to get in. There’s a lot more to being successful than simply hitting books and knowing a specific subjects.

You need to know how to apply that subject to the real world.

Volunteering and experience could provide you with a vast number of benefits outside the classroom, which can shape your skills, characters and future opportunities.

Ensuring your active outside of school can help universities identify the type of person you are and may even make you a more ideal candidate.

Practical application: If in-person experience is more your style, then pursuing volunteering and work experience could provide hands-on opportunities to apply skills that you’ve learnt during your studies.

This experience might revolve around problem-solving, teamwork or communication.

But overall, these experiences can help boost your skillset and create a work-mind to help you progress both academically, and in a real-world setting.

Skill development: Both volunteering and work placements can help you to develop a vast number of practical skills such as project management, customer service, and other technical abilities depending on the nature of the work.

These skills not only help you in your day-to-day life, but they are also transferrable towards boosting your resume.

Professional insight: By partaking in such experience, you’ll be exposed to industries and roles you might be keen to join in the future.

By doing such activities, you’ll develop a better understanding of the career paths available and their environments. This might end up helping you in making more informed decisions regarding your future studies and career goals.

Stand out from the crowd: Believe it or not, but not everyone conducts voluntary work experience.

Universities in many cases seek people with such experience – much like jobs do.

By doing such activities, it can help set you apart by showcasing your intent, commitment, initiative, and the ability to manage responsibility outside of academics.

Showcase skills and achievements: Partaking in such experiences can help to showcase skills and accomplishments that you might have achieved during your time.

Having such achievements can provide you with things to talk about during a statement or interview. By highlighting such projects and achievements, it can both strengthen your application and differ your personal view towards peers.

Relevant experience: Primarily for courses that idealize practical and specific skills such as medicine or law, performing relevant volunteering can be extremely valuable. This is because it showcases your genuine interest in the field.

Boosted confidence: By taking on this sort of challenges in a work setting, it can majorly boost your confidence.

When you successfully complete a task, it can help to build self-esteem and resilience as you become fonder of such environments outside of your comfort zone.

Expanded perspective: Voluntary interaction, especially in areas that are different to your lifestyle or other diverse groups that face different challenges, can help to expand your personal perspective on the world.

It helps to broaden your view, enhance your empathy for others, and possibly improves your ability to work with others.

Increased responsibility: By handling real-world tasks and responsibility, it might even foster a sense of accountability and professionalism.

Doing so can help create perspective on your own actions. They also help you in managing time, prioritizing tasks, and handling pressure in a much more effective manner.

Building professional relationships: Volunteering and working in different places can be a major beneficial factor towards meeting new people.

You’re able to connect with professionals, mentors, and peers within a similar field of interest. These relations can be extremely valuable when attempting to locate future opportunities or gain future career connections.

Gain references and connections: Strong performance within these workplaces can lead to your peers providing you references.

These factors are vital towards showing employers or universities that other people were able to rely on and trust you.

Explore career options: By gaining experience in different roles and industries beforehand, you’ll be able to gain insight on potential careers you could strive for.

Doing so can help you explore what peaks your interests, and what bests align with your skills. Remember, align yourself with an industry you enjoy!

Confirm your interests: Volunteering and work experience can help confirm or challenge what you’re aspiring to do. If you manage to discover a passion for a particular field, then great! Pursue it.

But you might also find a certain path that you originally liked, but learned you dislike when you went on the path. It’s best to make these discoveries early on.

Make a positive impact: By volunteering, you’ll be provided the opportunity to support the community you’re apart of.

This can provide you with a sense of purpose and might very well be fulfilling and self-rewarding!

Develop a sense of civic responsibility: Engaging in a community can help foster a sense of duty and responsibility.

This teaches you the values of contributing towards the well-being of others, along with the intense importance of community engagement.

Despite it being daunting at the start, engaging in volunteering or work experience are more than just some resume boosters.

They offer genuine real-world skills and personal growth, along with insight on your idealized career.

By investing time into these things, you’ll both enhance your applications, clarify your goals, and develop a vast set of skills that, 10 years down the line, you’ll seriously thank yourself for.

Embrace this sort of opportunities a gain a more rounded experience during your A-Level journey!