How To Become A Community Service Volunteer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a community service volunteer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Giving back to the community is a great way to develop a sense of purpose. Giving back also provides you with a wonderful opportunity to get to know your community and its citizens. If you would like to give back, a great way to do this would be by becoming a community service volunteer. As a volunteer, you will provide your services and time while helping others in need or advocating for social causes. There are many places where you can work as a community service volunteer. Some of the places you can volunteer for include homeless shelters, animal shelters, retirement homes, and libraries.

You can also use your professional skills in your volunteer work. For example, if you're a doctor, you may choose to volunteer at a free health clinic. Or, if you're a lawyer, you might offer free legal services for a worthy cause. Other services that can be provided through volunteering include tutoring, teaching, mentoring, and coaching young people.

Volunteerism can also provide you with career development opportunities. Volunteering enables you to develop new skills which are helpful for the job market. It can also provide opportunities for you to meet others in your desired industry. Looking for ways to give back in your particular field of study can be a great initial step for furthering your career goals.

ScoreCommunity Service VolunteerUS Average

Salary

2.1

Avg. Salary $26,775

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.9

Growth rate 12%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 2.17%

Asian 6.66%

Black or African American 12.47%

Hispanic or Latino 19.34%

Unknown 5.19%

White 54.17%

Gender

female 61.49%

male 38.51%

Age - 43

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43

Stress level

8.9

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.1

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.2

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a community service volunteer

Explore community service volunteer education requirements

Most common community service volunteer degrees

Bachelor's

62.8 %

Associate

13.0 %

High School Diploma

10.0 %

Start to develop specific community service volunteer skills

Skills	Percentages
Community Outreach	17.99%
Child Care	8.97%
Mathematics	6.61%
Local Community	5.93%
PowerPoint	5.74%

Complete relevant community service volunteer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New community service volunteers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a community service volunteer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real community service volunteer resumes.

Research community service volunteer duties and responsibilities

Lead bible study for 5th and 6th grade girls every Friday morning before school
Manage day-to-day operations including contract management, accounts payable, receivables, payroll and general administrative assistance.
Develop and maintain relationships with the alumni, staff, faculty, student body and vendors.
Coordinate and help teach adult ESL classes.

Prepare your community service volunteer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your community service volunteer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a community service volunteer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable community service volunteer resume templates

Build a professional community service volunteer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your community service volunteer resume.