How to List Extracurricular Activities on Your Resume (With Examples)

Including extracurricular activities on your resume can be a great way to show employers what you’re passionate about and highlight transferable skills.

Should I include extracurricular activities on my resume?

Yes, if you’re a student, recent graduate, or early in your career. Extracurricular activities can help fill out your resume by showing employers valuable transferable skills such as leadership, teamwork, communication, time management, and initiative.

Clubs, sports, volunteer work, student organizations, and academic competitions can all demonstrate qualities that employers look for, even if you don’t have much formal work experience yet.

If you already have extensive professional experience, extracurricular activities become less important unless they directly relate to the role or highlight leadership and community involvement. In that case, they can usually be shortened or moved toward the bottom of your resume.

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Our Expert:

Eva Chan

How to put extracurricular activities on your resume

Here’s how to list extracurricular activities on your resume in different sections:

1. Highlight them in your work experience section

If your extracurricular activities are directly relevant to the job you’re applying for, list them as work experience on your resume, like this:

2. Include them in your education section

If an extracurricular activity is related to your degree and you don’t need to include a ton of detail about it, mention it in your education section. For example:

3. Put them in an achievements section

If the extracurricular activity you want to include on your resume involves one or more specific accomplishments, create an achievements section.

You can place this section anywhere on your resume. However, it’s best placed under your work experience section (if your achievements are related to your professional skills), or under your education section (if it’s more school-related).

4. List them in your hobbies and interests section

A hobbies and interests section can be a good place to include extracurricular activities that showcase your personality, teamwork, or leadership skills. This approach works especially well when the activities support the role or reflect meaningful involvement outside of work or school.

For example:

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Extracurricular activities to include on your resume

Here are some of the best extracurricular activities you can put on your resume to improve your chances of landing a job:

Student government

Highlighting your participation in student government on your resume is a great way to emphasize in-demand transferable skills like leadership, organization, and communication.

Professional skills related to student government:

• Leadership skills
• Collaboration
• Communication skills
• Public speaking
• Presentation skills
• Mediation

Club leadership

Just like student government, experience as a leader of a student club can demonstrate your ability to be a leader, organize events, and manage logistics.

Professional skills related to club leadership experience:

• Leadership
• Communication
• Collaboration
• Organizational skills
• Fundraising
• Teamwork skills
• Team building
• Computer skills

Arts

Practicing arts like music, visual arts, dance, or theater develops patience, diligence, and an eye for detail. And, performing on stage can help you develop skills like consistent hard work, stage presence, and working under pressure, which can easily be transferred to your career.

Job skills related to the arts:

• Creativity
• Attention to detail
• Work ethic
• Presentation skills
• Public speaking
• Working under pressure
• Determination

Sports

Your experience playing sports can show employers that you’re self motivated, reliable, and hardworking.

If you played a team sport, you can use your experience to demonstrate your teamwork and people skills. And, if you played an individual sport, listing it on your resume can highlight your independence and resilience.

Professional skills you develop as an athlete:

• Self-motivation
• Teamwork
• People skills
• Work ethic
• Reliability
• Quick thinking

Sorority / fraternity

Members of fraternities and sororities run fundraisers for charities, participate in community service, and lead campus events at their universities, and these experiences help develop transferable skills like delegation, diplomacy, and teamwork.

Job-relevant skills you develop as a member of Greek life:

• Collaboration
• Interpersonal skills
• Leadership
• Organization
• Problem solving
• Networking

Resident advisor

If you worked as a resident advisor at your university’s dorms, you should list it in your work experience section. Include bullet points that demonstrate how you maintained order, kept students safe, and followed university policies.

Key skills you learn as an RA:

• Conflict management
• Communication
• Organization
• Time management
• Multitasking
• Dependability
• Leadership

Work study

Working while studying for your degree shows employers that you have good time management, determination, and independence. List what you achieved and how you made an impact in a way that demonstrates the skills you developed.

Skills you improve doing work study:

• Time management
• Multitasking
• Independence
• Problem solving
• Motivation
• Resilience
• Technical skills (if applicable)

Volunteer work

Volunteering shows employers you’re willing to contribute your own time to help other people and your community.

List any regular or long-term volunteer experience in your work experience section, stating your responsibilities and accomplishments, as well as the skills you developed.

Skills you build through volunteer work:

• Leadership
• Communication
• Planning
• Time management
• Mentoring
• Patience
• Compassion
• Customer service skills

Study abroad experience

Including study abroad experience on your resume can demonstrate your ability to adapt to new environments and communicate cross-culturally.

Job skills picked up while studying abroad:

• Foreign language skills
• Adaptability
• Thinking outside the box
• Communication
• Patience
• Independence
• Intercultural communication

Tutoring and mentoring

Acting as a tutor or peer mentor is an excellent way to show employers that you have a deep understanding of a subject and the communication skills necessary to explain it to others.

Whether you worked through a formal program or assisted peers informally, these experiences are highly transferable to the workplace, as they show you can guide colleagues, facilitate training, and contribute to a culture of continuous learning and professional growth.

Professional skills related to tutoring and mentoring:

• Teaching abilities
• Communication skills
• Patience
• Problem solving
• Leadership
• Empathy
• Simplifying complex topics