idealpeople blog

You can tell your blog is doing OK when readers start asking you questions )

We’ve had one this week asking us whether non-professional experience counts for much on a CV. It seems that this particular reader has been quite busy at home doing open-source development work that has nothing to do with his professional role, but nevertheless is very impressive. So what value does this add to his CV?

What a good question.

Most recruiters will tell you that extra-curricular experience is not as powerful as professional experience. In fact, many job descriptions specifically ask for professional experience, suggesting that no-one’s especially interested in what’s been going on in your bedroom at home (oo er).

This general view is, of course, way off. Knowledge and experience is ALL valuable, whether is was gained in a professional setting or whether it was gained through trying stuff out at home. It’s all about how you sell that experience, and about what you’ve achieved.

It’s true that no recruiter or hiring manager is going to be too interested in something like: I’ve learned C++ in my own time, especially when the candidate who is professing this has no other experience of note to back it up. There are a few reasons for this. First, professional C++ is very different to “learning it in your own time”. Professional experience involves using a skill for something, towards an end - achieving something if you like. “Learning C++ in my own time” isn’t in the same league interest-wise.

But if you have learned C++ in your own time, don’t despair - it’s not necessarily a waste of time. If you have or are using your own time to add to your skillset with a view to improving your chances of getting a new job, then follow these simple steps to ensure that this experience shines through:

1 Plan your extracurricular work
Plan to actually do something with your newly-learned skills: rather than just “learning C++”, learn C++ and then do something with it. Create something. Do a project. Try to make that project as relevant to the field you’d like to work in as possible. If Billing Software’s where you want to be, then create a billing engine. Don’t just mess around with a home-learned skill, but always work towards a finished product or project.

2 Describe what you achieved, not what you did
As with any CV, always describe what you’ve achieved and not just what you did.

Compare “I learned C++ in my own time” with “I created a fully functional on-line payment engine in C++ which has had over 2 million downloads”.

Which is more appealing?

For more information on Achievements vs Benefits in CVs, click here.

3 If your experience is strong enough, it doesn’t have to be “home-based”
If you follow the tips above, there’s no need to emphasise or even mention the fact that it was “from home”. Instead, use your home-based projects at the top of your CV under “achievements” or “other relevant experience” (or some similar heading) and they’ll be powerful on their own - particularly in a CV tailored to a specific post.

We hope this helps - and readers, feel free to drop us a question or subscribe to the blog.