How extracurricular activities can enhance your career

Swimming, football, chess, drama, and the list goes on. From primary to secondary school students are encouraged to attend one or more clubs to supplement their learning, to get active or get involved. But why? What are the true benefits of doing an extracurricular activity? Let’s explore that question in this article.

Building Skills

You may believe that some extracurricular activities are more valuable when it comes to building your skills. That is not necessarily true. For example, if you join a drama club, in which you plan and hold performances, do some script writing, organise rehearsals and help with set creation, you can use this experience to develop your soft skills which are important for jobs in unrelated fields. If you were to try and get involved in a science based career, you show that you are a well rounded person who has interests and passions even outside of science but also that you can plan, organise, write with purpose. Joining a science club would have its benefits; it would demonstrate that you have a personal interest in the subject. If you don’t get many opportunities to build your soft skills then that could be a hindering factor later on. It is important to understand that almost any club can help you to build transferable skills which can be discussed in interviews for jobs, apprenticeships, and internships.

Improved health & wellbeing

Your mental and physical health can greatly benefit from an extracurricular activity. Not only will you be able to socialise with people who have at least one similar interest but you may be getting active or giving your brain a challenge depending on the club you choose. So your mental health could benefit from regular activity and social interaction.

Crafting and Artwork

Not only can you create things that are aesthetically pleasing, but these items that leave a lasting impression. For example, by joining a pottery club you can make mugs, vases and many other pieces which can be gifted, cherished or sold. The same principle applies to other arts and crafts, including painting, textiles and more.

Event Planning

If you are part of a club’s committee then you may be able to set up events such as a mini-shop, a contest, a performance or an art viewing. This sort of experience can help you to build multiple skills including; organisation, time-keeping, team-work, creativity and more. Additionally, these events look great on your CV and can help you with building experience that you can use when you start working either part-time or full-time. Furthermore, you may find a new passion or just be able to use what you have learned to organise personal events.

Conclusion

In conclusion, you can be sure that, at the very least, if you join in an extracurricular activity you will get to try something different, build skills and meet new people, but you will also have the opportunity to discover a new passion, have fun, learn new things and strengthen your future job prospects by broadening your range of soft skills.