Your CV is a document that tells a story, and a hobbies section can add helpful personal details. Learn more about what kinds of hobbies to feature on your CV.
Think of your CV as your story, your way to promote yourself, and what you offer to potential employers. While that story tends to focus on your professional efforts鈥攚hat you鈥檝e done, the skills you鈥檝e developed, and what you鈥檙e excited to do next鈥攁 hobbies section can add more personal details.聽
Let鈥檚 review when you might want to include a hobbies section on your CV, what you can list, and how to format that information.
A hobbies section on your CV is an opportunity to share more about you, providing a larger picture than your professional accomplishments alone may convey. Employers tend to be more interested in your professional experience and skills. Still, they may use details from a hobby section to learn more about your personality, interests, and skills to decide if you fit their company culture well.聽聽
When applying for a job, you have limited space on your CV to share the most important and relevant information. A general rule is to keep your CV to two pages.聽
Your CV should always include certain sections, such as a header, education, experience, and skills. You may also want to include a summary or profile, depending on your goals. Given the limited space you have to work with, a hobbies section isn鈥檛 always necessary. If you still have room after including all required sections, consider adding a hobbies section.聽
You may want to use a hobbies section when:聽
You鈥檙e a recent graduate looking for your first full-time role
You鈥檙e reentering the workforce after a significant gap
You haven鈥檛 yet earned a lot of experience聽
You haven鈥檛 yet developed many skills聽聽
A company specifically requests one聽
Follow the steps below to determine what hobbies you should include on your CV and how to format them.聽
1. Make a list. Think of 5 to 10 hobbies or interests you enjoy. These can be things you do occasionally or frequently, but they should illustrate your personality.聽
2. Review the job description. Read over the 鈥渆ssential鈥 and 鈥渄esirable鈥 sections to see if any personality traits stand out. For example, is the company鈥檚 ideal candidate someone who takes initiative or has strong attention to detail? Determine whether you can align your list's hobbies with the job description's characteristics.聽聽
3. Review the company鈥檚 mission. Review the company鈥檚 鈥淎bout鈥 section on its website and see if any key traits stand out. Does the company emphasise collaboration? Do they value service or self-development? Again, consider ways to align your hobbies with the company鈥檚 mission.
4. Create a distinct section. Don鈥檛 include your hobbies under your 鈥渆xperience鈥 or 鈥渟kills鈥 sections. Instead, create a new section titled 鈥淗obbies鈥 or 鈥淗obbies and Interests.鈥 This should be the last section of your CV.聽
5. Choose up to five hobbies or interests. Figure out the best hobbies or interests to feature from your original list in your hobbies section. Aim to include between three to five examples. Use bullet points to list your hobbies, or create one to two sentences and use commas to separate them.聽
Let鈥檚 review three ways to build a hobbies section on your CV:聽
There may be times when the hobbies you list align naturally with the role you鈥檙e applying for, giving you a chance to showcase how well you fit the available position.聽
For example, if you鈥檙e a graphic designer applying for a role that seeks a creative personality with strong attention to detail and comfortability leading projects, you might choose hobbies that support those characteristics.
Volunteer lead at X
Painting (watercolour, acrylic)聽
Cooking Mediterranean cuisine
Learning how to speak Japanese聽
You may choose to include hobbies that highlight key skills. For example, suppose you work in social media and often have to develop new campaign ideas, including creating language and assets. In this case, your skills can emphasise your creativity, communication, and proactivity.聽
Creative writing
Reading
Sketching
Teaching yoga
Your hobbies don鈥檛 always have to coincide neatly with the jobs you鈥檙e applying for. They can truly stand alone, helping tell a bigger story about who you are. In this case, determine the best five hobbies or interests to share your personality.聽
Paddleboarding
Volunteering at X
Playing chess
Podcasting
Making videos
Not sure what qualifies as a hobby? We鈥檝e got you covered with the examples below, which align hobbies with the skills most in demand, according to the World Economic Forum's 2023 Future of Jobs Report [闭.听
Chess
Board games
Crossword puzzles
Event planning
Sudoku
Brain games
Painting
Drawing
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Writing
Playing a musical instrument聽
Woodworking
Knitting or crocheting聽
Making jewellery聽
Scrapbooking
Pottery making
Writing step-by-step tutorials
Modifying video games
Completing open-source projects
Programming drones
Developing games with Python
Creating machine learning models
Creating AI-generated art or music
Blogging
Podcasting
Making videos
Volunteering
Teaching a skills-based class聽
Teaching a group fitness class
Yoga
Meditation
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Hiking
Rock climbing
Kayaking
Mountain biking
Running marathons
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Scuba diving
Learning a new language聽
Speaking a foreign language
Enrolling in a class聽
Learning to dance
Cooking
Building websites聽
Designing apps聽
Learning graphic design
Coding
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World Economic Forum. 鈥, https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs_2020.pdf.鈥 Accessed May 17, 2024.
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