Each summer for the last two decades, CONvergence has unleashed its organized maelstrom of geekery, nerdery, and squee on the Twin Cities, providing thousands of hours of programming and entertainment. Planning the four-day event takes 11 months, and the party is over in 96 hours. This colossal effort requires both a year-round commitment from around 200 CONvergence Convention Committee (ConCom) members, and the collective eyes, ears, specialties, and brute force of many hundreds of volunteers.
CONvergence is completely run by volunteers, and anyone who helps CONvergence do what it does is called a volunteer. Whether you’ve given one hour to check badges in the hallway, or 30 hours to set up and take down before and after a convention, you are a CONvergence volunteer and volunteering experiences at CONvergence are as diverse as the people who perform them.
And, believe it or not, your volunteer experience interests prospective employers.
Volunteering at CONvergence can take many forms, and can easily include cosplay.
So how do you translate CONvergence volunteer experiences—those hours of blood, sweat, tears, sonic slushies, set building, crayon organization, popcorn popping, hall monitoring, and massages—to professional experiences an employer wants to see in a resume?
Learn the Lingo
Many of your experiences being an engaged and active nerd may directly apply to the expectations of paid, professional job tasks. It’s likely the hiring teams at your ideal workplace won’t make the connection between volunteering for your summer convention and what they’re asking you to do—so you’ll have to connect the dots for them. Consider using these phrases and buzzwords to translate your CONvergence volunteer experience to workplace expectations:
- Nerfherders—crowd control, queue management
- First Advisors—emergency management, situational monitoring
- Badging—monitoring traffic flow, situational awareness
- ConSuite—customer service, food safety, stock management
- CoF2E2—beverage preparation, customer loyalty, mentoring
- Publications—editing, proof reading, layout and design
- Creative Services—art direction, graphic design, visual asset production
- Department Head or Subhead—team management, project management
Speak to the AI
Remember that job application software may screen applications to cut down on the number of candidates called in to interview—so you have to speak to the software. “Use keywords that will light up like a Christmas tree in an automated search,” advises Lauren Sindt, Director of CONvergence Hospitality. Be sure to use the exact terms in your application that the job description uses. You may even consider researching sample or past resumes submitted to jobs like the one you’re applying for, and find some specific terms that describe your experience and match the language of the organization you’re applying to. In particular, think about how those same key words that are in the job description can fit in with your volunteer experience, and then make sure to add them!
There are many ways to volunteer at CONvergence, like managing props for stage productions!
Don’t Shortchange Yourself
John Garner is not only a sub-head of CONvergence Social Media, he’s also a former co-head of Parties, a party host, staff in many different CONvergence departments, and a visual artist, all in addition to his day job. How do you communicate the value of throwing parties, hanging out on social media all day, and creating artwork to a potential employer?
First, he says, call it what it is. “If you’re applying for a corporate job, they’ll probably value diversity in your resume. So be sure to list ‘Non-Profit Volunteer Organizing’ as one of the things you’ve done.”
Then, frame your volunteer experience in a way the corporate world will understand. John, who has hosted party rooms for multiple conventions for nearly two decades, says that he’s been “responsible for all aspects of organizing and operating hospitality suites for non-profit organizations of all sizes to engage and entertain their memberships.”
Finally, the burden of being an artist is selling oneself, so sell high! John said artists who contribute to the CONvergence Artists Alley, or to other venues, are “solely responsible for all aspects of operating a small business throughout the Midwest. Excellent attention to deadlines and details required.”
After all, it’s not bragging if you’re telling the truth.
Badging is one of the easiest ways to volunteer at CONvergence!
Move Up
Maybe you’re looking to make a career move—possibly a dramatic shift. If unpaid internships aren’t feasible means of building experience and connections, volunteering at your local convention is one way to take those first steps.
“I definitely know that being a department head who recruits and manages a team of people looks good on my resume,” said Meredith McDonald, Co-Head of Social Media. “Plus I can say I know how to be a social media manager. I think volunteering in general is important to show on a resume—it demonstrates well-roundedness.”
“Geek brains are generally very elastic and agile,” Lauren Sindt said. “We take what we like from certain places and turn it into something that people are willing to pay for.”
It Starts With Volunteering
Something to consider when looking to use your volunteer experience on your resume is what you would like to do. If you are interested in working in publishing, you might want to seek a volunteer position with CONvergence Creative Services or Publications. If you are interested in working in film production and broadcast television, CVG-TV would be a great place to pitch in. If you are interested in a career having to do with food service or opening up your own restaurant, then joining the volunteer teams in ConSuite or CoF2E2 would be great options. For virtually any professional path that you would like to explore, there are CONvergence volunteer opportunities that you can use to learn, get experience, get professional references, and beef up your resume.
To learn more about volunteering with CONvergence, or to find out how you can get involved in year-round planning, click here.
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