Voluntary work for university

Hi everyone!

I have been doing some voluntary work for Oxfam for a while and I will of course be putting it on my UCAS application. However, I'm not sure what I can say about the skills I've gotten from working there? It's a charity shop so of course I can say I have shop experience, communication skills etc...But is there anything outside of the box that I can say? I've already really use that for my part time job and my work experience so I'm a bit stuck for ideas on what to say about my voluntary work. I'd really like to have all three aspects mentioned in my personal statement because I feel like it shows that I've worked specifically for my future, worked to gain independence and I've worked for free because I care about the causes of Oxfam charity.

On my last post I had a few comments saying that I'm not supposed to talk about my work experience and job etc as it goes on a separate section on UCAS. However as I tried to explain, in every great PS example I have read and all advice given from my teachers, you DEFINITELTY do mention all of that because you have to explain what you have learnt from that experience, and how it will help your transition into university, as a course and as a career.

All ideas welcome, I'd really appreciate any advice or suggestions you can offer me. Thanks a lot!

Isabel xx

You can always say I gained X skills through my experience working at A & volunteering at B.

The most important thing with ps is focusing on why this subject, evidence your interest & suitability as well as how you will use the degree. Soft skills are useful but your application is primarily around the academic program you want to enrol onto.