Democratic Party experience on resume?

[IA_Seth]

Ok, so when y'all are applying for a job, do you list your volunteer work done for Democratic Party causes or candidates?

I ask because I have applied for a few jobs as of late that I would say I am at least "adequately" qualified for (more so for a couple of them) and haven't heard any calls back, even for an interview, and my resume has several campaigns and projects that I've worked on as chairs, etc.

If I didn't already have a career going that wasn't horrible and paid pretty well I would probably be a wee bit crushed, but as it is I am only irritated.

I have begun to think I should just list "Major Political Party" or "Political Candidate" instead of names to try to neutralize my resume, but then I wonder if I'd really want to work for someone who was so anti-democrat?

I can't blame them, if I were hiring and saw an extensive Republican volunteer history it may affect my impression of them...but what do y'all do?

[LynneSin]

1. No political or religious groups listed

If you helped registered voters that's one thing - it's a patriotic chore. But if you helped get democrats elected and the interviewer is a republican it could bring bias into the interview. It sucks for me because so much of the work that I do is political related. However, I have found a few things I could add like the voter registration stuff but most of it I leave off.

[MadHound]

2. I have generally left my political activities off my resume

It in no way effects how fit I am for a job, and here in Missouri such admissions could lead to me being left out from such jobs.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

3. Depends on the job.

I wouldn't unless it's a political job for a specifically Democratic organization/firm. Otherwise, you're severely limiting yourself.

[livetohike]

4. It's illegal to ask what political party you belong to

I would leave the word Democratic off the resume. I would go with words such as "volunteered for a Congressional Candidate in the 2004 election".

[Beware the Beast Man]

5. Never put religious or political info on a resume.

That's a major resume no-no.

[Radical Activist]

6. Include it only if it relates to the job.

If you're job duties relate to experience you gained on the campaign, then include it. Otherwise, leave it off. If you don't know what way the employer might be leaning, then using generic terms is fine. You don't have to identify parties or candidates.

[SteppingRazor]

7. No way.

Unless the experience is relevant to the job being applied for.

[kay1864]

8. Plus you don't have to have just one resume

Keep a base resume, but tailor it for each job you apply to. If Democratic is really really relevant, then you can always add it.

[IA_Seth]

9. Thanks for the input...

My experiences are relevant to the jobs applied for (or else I wouldn't have included them!), but I think I will go with the generic going forward.

I feel like a sell out when I do that though.

[eyesroll]

10. It's on some versions, not others.

If I'm applying for a job with a Democratic or liberal cause, I include them. I also included my Democratic experience on my law-school-application resume, but it will not be making an appearance on any law resumes unless I'm applying for a job with the Democratic Party or similar.

If I'm applying for a job where partisanship might be a problem (basically any other job), I'll list "volunteer on several political campaigns" under "other interests."

Unfortunately, I can't include Drinking Liberally on a resume. I'm an organizer here, and it's one of the coolest projects I've led/worked on, but there are maybe three jobs in the world where that would be worth mentioning.

[Richardo]

11. I've always found it helpful to customize my resumes in this manner.

:thumbsup: