What a great idea! Volunteering in a profession where you hope to work! Get practical experience that you can use on your resume, and gain valuable professional references for your application. Outstanding!
When I began working at the library I was fortunate NOT to have to volunteer. However, with two graduate degrees, I did start at the library aide level, and worked my way up to specialist over 2 years. I also notice that several of our aides, desire a career in library work and are working toward a library school degree. Fortunately we live in a large enough city to have several branches with the need for lots of entry level workers.
As I thought about volunteering in my own life I recognized that I did volunteer to help establish my music teaching and music performance career. That is, unpaid performing or unpaid teaching that hopefully allows one to gain experience and develop skill toward a professional position.
There were the inevitable high school all-star bands and orchestras that were and honor to be a part of. These groups provided lots of rehearsal and performance opportunities led by skilled directors and teachers who help the musicians master the music. There were the peer teaching experiences, even membership in the Future Teachers of America.
Part of collegiate teacher education is professional observation and student teaching. These are valuable learning experiences and provide valuable staffing for the schools. Not only did we "volunteer," we actually paid tuition to serve and develop experience and skill. We were rewarded by making professional friends from our supervising teachers and by gaining professional recommendations for our job applications.
Even as an adult, degreed and working in the profession, there are opportunies for volunteering. Membership in community and other adult bands helps keep music alive in many towns, especially serving the senior population that attends most of the concerts. Music teachers can learn new music, revisit music they haven't played in a number of years, and keep alive their own love of performing.
In music there is a term often associated with symphony orchestras that especially is germane to this discussion: Philharmonic - "for the love of music." Banding together to produce music, just for the love of the art. This is the height of volunteerism in music.
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