Thread: Job application: Do you have a hobby?

I'm filling out a job application at the moment. Now I know what i'm going to put, but i'm just interested to find out what you guys would write.

The assumption here is that the job you are applying for is not something where your RAD might be an advantage eg. working in a knife factory

I would be hesitant to let anyone but close friends know that I have an interest in straight razors, guns, or women. I'm sure many employers have plenty of reasons to not consider you, adding a few more makes no sense to me at all.

Yeah, there are normal hobbies and there are weird hobbies. Straights are a weird one. Computers or playing electric guitar are more "normal" ^^ Or charted accountancy for that matter... ^^

Poll now posted. You guys are too quick for me.

My personal opinion is that listing hobbies can only hurt you. Employers want people who have no personal life and will dedicate every waking hour to working for them. Isn't that what the exploitation of the working classes is all about?

I can see why you write that Chimensch, but I am inclined to disagree. From my experience employers find hobbies a good way to get an impression of what the individual is like on a personal level.

Besides, the job i'm applying for (and others in the same sector I have applied for in the past) specifically asks for a personal statement (as well as a seperate professional statement), the former looking for 'an informal statement about your hobbies, interests and reasons why you are interested in working in this field...'. The career lends itself to this information.

Mind you, I still wont mention straight razor shaving.

Listing hobbies on application forms is a very grey area. I always question the motives of the HR people when they put a hobby section on an application form. Do they want to know because they want to see if you have other interests besides chartered accountancy (sry Stuggi, couldn't resist putting this in) or do they want to see if you are a crackpot who likes to collect microwaved ants?

I am a manager for a manufacturing plant - the only time I pay attention to hobbies (if a person decides to list them on their resume .... I had my HR dept take the section off of the standard application form) is if their hobby has some relevance to their position. For example, if the person tells me that their hobby is restoring old motorcycles I would consider that an asset if hiring for a machine operator (mechanically inclined, good with hands, etc).

Originally Posted by Chimensch

Isn't that what the exploitation of the working classes is all about?

What if you're middle class?

Sandy, that form is so typical of public sector recruitment in the UK! My wife's GP practice recruits with similar length forms, and a friend recently applied for a job with the police who wanted a 20 page form completed. To me it would feel like a no-win situation -- the more you fill it with peripheral information about yourself, the more at risk you'll be of offering up info that doesn't 'fit' with their recruitment policy. On the other hand, if you're deliberately meagre with it, then you might be seen as having something to hide.

I reckon you should fill it with non-provocative and wholesome stuff. Stuff that won't come back to haunt you, i.e. avoid fibbing or outright lies. Music, literature, hiking (in Scotland there's got to be GREAT hiking!), amateur dramatics, film going, sports, you name it. Add in a little detail, a little history, and you have loads of entry points for interesting discussions during an interview.

In my experience, the resumes I've come across which list hobbies at the end have been useful only when I'm looking for an ice breaker in an interview or if I'm faced with someone who finds it hard to open up. I.e. it's a means to an end, but I've never used it for deciding on shortlists or the successful candidate.

Good luck, mate!

I'd be careful about mentioning any hobbies that could be construed as "different" or "controversial." While it was not a hobby, I do personally know of one instance where a person was not considered for a position because he had listed previous work experience in a slaughterhouse.

Why is previous WORK experience in a slaughterhouse a bad thing? It sounds voluntary. Surely any voluntary work looks good on a CV? Did the employer think 'oh no! a mad axe wielding butcher has come to get this job so he can go postal on us!'

No.

What was the job you/your friend/ the person was applying for anyway?