Awards, publications, memberships and other extra sections – Page 2

Include the course name, provider, year and, if it adds value, the length or a short note on what you learned. Keep each entry to one line where possible.

Examples:

• "Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt training, Quality Academy, 2024 (3 days)"
• "Data Visualisation with Power BI, online course, 2025"
• "Leadership Essentials Programme, company learning academy, 2023 (six months)"

List the most relevant or recent first. Use one consistent order of details for every entry. If a training led to a certificate, say so; if not, do not imply one.

Include it when the job or industry expects it, and skip it when it is routine and unrelated. In sectors such as construction, healthcare, oil and gas, aviation and food service, safety and compliance training can be important evidence.

Examples:

• "Basic Life Support (BLS), valid until 2026" for healthcare roles.
• "Food safety training, Level 2, 2024" for hospitality.
• "Working at height training, 2025" for construction.

Show expiry or renewal dates where training must be current. For office roles, general compliance modules, such as annual data protection awareness, usually do not need listing unless the posting asks for them.

Create one when you have important, relevant information that does not fit any standard section. A custom section helps that information get noticed instead of being buried or left out.

Good reasons:

• A licence or registration that is central to your job.
• Key projects that deserve their own space.
• Speaking engagements, board roles or military service.
• Exhibitions or performances for creative roles.

Avoid creating a custom section for one minor item, or for content that fits an existing section. A few well-chosen sections are easier to read than many small ones.

Use a short, plain, widely understood heading that describes exactly what is inside. Readers and applicant tracking systems recognise standard phrases more easily than creative ones.

Good examples:

• "Licences and Registrations"
• "Key Projects"
• "Speaking Engagements"
• "Board and Advisory Roles"
• "Military Service"
• "Exhibitions"

Avoid vague or creative headings like "Other Stuff", "Beyond Work" or "My Journey". Keep the same capitalisation style as your other headings.

The best custom sections highlight evidence your field cares about that standard sections miss. Some examples:

• Engineers: "Key Projects" with project size, role and outcome.
• Healthcare: "Licences and Registrations" with numbers and expiry dates as required by the regulator.
• Executives: "Board and Advisory Roles".
• Academics and experts: "Speaking Engagements" or "Grants".
• Creatives: "Exhibitions", "Clients" or "Selected Works".
• Developers: "Open Source Contributions".
• Teachers: "Curriculum Development".

Choose one or two that apply to you. Each entry should still follow the resume style: clear title, dates and a short description where useful.

Usually after your experience, education and skills, ordered by how relevant they are to the job. Your main evidence should come first, with extra sections supporting it.

Exceptions:

• If an extra section is very important for the role, move it higher. For example, a required licence can sit near the top.
• Researchers may place publications directly after education.
• Students may place leadership or activities sections before limited work experience.

Within extra sections, put the most relevant first. In a resume builder where sections can be reordered, try a few orders and check which one makes your strongest points easy to find.

Yes. Many small sections make a resume look busy and push your main experience apart. Each section should have enough relevant content to earn its own heading.

Signs of too many:

• Several sections with only one or two lines each.
• Extra sections longer than your work experience.
• Sections that are not relevant to this job.

Fixes:

• Merge related sections, such as "Awards and Recognition" or "Certifications and Training".
• Move single items into another section, such as an award under the job where you won it.
• Remove sections that do not help this application.

Give it its own section if it is substantial or relevant; otherwise mention it briefly. Volunteering can show skills, values and commitment, especially if you have limited paid experience.

Separate "Volunteer Experience" section:

• When you have ongoing roles or significant responsibility.
• When it shows skills related to the job.

Format it like a job: role, organisation, dates and one to three bullets.

Example: "Volunteer Coordinator, Al Noor Food Bank (2022–Present) – Organised weekly distribution with 25 volunteers."

If your volunteering is directly relevant, you can include it in a "Relevant Experience" section, clearly labelled as voluntary.

Use a "Board and Advisory Roles" section, listing the role, organisation and dates, with a short note on your contribution if it is relevant.

Example:
"Non-Executive Director, Coastal Schools Trust (2021–Present)

• Chair the finance committee overseeing the trust's annual budget."

"Advisory Board Member, FinTech Start-up Hub (2023–Present)"

These roles show leadership and trust, especially for senior candidates. Be accurate about whether the role is formal, such as a registered company board, or informal advisory work. Do not include confidential board matters.

Yes, if you completed it, especially if it gave you skills, training or leadership experience. National or military service can also explain a period that would otherwise look like a gap.

How to present it:

• As a job entry in work experience, if it was long or relevant.
• In a short "Military Service" or "National Service" section otherwise.
• Translate military terms into plain civilian language: "Led a team of 12" rather than unit codes.

Example: "National Service, UAE Armed Forces (2021–2022) – Completed logistics training and managed equipment records for a unit of 80."

Leave out details that are classified or sensitive.

Yes, if they relate to the job and you achieved something or built something worth showing. They can be strong evidence, especially for students and early-career candidates.

Example:
"Hackathon Winner, Smart City Challenge, Abu Dhabi, 2024 – Built a parking availability app with a team of four; responsible for the backend."

Tips:

• Include your result: winner, finalist or a specific prize.
• Explain your role and what you built.
• Link to the project if it is public.

Participation alone is less valuable, but it can still be listed briefly in a projects or activities section if the project you built is relevant.

Yes, if the coverage is about your professional work and comes from a credible outlet. It can show recognition beyond your employer.

How to present it:

• In a "Media" or "Press" section if you have several items.
• As a bullet under the relevant job if you have one.

Example: "Interviewed in a regional business magazine on hotel sustainability practices, 2024."

Keep it brief and factual. Avoid listing social media mentions or personal coverage that is not related to your work.

List them in a "Teaching" or "Training Delivered" section, or as bullets under the relevant job. Delivering training shows expertise and communication skills.

Examples:

• "Guest Lecturer, Supply Chain Management module, Gulf Coast University, 2024."
• "Delivered quarterly Excel workshops to 60 colleagues across three departments."

Include the audience, topic and frequency. If you designed the content, say so. For trainers and teachers, this may be part of your main experience rather than an extra section.

Use extra sections to show skills through activities: leadership roles, projects, volunteering, competitions and awards. These can fill the space work experience would usually take.

Useful sections:

• "Leadership and Activities": student society roles, event organising.
• "Projects": academic or personal projects with results.
• "Volunteer Experience".
• "Awards and Scholarships".
• "Competitions".

Describe each like a job, with what you did and what changed. Example: "Treasurer, Business Society (2024–2025) – Managed the society's budget and sponsorship for six events." Choose the sections that best support the job you want.

Not if you use clear, standard headings and simple formatting. Applicant tracking systems generally look for familiar section names, so unusual headings or complex layouts can make content harder to sort.

To keep extra sections easy to read:

• Use common headings such as "Awards", "Publications", "Professional Memberships" or "Training".
• Keep text in normal lines, not tables or text boxes.
• Make sure key skills also appear in your experience, not only in an extra section.

Products and employer settings vary, so nobody can say exactly how each system handles a given section. Standard headings are the safest choice.

ResumeBuilder.ae includes ready sections for Awards, Publications, Research, Professional Memberships, Professional Training, Volunteer Work, Internships, Projects, Certifications, Academic Experience and more, plus a Custom Section where you write your own heading.

Tips for using them:

• Add only the sections that help the job you are applying for.
• Reorder sections so the most relevant ones come first.
• Use the Custom Section for items like "Licences and Registrations" or "Board Roles".
• Check the preview to make sure the order and page breaks look right.

Sections you do not need can be left out, so the resume stays focused.