No place for Vocations in Recruitment

Looking at current Curriculum Vitae templates and online recruitment forms there doesn’t seem to be a place for Vocations. There is room for ‘activities’, ‘hobbies’ and ‘interests’, however these descriptions don’t seem to fit correctly with Vocational Activity, and while some may consider it as a job or employment it really isn’t. A Vocation is so much more.

There are a lot of good people, young and old, who join Lay Orders, Prayer Groups and help out in their Diocese. This can take the form of Ministries of the Eucharist or Pastoral committees. However, when it comes to recruitment or employment. Where do these vacations go on a CV? They tell a lot about an applicant. Vocations are very important and complex and require not just a skilfulness at certain tasks, it is also an expression of one’s commitment to the Church and God. With this in mind, it may also encourage others towards a vocation if there was a section for it on application forms or online application websites such as Linkedin.

Looking at Linkedin, it appears welcoming and has lots of suggestions for different categories to highlight achievement and interests. There is even an ‘add profile section’. with ‘Voluntary’ ‘Awards’ ‘Publications’ and a whole list of sections, but not ‘Vocations’. They even have a ‘Causes’ section, with a generic cause button. On selecting a cause, it appears on the user’s public profile. The categories for causes include:  ‘environment’ ‘education’ and a few other standard secular causes, but surprisingly no ‘Vocation’, ‘Religion’ or as the internet sometimes calls it ‘Faith-based Causes’(which could mean anything), but still not even the nebulous ‘Faith based’ gets a look in.

It appears that there is no place for vocations on CVs or Resumes and placing Vocational work in with Employment or Volunteering, it feels disrespectful, as they are very secular categories and don’t really encompass an apostolic commitment. Is the lack of a Vocational category a failure on behalf of Human Resources or LinkedIn to adapt or recognise this important area? Or have we been so secularised that we have forgotten the importance of the Vocation and the value it brings?

Perhaps it is time to place a ‘Vocation’ section on CVs and LinkedIn and encourage others with our vocational efforts.