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Resumes are a place to showcase your professional skills and achievements to the recruiters.

Most resumes consist of your professional experience, and educational background, as this information is crucial for recruiters to select you.

However, the real question is, should you include hobbies in your resume?

If you apply for a software developer job, the recruiter may not care about your "Gardening" hobby.

The idea is to add hobbies and interests relevant to the job. Something that demonstrates your core qualities to the recruiter.

For example, if you've led a team in your college sports, add it to your resume to showcase your leadership skills.

Of course, it's an oversimplified example.

But most companies nowadays want to know your personal hobbies and interests to give you the right work-life balance.

And they get it from your "Hobbies and Interests" section on your resume.

This blog will tell you everything you need to know about hobbies and interests on your resume.

Table of Content:

What Are Interests?

Interests are the topics that fascinate you and help you want to learn more about them. Interests can be broad or narrow, but they're always things that are important to us as individuals.

For example, you might be interested in cars or animals—or maybe you're really into music, archaeology, or modern art. These are all interests! They could also be specific topics within a larger field of study—for instance, if you were interested in classical music but didn't know much about it, learning about classical music would become an interest for you!

What are Hobbies?

Hobbies are fun and relaxing activities you do in your free time. They can be anything you like, from collecting stamps to playing video games.

What are the Differences between hobbies and Interests?

Hobbies are different from interests because they don't require any special training or knowledge to do them. You don't have to have any special skills or be good at something in order to have a hobby.

Interests are more specific than hobbies, usually taking up more time and effort than your average hobby does. Interest could be learning how to play the guitar, reading about science fiction, or even learning how to speak another language.

Why do You Want to Include Hobbies and Interests in Your Resume?

While there are no hard and fast rules, many employers prefer to see hobbies and interests on a resume or CV. A section for hobbies and interests on your resume or CV is often included to show that your interests extend beyond your work and help the hiring manager, interviewer, or employer connect with you personally and professionally.

When done strategically, hobbies and interests on your resume help in showcasing your strengths and soft skills to the recruiters.

You can also consider adding a hobbies or interests section, if:

  • If you have limited or no work experience
  • If your job responsibilities align with your hobbies and interests
  • If you are interested in a new industry

Also Raed: How to write a resume in 2023?

How to List Hobbies & Interests on Your Resume?

Ideally, the hobbies and interests in the resume should go at the bottom of the resume, only if there's space left there.

If there is no space, you can choose not to add hobbies and interests to your resume after adding all the important sections.

However, if you mention your hobbies and interests on your resume, you need to explain them to help the recruiters understand your points.

For example, it's not enough to add Basketball in your Hobbies section, and you need to demonstrate it by saying something like: "Played in a local Basketball team for a recreation sports league."

Also Raed: How to list key skills in a resume in 2023?

List of 40+ Best Hobbies and Interests on Resume?

Here are an extenisive list of common hobbies and interests on resume:

Indoor Hobbies and Personal Interests on Resume


Only indoor hobbies and indoor personal interests on your resume might represent you as an introvert. This could deem you fit for profiles that do not necessarily require social interaction - coding, writing, etc.

However, some indoor hobbies and personal interests on the resume demonstrate good reasoning and great patience. Achievements in chess and scrabble might reflect highly on the candidate's intelligence.

They are best suited in the fields that involve calculative risk-taking, strategic planning, and analysis.

Quick tip: The unique resume hobby section lists all unique hobbies like coffee brewing, flower arranging, haiku, etc., which can be a double-edged sword. It is best to avoid them on your resume if you're applying for a managerial role that requires business-friendly skills.

However, these skills are suitable for exceptional circumstances wherein you must apply specifically in these areas.

List of indoor resume hobby or common indoor personal interests on a resume:

Attractive hobbies for resume Indoors
3D printing Embroidery
Reading Baking
Fishkeeping Sculpting
Calligraphy Gaming
Sewing Coloring
Quilling Singing
Computer Programming Magic Performances
Table Tennis Cooking
Painting Digital Designing
Crossword Puzzles Photography
Writing Cryptography
Instrument Playing Yoga

Also Read: How to add interpersonal skills on resume in 2023?

Outdoor Hobbies and Personal Interests on Resume


Outdoor hobbies and personal interests on a resume exhibit a person's adventurous and risk-taking abilities.

They showcase a person's nature of coming out of their comfort zone and working proficiently under pressure which is essential for administration and leadership positions.

Quick tip: This resume hobbies list might be a huge turn-off for a serious recruiter and work committed in fields like medicine. However, it makes you a good strategist adept at planning and getting the job done.

List of hobbies on a resume or common personal interests on a resume that is conducted outdoors:

Hobbies on Resume Resume Interests Section
Archery Horseback Riding
Sailing Baseball
Martial Arts Scouting
Basketball Motor Sports
Scuba Diving Bird Watching
Mountain Biking Shooting
Bodybuilding Mountaineering
Skateboarding Driving
Powerlifting Skiing
Fishing Rafting
Skydiving Gardening
Road Biking Surfing
Graffiti Rock Climbing
Swimming Handball
Roller Skating Taekwondo
Hiking Rugby

Collection Hobbies and Personal Interests on Resume


A collection of hobbies and personal interests on a resume are an excellent way to show that someone has a nature for perseverance and usually indicates an exquisite approach to situations.

These unique hobbies and personal interests on the resume must be listed when the creative aspect of a person is to be highlighted.

You may list these resume hobbies and interests related to the fields like designing, crafting, and specific job profiles related to Human and Public resources.

Quick tip: It may not work well in an independent workspace where a free flow of ideas and thoughts is required. It may be too conservative.

List of collective hobbies for resume and common collective personal interests on a resume:

Indoor Collection Hobbies in a resume:

  • Book Collection
  • Stamp & Postcard Collection
  • Card & Coin Collection
  • Video Game Collection
  • Movie Collection
  • Vintage Collection

Outdoor Collection Hobbies in a resume:

  • Antiquities
  • Insect Collection
  • Flower Collecting
  • Seashell collecting
  • Fossil Hunting
  • Flower Pressing

Competitive Hobbies & Interests


Competitive hobbies and personal interests on a resume display a fierce ability to achieve a goal in a person once it is set.

Indoor competitive resume hobbies list exhibits that the person is very stern and resilient. He is prone to believing in himself more than others.

This is an up point for leading roles as he must believe and be true to himself even when others are not.

Outdoor competitive resume hobbies list subjects a person's taste for teamwork, loyalty, and commitment to your team in times of pressure and adversity. They develop strength and agility in a person.

This is very helpful in areas that pertain to long working hours outdoors.
Example: field surveys, site visits, sports trainer, yoga, pilates, dancing, etc.

Quick tip: When combined with people and language skills, it can be great for jobs like sales, where you require interaction with people.
Classification of competitive hobbies on resume and common personal interests on resume based on where they are undertaken:

Indoor Competitive Hobbies in a resume:

  • Badminton
  • Chess
  • Wrestling
  • Boxing
  • Martial Arts
  • Weightlifting

Outdoor Competitive Hobbies in a resume:

  • Archery
  • Cricket
  • Golfing
  • Baseball
  • Cycling
  • Climbing
  • Swimming
  • Horseback Riding
  • Ice Hockey
  • Tennis
  • Volleyball
  • Surfing

Observational Hobbies in Resume


Indoor observational hobbies and indoor observational personal interests on resume demonstrate the person's ability to sit and examine.

They can analyze small changes in a secluded environment, away from all the distractions. But they may not be suited for loud work environments.

Jobs that require precision and seclusion like design, coding, planning, etc., are likely to be appropriate for these people.

Outdoor observational resume hobbies list portrays a person's ability to sense the smallest changes in chaotic places.

Outdoor observational hobbies and personal interests on a resume are appropriate for figuring out flaws in the other person's strategy or body language. These people can even favor the outcome according to their whim.

Quick tip: This is an excellent opportunity for a** business analyst, interviewer** and certain finance/marketing job profiles.

List of hobbies for resume or common personal interests on a resume that is known as observational hobbies:

Indoor Observational Hobbies in a resume:

  • Fishkeeping
  • Learning
  • Microscopy

Outdoors Observational Hobbies in a resume:

  • Aircraft Spotting
  • Birdwatching
  • Photography
  • Astronomy
  • Geocaching
  • Satellite
  • Meteorology
  • Astrology
  • Hiking
  • Meteorology

Also Raed: How to write different sections in a resume in 2023?

Frequently Asked Questions


1. How Many Resume Interests Can You List?


After extensive resume writing research by our professionals, we suggest at most five hobbies on resume be listed authentically.

Mentioning an extensive list of hobbies and personal interests on resume might be an issue as the person may come out to be highly distributive. Having so many hobbies on resume might not resonate well with the recruiter.

It makes you appear erratic, and the recruiter might perceive you as a frequent job switcher. The recruiter might think that you will not be able to deliver your work well. So why risk your application!

However, if you really want to elaborate on your resume hobbies, you might do that in the cover letter. A cover letter provides space and is longer than a 2-page personal resume. It also has room for explaining.

2. What to Do if You Don’t Have Any Hobbies and Interests on Resume?


If you have no hobbies or interests, we have got some solutions to fill out your list of resume interests!

Volunteer Work: You can start with some volunteer work. It is an excellent way to enhance your resume. It is easy to discover and helps in your participation with the community.

You can mention your volunteer work if your resume deals in subjects like medicine, philosophy, psychiatry, etc.

Various volunteer works may include working at an animal shelter home, helping at a vet, a nursing home, an orphanage, a plant drive, a blood donation bank, a blind school, or simply allowing the students in your community with their studies.

3. Can I list False Hobbies and Personal Interests on my Resume?


Including a list of hobbies and resume that are false is a big no-no!

You should not use false hobbies on your resume as bait to fit the recruiter's criteria.

It may come off as a casual attitude and might backfire if they find out later.

Hobbies Section Resume


It can be difficult to describe abstract interests and hobbies in an impactful way.
Here's a complete personal interests resume sample containing a separate section for hobbies and interests that might give you an idea:

Lucy Ricardo
Senior Research Analyst & Certified Game Developer
HOBBIES & INTERESTS
Gaming
  • Ranked 9th in the Call of Duty World League (CWL) - Black Ops 4 | 2018
  • Member, International Game Developers Association (IGDA)
  • Member, American Gaming Association (AGA)
Volunteering Experience
  • Assisting in redesigning the curriculum for McMillan's Shelter Home for Boys by gamifying difficult concepts as a volunteer teacher at the Make A Difference nonprofit
Misc.
  • Appointed as the Contributing Writer at the Gaming Weekly magazine
  • Travelled to 15+ countries in the last 18 months
KEY SKILLS
Game Development
Team Management & Leadership
Data Collation & Analysis
System Development
Project Execution
Social Media Campaigning
Conference Monitoring
Deck Preparation
TECHNICAL SKILLS
  • Software: Phaser.JS
  • Programming Language: HTML5, JavaScript
CERTIFICATIONS
  • Certification in Game Development with Phaser.JS | Codecademy | Jan '19 - Jan '19
  • Learn Phaser: Basics | Learn Phaser Physics | Learn Phaser Animations | Learn Phaser: Visual Effects
GAME DEVELOPER ACADEMIC PROJECTS
Project 1
  • Created an action-adventure style fantasy story in Phaser by deploying Click
Project 2
  • Recreated arcade classic: Space Invaders, in the form of Bug Invaders
Project 3
  • Developed a game with scene transitions, animations, and tweens
CAREER SNAPSHOT
Senior Research Analyst - Team Lead
Certified Game Developer
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AREAS OF EXPERIENCE
GameDevelopmentDataCollation&AnalysisProjectExecutionConferenceMonitoringPhaser.JS
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PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Productions
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    A global research and advisory firm providing information, advice, and tools for leaders in IT, finance, HR, etc. with revenue worth USD 1 billion
    Team Management & Leadership
    • Spearheaded a team of 4 to execute social media listening projects including campaign & conference monitoring
    • Oversaw finalization of keywords, data extraction & deck preparation by deploying multiple software and tools
    • Supervised preparation of final presentations via graphs & pivots to generate quantitative & qualitative insights
    Data Collation & Analysis
    • Deployed analytical tools like Radian 6 for gathering data from social media platforms to curate & present insights
    • Collated & evaluated data available from online sources like news organizations & multiple social media platforms
    • Analyzed the data collated for rendering assistance to clients in designing campaigns for research & marketing
    Key Achievements
    • Formulated 25+ reports for effectively serving ~15 clients to render insights about the product’s market presence
    • Conducted research for US-based pharma companies in markets like US, UK, Japan & Europe
    Market Analyst | Sep '13 - Mar '15
    • Deployed primary research methodologies by collating data of pharma companies based in the US to perform analysis
    EDUCATION
    Yale University
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      A private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut with an academic staff of over 4k professionals
      • GPA: 3.5/5
      ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
      • Languages: English and Chinese

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      Key Takeaways

      In the end, we believe that you need to ask yourself one question. Is your list of hobbies and interests going to help support the positive qualities I mentioned above?

      If not, don’t include them on your resume. It will only take up space, and likely won’t make much of a difference in the eyes of your interviewer.

      Here’s how to decide that:

      • Look at the job description and see how your hobbies and interests can reflect the required skills
      • Don;t just namedrop the hobbies or interests. Flesh out it a bit in single-line bullet format. It will help the recruiter get to know you better.

      If you want to add hobbies and interests in your resume, Go to Hiration Resume Builder which has 24/7 chat support and get professional assistance with all your job & career-related queries. You can also write to us at support@hiration.com and we will make sure to reach out to you as soon as possible.

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