When building a resume and writing a cover letter to impress potential employers people tend to place their focus on areas that don't tend to matter the most. Sure, it's important to put down any education, training or certificates you might have such as an architecture training course you might have taken or provide information about the college or university you attended. Those things are very important to put down on a resume. The business you're applying to wants to know such information. Which is why you need to include it in your resume.
It's just that companies get so many applications, cover letters and resumes to look over for their job openings. That means they tend to get a lot of the same types of people applying at their place of business. They get a little tired of reading over resumes that all seem the same to them. What they are looking for is something that's different. Something that stands out to them. Which is why when they see a resume with an extensive list of volunteer experience, they tend to gravitate towards that applicant.
Volunteer experience is usually the missing ingredient in a lot of people's resumes. If you have any volunteer experience whatsoever you need to include it in your resume. Doesn't matter if it's leading team building seminars or working on influencer marketing information sessions, as examples. Any volunteer experience you have matters a great deal. It shows to a potential employer that you are willing to go that extra step to produce and that you don't need to be prodded into doing it.
If the reason why your resume is lacking a volunteer experience section is because you have no volunteer experience then you need to do something about that right this instant. Go out and volunteer at some sort of an organization in your area. There are plenty of organizations always on the lookout for new volunteers. They need all the help they can get.
Give back to your community. Show to your community and to yourself that you actually do care about your community and the people that live in it. Spend some time volunteering before you apply for that job as a pipe fitter. You'll come to appreciate what you have a lot more as you see people around you survive with a lot less. Volunteering will look good on your resume and give you that extra edge you need over the other people you're competing with for available jobs. Plus volunteering just makes you feel really good about yourself knowing that you're giving back to the community.
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