Is it appropriate to indicate being a member of an online community in your resume?

Question

I am a teacher and an undergraduate student about to complete my study. I was recently working on my CV and I got stuck.

The problem is, as an individual I like being part of organizations and platforms (some of which are online, like this one; Academia Stack Exchange) that will help me continue to learn and develop as a professional. I am convinced that continuous professional development, as I would term it, will be a plus when seeking a job. The purpose of the CV is to secure a teaching job in a higher institution.

I am however confused as to the appropriateness of including these memberships on my CV. If it is appropriate to capture these memberships, how do I go about it? Thank you.

Answer 1

Membership information can be helpful on an academic CV in several respects. First, it tells people what communities you are interested in or involved in. Second, it can show "service to the profession" that you have performed. Online communities are not fundamentally different in this regard to other communities. (Contributions on a stack.exchange website or other online community can count as service to the profession in a range of academic jobs.) In these cases, you should do more than just listing yourself as a member of a group --- also explain your activities, contribution to the group, length of service, etc.