Every one of us takes time off from our jobs at one time or another. Sometimes, the employment gap is by choice but other times, it is out of our control. It might be due to a layoff, downsizing, or a longer than expected job search. So, what is the most effective way to explain the employment gaps in your resume? The answer depends on what you did after leaving your job.
In order for you to overcome gaps in your employment, you need to take attention away from them without appearing to be lying or actively covering them up with what you are putting in your resume.
The first thing to do lies with how you list the dates in your resume; you are not obliged to list month after month or year after year if you held the same position for more than a year. So, instead of putting in your employment record the month and the year like January 2005 – October 2010, you can simply put 2005 – 2010 which may help to disguise employment gaps. It will look like this:
Grade 2 Teacher, 2005 – 2010
Grade 4 Teacher, 2002-2005
This format will not show specific start and end dates so you can’t tell how many months you were unemployed between positions. This only works if you are unemployed for less than a year, though.
You also need to double check the format you choose for your resume. The truth is that you can format your resume in a way that can help reduce or curtail the gaps in your employment background. You can do this by avoiding bold format on the dates or you can use a smaller font. You can also begin your resume with your accomplishments and work related skills instead of directing the attention to the dates of when you accomplished them.
You also don’t need to include all your work experiences in your resume, especially if you have been working for many years. It is highly acceptable to omit a job or two that may not be related to your job target or you can limit your work history to the last fifteen years.
You can also include the experiences you gained during the years or months that you were not officially working. You can input some of your volunteer experience or freelance jobs you might have had that can help to fill the gaps in your employment.
Telling the truth is often the best way to explain your situation, and schools will often be considerate in understanding your situation if you fully explain it to them and give good explanations as to why you have employment gaps in your resume.
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Thank you very much for the advice about employment gaps in your resumes. I have a lot of problems with this on my resume, your article was very helpful to me.