If you suspect that a stint of recent unemployment is contributing to your lack of job search success, you’re probably right.
There are many reasons why employment gaps happen. For example…
John was laid off last week when the company where he worked was acquired.
Kevin quit his job six months ago after his father’s sudden death so that he could relocate back to his hometown to be near his mother and younger siblings in case they need him.
Susan left her job a year ago to attend school full time, and she’s just finished her Master’s.
Kay quit her stressful job after the birth of her second child so she could focus on full time parenting during the past two years, and now she’s excited to return to the workforce.
In John’s case, he may not need to rush right away to update his resume. But once he’s moved past a few weeks, it can start to become a problem. When recruiters ask him why he’s looking for a new job, he can no longer get by with, “I haven’t had a chance to update it yet.”
On the other hand, Kevin is firmly ensconced in an employment gap that has lasted 6 months. Unfair or not, the truth is that the longer his employment gap lasts, the more it can cause hesitancy in the minds of those reviewing his resume.
When employers have many applicants to choose from, it’s highly possible that they may consciously or unconsciously screen unemployed candidates out as they do their best to narrow down the number of people to contact. However, if their interest in your background overrides that hesitancy, they will contact you and simply ask about it during your first screening interview.
The best way to deal with an employment gap on your resume is to fill it. You’ll want to show your activities during the time gap to demonstrate that you’ve not been sitting idle and that you’re the go-getter they might want to hire.
If the activities were personal, one way to fill the gap on the resume is to add a simple statement in the experience section such as “Took sabbatical to travel the world” or “Cared for terminally ill family member” along with the dates.
But what about Kay? Maybe she doesn’t want to disclose on her resume that she has young children, which could be a wise precaution considering the possibility of discrimination.
It’s true that whenever possible, it’s much better to fill the gap with career-enhancing activities since this is what will impress employers and help overcome potential hesitancy. For example, of the scenarios listed above, Susan’s year-long gap would cause the least hesitancy because she was working on enhancing her career in the pursuit of her degree.
The usual question that someone with personal reasons for the gap should answer is “What else have I done during the gap?” Many full time parents like Kay volunteer, learn new skills, help their friends with various business and/or career problems, etc. However, Kevin has been fully preoccupied dealing with grief, traveling back and forth to his hometown, and helping his family with the funeral arrangements and estate settlement, as well as finding a new apartment, packing, and moving from one city to another.
So, what do you do if your reason for the gap has been purely personal, and you haven’t been keeping your skills updated or doing anything even remotely career-related?
The answer is that you start doing those activities now. Reach out to a worthwhile cause or project that could utilize your skills and volunteer to help them. Take professional development classes/training online. Find a contract or consulting work assignment – whether it’s to help a friend for free, or you are formally paid.
Once you begin the activity, you can legitimately add it to your resume (along with your personal reason) while showing the start of the gap date to present. The most recent experience listed in your resume’s experience section might end up looking something like the following.
The bottom line is that life happens, and whether by choice or not, you may need to deal with an occasional employment gap every now and then. The good news is that you are the one who controls the narrative and how you tell your story. Just keep in mind that employers care most about the career-related parts of your story, so do what makes sense to make that the focus.