Addressing Employment Gaps on Your Resume: A Strategic Guide
Contents
If you're wondering how to explain gaps in employment on a resume, it might help to know that many professionals take breaks from traditional work throughout their careers for a variety of reasons. These can include personal reasons, like caretaking or illness, or career transitions. The ideal way to address these gaps on a resume is to keep it concise, strategic, and transparent.
Focusing on what you achieved during the gap while ensuring your resume format provides clarity will ensure these gaps don’t hinder your professional journey.
Do I Really Have to Mention Employment Gaps?
You might be wondering, “Do you put gaps in employment on your resume?” Explaining gaps in employment on your resume is crucial to not leave potential employers guessing and making assumptions that might hurt your chances.
Be proactive by describing the gap in a positive light, which can include highlighting any professional development, volunteering, or other experience-building activities you did during that time. Being transparent shows you take your career seriously and can anticipate employers’ concerns, which helps to establish trust and mutual respect.
While explaining gaps briefly on your resume or cover letter helps prevent misunderstandings, it’s important not to overshare personal details. Stay focused on what’s relevant and how you’ve stayed engaged in your field to keep the focus on your qualifications.
The benefit of addressing employment gaps in your resume is that it gives you control over your story rather than leaving it to potential employers to guess. This is especially important if you have a recent or lengthy gap that’s likely to come up in an interview question, as it’s best to be prepared to answer professionally.
What’s the Best Resume Format for Employment Gaps?
The functional resume format is often recommended as the best resume format for gaps in employment because it emphasizes your skills and achievements while minimizing the focus on periods of unemployment.
The functional format typically begins with a summary, followed by key skills and accomplishments, and then places employment history towards the end. This layout highlights your skills and experience while minimizing attention on the section of your resume where gaps are apparent.
If you have longer or multiple gaps, consider listing the gap as a job entry itself with a concise explanation of how you spent that time. For example, you might include entries like "Full-Time Parent" or list any volunteer work or training/education. " For either of the latter, it can help to briefly describe the relevant activities or skills you gained, including on volunteer projects or in coursework or in internships. This presents any gaps in employment constructively and shows how you stayed engaged in your career or community.
Honesty is crucial, so don’t omit employment gaps entirely or fabricate experience. Instead, choose the best resume for gaps in employment to emphasize your skills and experience, while presenting gaps in a positive light.
How Do I Explain Gaps Without Oversharing?
How to write a resume with gaps in employment requires being transparent without revealing too much personal information, keeping it brief, factual, and professional. Focus on activities you did during the gap that add to your career development, such as training/education, consulting, or volunteering.
For example, instead of sharing personal details, write something like, "Took a planned career break to focus on family responsibilities while completing professional certification courses." You don’t need to sacrifice privacy to clarify the reasons for your hiatus in a way that demonstrates you used your time productively. You can even include bullets under a gap as if it were a job entry if you were utilizing relevant skills.
Avoid using vague terms like "personal reasons" without clarification, as this could raise red flags for the employer. Instead, provide just enough context to highlight how you stayed engaged with your career despite the gap. Taking control of your own narrative in this way emphasizes your strengths and sets you up for better professional outcomes.
Can I List Unpaid Work or Volunteer Experience?
It’s not only acceptable, but often recommended, to include unpaid work or volunteer experience on your resume if you were building or utilizing relevant skills. It can also help to address gaps in employment. Many employers genuinely appreciate the dedication, community involvement, and skill-building demonstrated by volunteer and unpaid work.
You can treat volunteer or unpaid roles like any other job entry, including the organization’s name, your role or title, and the dates of your involvement. Briefly describe your responsibilities and achievements, highlighting any transferable skills and experience.
In summary, volunteer and unpaid work not only helps fill in gaps on your resume but can also show a proactive mindset by demonstrating continuous engagement with your career and community. Always keep it honest but brief to build trust with hiring managers.
How Far Back Should I Go If There Are Multiple Gaps?
Most experts recommend focusing on the most recent 10 years of your career on a resume, so if you have gaps that happened further back than that, you can often omit them.
If you have multiple gaps within the past 10 years, consider grouping them under a single explanation, such as "Career breaks for personal development and caregiving," so that your resume isn’t broken up too much with many small entries. This approach is honest while decreasing the amount of focus on the gaps and their ability to derail the overall narrative of your resume.
Remember, the goal is to provide clarity and honesty without overwhelming potential employers with too much information. Emphasizing relevant skills and experiences from the past decade while minimizing focus on gaps will improve your chances of making a positive impression.
Should I Mention COVID-Related Gaps Differently?
Since many employers understand COVID-related gaps as being beyond individual control, you can explicitly label them in your work experience, such as including a line like “COVID-19 Employment Gap (March 2020 – December 2020).” Be sure to briefly explain how you used this time productively, such as pursuing online courses, volunteering, or developing new skills.
You can even include a dedicated “Career Gap” section for long gaps, especially if you gained significant experience through unpaid work or other activities during this time. Highlight any professional development efforts, including training/education or volunteer work, that kept you engaged during the downtime. This demonstrates that you remained proactive and motivated despite the hiatus.
Avoid using negative phrasing like “laid off due to COVID-19.” Instead, use positive language that highlights any new skills or tools you mastered during the gap to demonstrate your adaptability to an ever-changing work environment.
Directly acknowledging COVID-related gaps provides an opportunity to emphasize growth and preparedness, which, rather than harming your career trajectory, can actually help you shape a forward-looking career narrative.
What if My Gaps Are Due to Mental Health or Burnout?
Remember, you are not obligated to share details you’re uncomfortable with. A simple acknowledgment, such as “took time off for health reasons” or “focused on personal wellness,” is generally accepted and considered sufficient to describe any health-related breaks.
If the topic arises during interviews, keep the focus on how you built resilience and used your time for personal growth. Be concise and emphasize what you learned about stress management or maintaining balance, and describe your readiness and enthusiasm to return to work.
Don’t forget that many employers understand the realities of burnout and mental health challenges in today’s work environment, and that emphasizing how you overcame challenges demonstrates resilience and adaptability.
How Can I Rebuild Confidence After a Long Career Break?
A great way to rebuild confidence after a long career break is to revisit your past achievements and the skills and successes you’ve already demonstrated. Remind yourself of any positive feedback, glowing reviews, or projects you managed well to help you reconnect with your professional strengths and value.
Next, work on developing a clear and honest narrative about your career break to use in application materials or interviews. Keep it concise, honest, and focused on what you learned during that time and what you’re looking forward to about returning to work now.
For example, you could say, “I took a career break to focus on family responsibilities while completing courses in business communication. I’m eager to apply these refreshed skills to a new role.” This demonstrates that you are proactive, motivated, and committed to continuous growth.
Updating your resume using a functional format to emphasize skills and relevant experiences gained during your break can also help you build confidence in your abilities.
Review job postings to identify any gaps in your current skills and take online courses, seek certifications, or volunteer in an area that builds relevant experience and skills. Developing new competencies is a great way to build confidence while making you more employable.
Reconnect with your professional network by updating your LinkedIn profile to reflect your current goals. Reaching out to former colleagues, mentors, or industry contacts for advice, support, and potential referrals can help rebuild confidence while opening you up to new opportunities.
Finally, practice discussing your career break for interviews by preparing a brief description of who you are, what skills you bring, and why you’re returning to work. Remember that there can be a benefit to a fresh perspective gained during career breaks, and you can use this to highlight your strengths and how you’re ready to contribute.
Conclusion
By addressing employment gaps on your resume with honesty, clarity, and the best resume format, you can transform potential concerns into opportunities to demonstrate growth and adaptability. Emphasize volunteer work or professional development activities that built your skill set during these gaps to craft a positive narrative that instills confidence in potential employers.
If you’d like further guidance on how to effectively present these gaps, consider reaching out to a professional resume writing and career coaching service like YES. You can also check out our other blogs on related topics and watch our videos on the YES Channel to help strategize your job search.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I explain a gap in employment on my resume?
Yes, it’s better to directly explain gaps in employment on your resume than to leave room for potential employers to make negative assumptions. Include a concise and professional statement about the gap—such as focusing on family, professional development, or consulting—to clarify your career path and show transparency without oversharing.
What is the best resume format to hide gaps?
The best format to present a resume with employment gaps is either a functional or a combination (hybrid) resume. These formats emphasize your skills and achievements above job history, which shifts focus away from gaps.
Can I include volunteer work in place of employment?
Including volunteer work or unpaid experience helps fill gaps in your resume while demonstrating continuous engagement, skill-building, and dedication. Treat this experience like a regular job entry by clearly listing your role, dates, and accomplishments.
How do I explain a long gap due to parenting?
It’s acceptable to describe periods dedicated to parenting honestly and professionally. For instance, you can list “Full-time parent” with dates, followed by a brief note about managing household and caregiving responsibilities.
If you pursued any kind of professional development during that time, be sure to list it to show you remained engaged and ready to return to work.
Will employers reject me just for having gaps?
While some employers may view employment gaps in your resume as a concern, many understand that career transitions, family responsibilities, or health issues that lead to interruptions are just a normal part of life. The key is explaining gaps in employment in a way that showcases continued growth or readiness to return to work.
As long as you communicate information about employment gaps clearly and in a way that doesn’t detract from your overall career trajectory, you can address any concerns and remain competitive in the job market.
About the Authors
Katherine Metres Akbar is the founder and president of YES Career Coaching & Resume Writing Services, one of Washington metro’s two top-rated career success companies. She and her team have helped over 5,000 people and organizations perfect their resumes, master networking, get interviews, receive offers for dream jobs, resettle employees through outplacement, and optimize their teams. Katherine is the world’s only Interview AikidoTM coach, a Certified Talent Optimization Consultant, Certified Professional Career Coach, and a Certified Professional Interview Coach. An award-winning writer, she previously served as a U.S. diplomat and executive director of a civil rights non-profit. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan—Ann Arbor and a Master of International Affairs from Columbia University.
Michael Akbar is the co-owner and vice president of YES Career Coaching & Resume Writing Services. He is a Certified Professional Career Coach, Certified Federal Career Coach, Certified Business Advisor, and Certified Talent Optimization Consultant helping leaders build their dream teams. Michael leverages his business development background to help coachees get their dream job, often on the hidden job market. Michael has spent 15 years as an entrepreneur coaching business owners to break through their barriers to success. After talking his way into two jobs in order to get a work visa, Michael was inspired to create Interview AikidoTM to help people get jobs, even when they are underqualified. He holds a Bachelor of Science from McGill University and a Master of Science from the City University of London.
The home team is completed by Farah Akbar, a joyful, stubborn, and—some say—adorable terrier/pitbull mix the Akbars adopted from the shelter after a traumatic early life.
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