How do I address employment gaps on my resume?

Employment gaps in a resume can be detrimental to the job search. Addressing those gaps is an important step toward explaining to potential employers the reason you’d make a good employee

Tutorial

Employment gaps on a resume are sometimes a real problem for potential employers. Sometimes, the sheer number of resumes that are handed in for a particular position requires quick analyses of resumes and employers simply throw out those resumes that are show specific problems such as an employment gap. Addressing those gaps can be the key to keeping your resume in the running through the initial interviewing phases.

The most important thing to keep in mind when addressing those gaps is to be honest. If you spent a few months playing hooky from the adult world, you can’t say that you were working. You can be a little creative when explaining the gap, but you have to be truthful.

If you held several part time jobs during a particular time frame but there were several gaps, you might simply lump those all together with some generic entry that indicates what you were doing. For example, your resume entry might say, “January 2000 to May 2001, Full time student;.I worked at several part time jobs during this time.”

If you do have gaps, be sure to address them either in your resume or on your cover letter. If you have some reason for that gap, your best bet is to simply say that on your resume. For example, you may have an entry that states, “May 2000 to July 2000, no employment due to summer school.” This way, employers know immediately that you had a legitimate reason for being out of the workforce during that time.