A resume is the most important tool in the process of your job search so it needs to be impressive. But what if you have employment gaps in your resume? You might be referred to as "Unemployed Bias."
Potential employers and recruiters might lose interest in your profile because they feel that you might have lost your interest in work or might not be up-to-date with the industry trends and changes.
Their preference, to hire people who are currently working, is natural. So, what is the best way to hide employment gaps on your resume? Well, here are a few ideas!
5 Best Ways to Hide Employment Gaps on a Resume
1. Write A Functional Resume:
There are multiple ways to create a resume but a functional resume is what can help you hide your employment gaps. It focuses on the skills spent and achievements accomplished during your job. Instead of mentioning the jobs in an chronological order, the body of your resume will mention your technical abilities like, programming, development, sales and many more.
This way, your resume will assure the hiring manager that you possess all the required skills and experience required for the job. He/She will be more engaged in the skills mentioned and will not be drawn to any employment gaps.
2. Mention Only The Employment Years On Your Resume, Not Months:
Many candidates don’t feel comfortable using the functional approach in their resume and want to go with the traditional, chronological resume format. However, you will be glad to know that, to an extent, you can still hide those employment gaps.
Yes, you can! Simply highlight only the employment years in your resume and not months. This method will make it difficult for anyone to ascertain short employment gaps.
Not only do people with employment gaps use this method, but also those who have been frequently jumping from one job to another. Having said that, remember the fact that an employment gap is nothing to be ashamed of.
3. List Profile-Related Volunteering Work:
You can even mention some profile-relevant volunteer activities accomplished during that period and fill your employment gap with that. One of the most common errors job seekers make is to be unaware of what can be defined as ‘work’.
Irrespective of the fact whether you were paid or not, if a particular task helped you develop some skills that might be useful for your new position, just mention that in your resume. A volunteer experience can help you cover up the employment gaps on your resume.
4. Write or Speak:
Well some job seekers, who are experts in their own field, can cover up the employment gap by mentioning some writing engagements and working as a guest speaker. They can even choose to offer seminars in their areas of expertise which can later help build credibility.
5. Indulge In More Training:
During the period of employment gap, it is a better option to attend training courses than to sit idle. Opt for some certification like ASQ or PMP to add the required credibility and differentiation to your resume. Here is a tip: Before you seek any professional training, it is better to scroll through the available vacancies in that field.
However, you need to be very careful while using these methods as even the hiring managers know these methods very well. If they get a sense of you trying to hide something in your resume, it can do more harm than good to your candidature. Professional resume writing services can help you flawlessly cover your employment gaps.
Always remember, you don’t want to hide your employment gap to deceive the hiring manager, but because you want him to focus on your skills and abilities rather than gaps.