Mind the gap! Make resume gaps less noticeable by using these tactics.
Sometimes it’s hard to explain away those glaring gaps in your resume, but with these tips you can lessen their impact and give employers a reason to overlook them and hire you anyways!
1. Add volunteer work to your resume
Ok, you may be thinking, but what if I didn’t work for free for a non-profit while I was unemployed? I was dealing with life and job seeking!
“Volunteer” work can be anything from being a caregiver for your family to working in your local food pantry. If you were busy doing something, you should emphasize that by adding those experiences to the Volunteer section of your resume, complete with dates and responsibilities. Just like any other job!
Employers who see that you have been busy while unemployed will be more likely to see you as a self-motivated hard-worker!
2. Focus on soft skills
Reserve a separate area of your resume for your skills, from the most objective like “MS Word” to the more subjective, like “time management” and “conflict resolution.”
These are all key skills, and if you can back them up in an interview with instances where you’ve effectively used them, employers will be seriously impressed!
3. Add a personal touch with traits
I’m going to assume you know yourself pretty well by now. You know if you’re good-humored or serious, cautious or bold etc… Well, add that to your resume! Choose a few key phrases that both accurately describe you and would make you a valuable employee for your field.
Employers want to know who you are as well as what work you’ve done. A bad culture fit can be just as damaging (if not more) than an unqualified hire, so employers are now paying very close attention to soft skills and emotional intelligence.
Still struggling to fill in those resume gaps? The Jobcase Resume includes all of these suggested sections and more! Click here to edit your profile and view your new resume. When you’re done, let us know below if we helped!
We can’t wait to bring more new and improved tools to you. Stay tuned for more about Jobcase’s Resume or click #JobcaseInsider to see all of the posts in this series in one spot!
Thanks for sharing this, Laila Nashat . I definitely think resume gaps are something many people in the job search experience. It's easy for life to catch up to you and ruin the continuous career path that is so valued by employees.
These tacts can definitely help cover those up, and prove to employers that you are a worthwhile candidate. And like you said, if you need help, the Jobcase Resume tool is perfect for it! Even if it's just used as a reference for creating your own, it will organize and format all the information you input on your profile to put YOUR best food forward!
These are FANTASTIC tips Laila Nashat ! I agree that adding your volunteer experience take just a moment and really wows an employer. It helps to show them that you are caring, selfless, and what matters to you. You will appear well rounded and giving which is never a bad thing ; ) Also, a study revealed that 42% of hiring managers say they viewed volunteer experiences as equivalent to formal work experience. So volunteering counts, just make sure to add it in there!!