Resume Tips - How to Deal with Large Gaps in Your Resume

Employers are not keen on large unexplained gaps in a resume. They tend to make assumptions about the possible cause. That is not just because there is a gap, but rather because no explanation is given. It is far better to be open about gaps of two to three months, than to ignore them altogether.

If there was a particular reason why you were not employed for several months, it is a good idea to cover the matter in a brief note on your resume.

Play it down if necessary, or even turn the situation into a plus point. Otherwise it will probably be assumed that you experienced some difficulty in finding another job if the gap in your resume is about three months or so.

Shorter gaps, you do not need to address. However, any longer periods without employment on your resume are well worth discussing.
If there was a specific reason that you were not fully employed – such as taking a year out to do voluntary work - then say so. An example such as this can easily be included in your work history and detailed in your resume. It is irrelevant that you were not paid to the work, because you can demonstrate your ability to adapt to new situations.

It is possible to disguise or conceal periods of unemployment, but it is preferable not to do so. If a prospective employer considers you are trying to hide something, you may be asked to explain, and anything less than a satisfactory answer will work against you.

In some circumstances, you may have a very valid reason for not wanting to list a past employer. You could simply choose to exclude them from your resume altogether, or perhaps to list your experiences without including the company name.

This would require a restructuring of your resume so that you focused more on your abilities and your experiences than with the time spent with specific companies. Instead of following the traditional work history type of resume whereby you detail the employer's name and the dates you actually worked for them, try instead to list all your accumulated skills whilst making a note of the employers at which you were able to make use of them.

Finally, should you have an employment gap that you find impossible to explain in your resume, use your cover letter to resolve the situation as much as possible. You do not want to be seen as making excuses, but you need to be able to satisfy a potential employers interest. When writing your cover letter ensure that you detail any benefits gleaned from your time off, and ensure that any skills or experiences you enjoyed in that period, are made available for discussion.