Handling Employment Gaps on a Resume - Ask the Expert

Resume Questions

Employment gap questions... On this page, you ask & I answer questions about how to handle employment gaps on your resume.

Please take time to peruse the questions at the bottom of this page to make sure I haven't already answered the question you have. I don't want to keep answering the same questions over and over.

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Please type your question and personal information (if you include it) with correct punctuation and capitalization. This is not IM or text messaging. Your questions create pages on my site and I want them to look right. And I don't want to have to spend hours going through all your submissions and correcting punctuation and caps. That's time I could be spending answering questions!

So, if you say "I", type it as a capital, not a lower case "i", OK? And begin new sentences with a capital, as well as your name and city/state. I thank you in advance for your courtesy and respect. And I'm giving you fair warning that I may stop accepting questions where the asker doesn't make the time or effort to use correct punctuation and capitalization.

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Have Questions About Employment Gaps?

Do you have a question about how to write a resume if you have an employment gap in your history? If so, our Ask the Expert feature is here to help!

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What Other Job Seekers Have Asked

Click below to see categories of employment gap questions from other visitors to this page. If you click on the category, you can see the individual questions that have been asked.

What if I don't have any experienced? I don't have any details to put on my resume except for my personal background. I don't have any experience and I don't even have a single certificate ...

Should I list 2 years of travel as "Experience" to fill in employment gap? I have been unemployed for nearly 2 years because I have been traveling throughout the US. I am now actively seeking to get back into the workforce but ...

Should I Include My Craft Business on My Resume? I was laid off from my job almost a year ago. While looking for employment, I have tried to make the most of my time by designing, sewing, dying and selling ...

What Is the Best Way to Handle This Situation? I have a significant gap in work history and am also changing specializations. How do I avoid drawing too much attention to this prior to an interview?...

How Do I Explain My Employment Gaps to Future Employers? I have been unemployed since April of 2004, and I still am. I am currently seeking employment, but I am not sure how to address the employment gaps. In ...

Questions About Gaps Due to Tough Job Market Get answers to your questions about employment gaps due to a tough job market.

Questions About Employment Gaps Due to Retirement Get answers to your questions about employment gaps to returning to work after retirement.

Questions About Employment Gaps Due to Unrelated Job or Volunteer Experience Get answers to your questions about employment gaps due to working unrelated jobs or volunteer positions.

Questions About Employment Gaps Due to Time Off for Caregiving Get answers to your questions about employment gaps due to taking time off to care for a family member.

Employment Gap Questions Related to Disability Get answers to your questions about employment gaps due to disability or injury.

Questions About Employment Gaps That Don't Fit Elsewhere Get answers to your questions about employment gaps and employment gap issues.

How do I fill in a 12 year gap in my resume? I have been a homemaker for the last 12 years due to caring for my disabled sister so I have a rather large gap in my work history. Previous to that I ...

How do I explain a gap of employment on resume? I stopped working June of 2008 due to a lay off. At that time I decided to expanded our family. As a result I remained home to care for myself and my newborn....

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