Best way to justify gap in your career

But sometimes, in order to make this transition, many candidates end up having a gap in their career. And then the question comes to mind – “How do you justify your gap to prospective new employer”

I have seen many candidates are not able to answer this question properly and they end up getting a rejection. And then they come to the conclusion that they will not be able to get the relevant job opportunity in near future

Approach to justify your gap

It’s important to acknowledge gaps in employment history up front. It puts you in charge of your career’s narrative instead of letting a hiring manager’s imagination run wild.

Below are the few pointers when you are required to justify gap in your career –

Layoff due to restructuring: Say your company or department restructured or downsized somewhere along your career. You can explain these gaps to employers by making sure to emphasise why it was that you were let go from your previous job. Indicate the restructuring or downsizing that took place. And if it lines up with a recession, this “tells the story” to employers better than just leaving a gap and hoping that they won’t notice before the interview stage.

Keep it positive when talking about why you left the job before the gap:
Explanations that scream: “I didn’t like my previous employer” don’t look good. Hiring managers might just ask why you didn’t16 wait to find a new job before quitting your old one, especially because it’s easier to find a new job when you’re already working

Instead, you can communicate certain good points of your previous organisation and mention that it was not compatible to the kind of work or work environment you are looking for

If you left a job voluntarily, don’t be afraid to mention why.   
It’s perfectly acceptable to mention sabbaticals: the year you took off to travel the world, or to take care of a family situation. If there’s a purpose and intention to the gap, it’s much more acceptable to hiring managers than a generic gap that just makes it look like you didn’t do anything in the interim.

Emphasise any activity you undertook during the gap to improve your professional career:
This is a huge one. Make sure to mention:
– Any certificate or courses
– Any freelance or consulting work
– Any other experience like Volunteers or major personal project

It should not appear that the gap is generic and you did not do any meaningful thing during this time

It is always better to mention reason behind your gap in your CV –
Many times candidates get rejected owing to lack of stability easily visible in their CV (when directly sent to a hiring manager). You should not wait to receive a call from the hiring team to explain your gap. If gap is big, you should mention 1-2 liner reason behind the same in your CV. Hiring managers are smart enough to find out the gap in your career, you should not leave it for them to find it out. And once you receive call from the recruiter, then you can explain your gap in detail

I will end this post with conclusion that do not be afraid of the gap in your career. Do no try to hide it as it will surely come up in discussions. Rather face the gap and convey it on a positive note to the hiring manager

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