Since
the recession has dragged on for three years now, many attorneys are facing
work history gaps that last for a year or longer. Once they find a position that offers
promise, they are then face with explaining huge work history gaps to hiring
managers who may still become hesitant when a job candidate has remained
unemployed for “too long.” So how can a
job seeker address these work history gaps with finesse? Let’s take a look at a few tips:
The “Black Hole” Resume Gap
If you
haven’t done anything constructive during unemployment other than commit all of
your energy to a full-time job search, you will want to explain why that’s the
case to the hiring manager. You might say, “Because I wanted to find the right
job, not just any job, I decided to commit the past (fill in the time you’ve
been looking) to looking for a good match for my skills and experience.”
The “Square Peg” Resume Gap
If
you’ve been working way out of your field for the past year or more, you will
need to take care to assure the hiring manager that your skills haven’t rusted
and that you’re not desperate. You might say, “Instead of taking a job in my
field which I wouldn’t like, I decided to work in an unrelated field while
taking (insert educational and career activities you have participated in) and
looking for the best job opportunity match.”
The “Work For Free” Resume Gap
If you
have been working in an unpaid volunteer position or internship while
unemployed, you need to take care to explain to the hiring manager that you did
this because you wanted to, not because it was all you could get. You might say something along the lines of,
“When I saw this volunteer opportunity, I saw it as an opportunity to give back
while continuing my job search.”