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A career gap, also called a resumé gap, is basically any period of time during which you are not employed in the workforce. A few weeks or even months will not raise eyebrows. A few years might.

Your job is to make sure the gap doesn’t look gaping. In fact, according to , career gaps that are done right may actually assist your job search. “Employers are looking for stories that illustrate adaptability, resilience and a willingness to learn and grow — traits that are often hallmarks of individuals who have navigated career gaps.”

Reasons for a career gap can be all over the chart. Perhaps after a season of burnout, you needed to regain sanity and a sense of who you are — so your Eat-Pray-Love^® adventure called.

Maybe it took a few years to figure out what you wanted to be when you grew up. As your career pivoted and you retooled, you had corresponding employment spurts and fits.

Or maybe kids came along, and you devoted a lengthy season to caregiving. Then your parents began aging, and caregiving became a primary role. If you cared for both at the same time — becoming a member of the so-called sandwich generation — you joined a growing group of full-time caregivers.

In fact, slightly more than half of surveyed moms (51%) in the sandwich generation have left a job due to caregiving responsibilities, according to this year’s Career Optimism Special Report™ Series: Moms in the Sandwich Generation, a joint venture between UOPX and Motherly. (Take a peek at the report for a look at the data and workplace trends that may position you to navigate the current workforce climate with better understanding.)

No matter how long you have been away, there are steps you can take now to be ready for workforce reentry. Jessica Roper, the director of Career Services for ��ɫ��Ƶ, offers her top tips for putting your best foot forward.

In order to get a foot in the door, you must first look good on paper. (Or on your digital profile, as the case may be.) Roper suggests adapting your resumé into what is called a “functional resumé.” This can be a creative solution for someone with career gaps or the person who is doing a total career pivot. Rather than creating a chronological picture of school and work experience, a functional resumé focuses primarily on skills.

Since skills are front and center — a functional resumé can be especially helpful for ��ɫ��Ƶ students who earn skills badges and add to their skills profile through classes in every associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree program open for new enrollment. If you’ve never created a functional skills resumé, tutorials and examples exist online.��

Once you’ve landed an interview, the good news is, the employer is already intrigued by you and probably thinks your skills fundamentally align with the role. “Now what you’re trying to show is that you can be a good fit. Show your personality,” Roper advises.

Instead, Roper and her team advise students to have one or two sentences ready (e.g., “I took needed time away to focus on caregiving for my parents”).

If you were let go, again, honesty — and brevity — are the best policies. Never lie. And do keep the reason short. While it’s not a career highlight, neither is being fired a fatal blow. Especially if you tell your prospective employer what you learned and how you’ll channel that into strong decision-making, if given the chance, with them.

Did you keep up with industry trends during your career gap? Join a networking group or attend seminars? Perhaps you did some freelance work or volunteered in your field. Again, have a sentence or two prepared, such as, “I did three main things to stay current in my field: I earned a master’s degree, volunteered and networked with local professionals. These line up with my career goals of x, y and z.”

“Your goal is to show a potential employer that you used your time well,” Roper says. If extreme demands on your time due to, for example, caregiving have prevented you from earning a college degree, you could enroll in a ��ɫ��Ƶ individual course or a certificate program, tune in to a LinkedIn^® Learning course or scour news reports to get up to speed on current trends in your industry. Everything adds up.

In literature, a red herring is a false clue that pulls the reader away from the central point. Your goal is to convince an employer that you are a qualified candidate for the job. That’s the central point.

There are many ways to turn potential distractions or pitfalls into a strength:

• Underscore that after a season away, you are coming in with fresh legs and ideas.
• Offer succinct insight into how time away helped you sharpen career goals and skills.
• Shift an apparent disadvantage into an asset that shaped who you are now.

A career gap is not fatal. In fact, it’s not even close to fatal. Roper says many students and alumni who seek career counseling through ��ɫ��Ƶ’s Career Services are shocked to discover a break is not the black mark they expected.

“More often than not, they come in really worried. There is so much fear around this career gap. But it’s way more common than people think,” Roper says. “Just because you have a career gap, that’s not a reason for an employer to automatically put you at the bottom of the career pile.”

A reveals that 68% of workers have experienced a gap in employment, making it closer to the norm rather than the exception. As long as you address the gap head-on without oversharing or apologizing for it, you should be able to focus on what the time off provided.

In the end, Roper says, some employers may make judgments about job gaps. “If that happens, or someone speaks negatively, let it go. You cannot control how people are going to act or react. Bias or judgment may still exist,” she says. “But it’s not the norm.”

Career gaps aren’t the only challenge job seekers face today. That’s why ��ɫ��Ƶ equips its students and graduates with the following resources to help them on their professional paths.

• Career Services for Life^® commitment: Available to UOPX students and graduates, this offering comprises complimentary career coaching, including guidance on how to build a personal brand and write a resumé.
• Free career resources:��Browse a range of downloadable guides and templates to help you optimize your LinkedIn^®��profile, get ready for a job interview and write a resumé and cover letter.
• :��Get career insights every week via UOPX’s LinkedIn newsletter.

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