Will hiring managers question a big gap in my resume?
Hiring managers are seeing resume gaps across the board and will likely question why it has been a while since your last official paid job. Doing volunteer work, taking classes, and freelancing can help close that gap so your resume looks good to employers.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Applying to industry roles and hoping hiring managers understand broader market trendsDid this help you?
- 2Doing volunteer work and freelance delivery gigsDid this help you?
- 3Taking prerequisite classes to show continued educationDid this help you?
- 4Adding a short line like "career break for family caregiving" to cover the absent yearsDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“It's been a while since I was hired for an official paid job.”source ↗
“I have a big gap in my resume.”source ↗
“So I was wondering if doing volunteer work and freelance work along with taking some classes would look good on a resume in the end and help me close the gap.”source ↗
Where this came up
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