The birth of a child is a wonderful event for the mother. In addition, it is a few years dedicated exclusively to the baby.
Not many jobs are compatible with raising a newborn. Working on shifts may be an option, but not much energy remains after sleepless nights, feeding, and changing diapers. That is why there is maternity leave. And as a result, there is a need to update your resume and look for a job after such a vacation.
To facilitate the work of busy mothers, there are even special CV creation services. For example, Resume Corner review made it clear to us that services can be quite fast if it's important.
For other cases, here's a quick guide on how to update your resume so that your return to the workforce will be smooth and comfortable.
Embrace the gap
There is nothing wrong with devoting several years of your life to raising a child — it's rather remarkable. Hence, you do not need to hide this fact.
Any gap in the resume will confuse your potential employer. HR managers will try to find out the reason for the gap, which may create an uncomfortable situation. It is not customary to ask about personal life during interviews, and sometimes it is not legal at all.
To avoid this situation, indicate maternity leave in the work experience as it is. You can do this in two ways:
- Some employers leave you technically employed when on maternity leave. In this case, indicate when you started your last job and “present”. For example, Jun 2010 — Present.
- If you are not employed, the maternity leave start date and “present”.
When describing this, try not to come up with creative names such as “Caretaker”. Be honest, and your employer will understand. Misleading information, on the other hand, can create additional difficulties in finding a job.
Tell me about your skills
Show your employer that you have acquired new skills during maternity leave.
Over the last few years, online courses have become very popular, and it has become easier to gain new pieces of knowledge than ever before. Therefore, if you have taken courses related to your field of work or have mastered a new one — it's all worth including in your resume.
Write the periods of study, subject, if you get a certificate, if any.
This information in the resume will show your diligence and desire to move on. Such qualities are valued and given bonus points when hiring.
Also include the block about your professional skills. To show that you are constantly working on them, break down your skills into updated and recently acquired ones. This can be Active listening, Negotiation, Accuracy, Networking, Public speaking, Logical thinking, and so on.
Indicate your volunteer work as an advantage
Participating in volunteer projects and community work during maternity leave will create a positive image for you and improve your resume.
Non-professional activities work on the development of soft skills and connections. Such information in the CV will show the potential employer that a candidate is socially active and tends to spend free time in a useful way.
Use networking
You most likely did not lose touch with your former colleagues during maternity leave. Use them.
Find out from your acquaintances and former colleagues what the current situation is in the labor market. Someone may share with you information about how they looked for a new job. Also, someone can suggest useful contacts or a promising place of work.
Most importantly — try to get recommendations from former employers that you can add to your resume. HR managers appreciate that.
Linkedin also should be mentioned in the context of networking. Update your profile there as well. This social network is specially created for job search, why not use it.
Focus on the value
Once you've added all the new items to your resume, review what was there before. Keep the focus on what you did, not the gap.
Make sure that the block with work experience contains enough information about your positions, responsibilities, and achievements. Be proud of what you did and present it as a foundation for your future career.
Seeing that you have worked hard in the past, the employer can assume that you can do it again.
Keep it relevant
When updating your resume, keep in mind that not all information can help you find a job.
Most likely, you have a certain position that you are aiming for. It requires some experience and a specific set of professional and soft skills.
Anything not related to this position will distract the employer. So, it is preferable to focus on one thing.
Keep it clean
A few words about the appearance of the CV. Try to use easy-to-read fonts, the minimum number of colors and sizes. Break the text into blocks and highlight important information. Check the readability of the text on different devices — laptops, tablets, phones.
Also, refrain from using bright colors and pictures to avoid distracting from important information.
Summary
Maternity leave is a great opportunity to make changes in your professional life. Think of it this way, not as an obstacle.
This gap can be used to gain new knowledge, recharge, and possibly change your perspectives with some effort. By submitting this to your resume, you can convince your employer that you are the perfect job candidate.
So, use this article to polish up your resume. These are just a few simple steps to describe your experience and make it work for you. All the hard work has already been done.
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