How to Handle Gaps in Your CV & Other Inconsistencies
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Do you have significant gaps in your employment history due to extended travel trips? Or maybe you were looking for the perfect job, rather than settling for something mediocre? While your reasons for such gaps may be legitimate to you, unfortunately interviewers may not always see it as a positive trait.

What can you do to minimise the damage when you have a patchy CV?

Usually, it’s better to bring up what you were doing in between your jobs as opposed to keeping quiet or being asked what you were doing during the gaps. However, this point is subjective and one rule for all should not apply here, it definitely depends on your individual circumstances.

So long as the reasons for gaps are not negative, we would recommend listing exactly what you were doing during that time. Leaving unexplained gaps leaves a lot of room for imagination, and sometimes employers can assume the worst.

Often, candidate’s reasons for having gaps are simple, such as wanting to take a break, or travel. It is also common for older candidates to take time off work to care for family or have a baby. These are generally accepted by recruiters as being legitimate reasons, as long as the jobs that are listed demonstrate good employment history.

While short gaps can go unnoticed by many recruiters, if you have been out of work for longer than 6 months, that is when questions will be raised, and you should prepare to answer such questions.

For candidate with gaps because they were unable to find a suitable position for them, we would recommend enrolling for a course in areas that interest you. This is a win-win situation because not only will this look like you are eager to learn new things; you will also appear to be more qualified for the position! You could also consider doing some volunteer work for some or all of the time you are out of work. These are 2 great ways to fill a gap that will be looked upon favourably by prospective employers.