In this week’s episode…

Many PhDs think that having a gap in their work history is an instant red flag for employers. 

This might have been true 10 years ago, but taking a break is not as verboten as it once was. 

A recent LinkedIn poll revealed that a whopping 62% of employees have taken a break in the past five years, and 35% have plans to. 

The last few years have created major shifts in the way people work, and tested what the workforce can and can’t work through. 

It ultimately revealed to employers that there are many reasons you might have a gap in your work experience. 

Some left work or school to assume the role of a caregiver. 

Others needed to relocate due to job loss or housing changes. Others still were suffering from fatigue and burnout and hit pause before they self-destructed.

And, during this time of shifting priorities and unprecedented change, employees found themselves thinking about what really matters most to them. 

Many workers left their industry positions, and some still haven’t gone back to work.

The good news is that, with the major shifts in the workforce that the Great Resignation spurred, employers are much more focused now on employee retention than they are on a gap in your resume. 

In fact, if you take the right approach, you can even cast your career break in a positive light. 

Companies like LinkedIn are making it easy to be transparent with employers. 

They rolled out a feature recently that allows members to spotlight career breaks in their profile. 

Users can indicate when a career break occurred, and even why using a dropdown menu that includes options like relocation, travel, volunteer work, career transition or full-time parenting. 

Users can also add details such as responsibilities, achievements, and skills to these sections, just like they would provide for any other work in their profile’s Experience section. 

On LinkedIn as well as your actual resume, you should identify any period of unemployment that lasted longer than 3 months and occurred in the past 5 to 10 years. 

On your physical resume, identify the break under your Experience section. 

This is the space to talk about how you reflected on your goals and worked toward them. 

Did you explore new learning opportunities? Add that in along with how many hours you spent weekly training, any certifications you earned and what skills you acquired. 

Did you volunteer somewhere? Great! Name some measurable outcomes from this experience.

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** For the full podcast, check out the audio player above.

If you’re ready to start your transition into industry, you can apply to book a free Transition Call with our founder Isaiah Hankel, PhD or one of our Transition Specialists. Apply to book a Transition Call here.

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