Question on resume (employment, apply, job, interest)

[jenn02674]

Here is my situation. When my son was born in 2002 I stopped working. Went back to work part time two years ago when he started school but this job will have absolutely nothing to do (probably) with what I am looking for now. Do I put it on my resume? Since I haven't had a "real" job in 6 years, I am thinking it is better than a huge gap and I am pretty sure I am only going to be qualified now for an entry level type position.

Thanks!

[mkfarnam]

I would , just to fill the gap.

[sunny AZ]

Yes. of course put it on there. Any experience is good experience. If it's an office type job, those skills can apply to many different things. What field are you looking to get in to?

[blossom4792]

You could organize your resume in more of a "functional" way rather than chronologically. I'm in the same position and I'm not putting my (one) part-time retail job on the resume. It would just look ridiculous above the other things. It's really not going to be as bad as you think, but you'll be much better off networking than going to monster, etc. You might start off with much less pay, but just have confidence that the opportunities will start to come back.

[jenn02674]

Well, I am not really entirely sure. I was in hotel management before I had my son but I don't think I want to go back into that unless I get into sales or something, even then hotel just doesn't appeal to me anymore. I am prepared to start at the bottom and work up but quite honestly I am not sure what exactly I am going to do. I was interested in human resources when I was in college but that never panned out so I am going to start looking there. I've also got a few recruiters in mind. Another big problem is that I only had about four good working years after college. The part time job I had wasn't an office job at all. I helped out an elderly lady for a few hours everyday.

I would love to hear from others that have been in a similiar situation.

[twixcookie]

I once put on my resume: Gap of employment due to voluntary leave from the workforce to raise a family.

Then I listed the years, example, 2002-2007

If they don't like it, nothing you can do, because they can find out about it anyway....

[TracySam]

As a manager who has done a lot of hiring, I really don't understand the anxiety people have about gaps in their work history. It's generally not a big deal.

I've hired plenty of people who took time off to raise their kids, to try to open their own business, etc. Heck, in my field it's even a plus if someone had time off from the workforce to deal with mental illness

This topic has been discussed here on this site a few times, and it's also been discussed extensively on an employment law message board I attend, and there really seem to be VERY FEW hiring managers who think a period of not working automatically counts against a person. It might be one of those myths that people perpetuate, either to scare job-hunters or to explain why they were not hired.

Personally I've found that when I hire people who are returning to the workforce after an absense of several years, they have been more committed to the work, and they're more sure that they want to be here.
If someone just spent 5-6 years chasing small children around, they can certainly handle a fast-paced, multi-tasking work environment!

[maf763]

You have an excellent reason for the gap. It would be a different story if you couldn't explain why you didn't have a paying job for five years.

[sunny AZ]

If this were me, I wouldn't be concerned about the gap. However, I would be concerned about my lack of experience. My resume would look similar to someone fresh out of school.

So...what would you suggest to overcome this (TracySam?)

[mkfarnam]

Can the HR check your college transcrips without your student number?