Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–120 of 248 posts

Re: Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

#111

Post by pcurve »

scandox wrote: post #106
pcurve wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yep. I've reviewed thousands of resumes but I never paid much attention to gaps. Gap of 1 year wouldn't even register in my brain.

Oh gaps are usually pretty interesting. I once dug into a big gap (3 years) and went down quite a rabbit-hole with a candidate that was in every other respect excellent. But the gap: Let's just say it was the worst thing you can imagine.

3 year gap would stick out for sure. I think it's also depends heavily on when the gap was, and what followed after.

Re: Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

#112

Post by Rounin »

You could just say what you just told us - that you took a break for a medical reason, and then chose to take some extra time off. There is something to be said for not trying too hard, but focusing on going to interviews and enjoying the experience. Having 5+ years of work experience is said to be a huge advantage as well.

Re: Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

#113

Post by snovv_crash »

cbanek wrote: post #71

As a person who's reviewed a lot of resumes, I don't actively look for job gaps, so I probably wouldn't notice. I'm more interested in what technologies you use (role), and what you've done in the past (experience). As long as you are sharp and know your stuff, you'll do fine. Even if it is a red flag to some, I strongly believe software interviewing is a numbers game, due to randomness and bad interview processes. A…

I concur. I look for whether what you already know fits what we need and complements what we have. If there's a gap I might ask offhanded about what you were doing, but spending a year slumming in Cambodia is just as acceptable as taking time off to care of your invalid parents. What I care about is what you can offer, and if you'll be able to fulfill that potential.

Re: Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

#115

Post by Beldin »

loftyai wrote: post #64

I can't speak for every company out there, but for us, we've discovered that resumes and whiteboard challenges are bad predictors of great engineers. So, we simply come up with a small project that's related to what we would have you work on if you were hired and give you around a week to finish it. You can use other people's code snippets online as well as any libraries you see fit. As long as the end result is good…

How much do you pay the candidates for this exercise?

Or do you expect them to put in multiple hours without reimbursement?

Re: Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

#117

Post by virtuexru »

scandox wrote: post #106
pcurve wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yep. I've reviewed thousands of resumes but I never paid much attention to gaps. Gap of 1 year wouldn't even register in my brain.

Oh gaps are usually pretty interesting. I once dug into a big gap (3 years) and went down quite a rabbit-hole with a candidate that was in every other respect excellent. But the gap: Let's just say it was the worst thing you can imagine.

Now I'm intrigued but I'm assuming something like jail/prison. :D

Re: Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

#119

Post by motohagiography »

blaser-waffle wrote: post #56
motohagiography wrote: post #45

I mainly consult and contract, so 2-4months on the bench is normal. Anyone who asks is just trying to get leverage.

> Anyone who asks is just trying to get leverage. How so? As in, "you're out of the job market for a while, so you seem sketchy, and thus I'm going to pay you less"?

Handle it delicately, but yes.

Re: Ask HN: How to explain job gaps on the resume?

#120

Post by grecy »

I put my two year travelling gap at the top of my "work history" section. I listed the skills I learned during that time - I taught myself Spanish, handled tricky logistical situations (shipping vehicle from Panama to Colombia), & learned to think on my feet.

Nobody ever talked about it like it was a bad thing, they just wanted to hear stories from the road! I have no problem getting a Software Engineering job.

Post reply on HN