Are recruiters interested in "extenuating" circumstances, or is it just an automatic rejection?

Question

If there is a break in your career progression, or a change of career, do they actually care about how or why this happened?

If you get a lower grade than you wanted, are they interested in why this might have happened?

In general, are recruiters actually interested in "extenuating" circumstances, or is it just a case of going automatically onto the rejection pile?!?!?!

(in case any smart alec wants to comment about making excuses for myself - try walking in my shoes and see if you're still alive by this stage!!!)

Answer 1

As long as your prepared to explain why if they ask it isn't a problem I have a 2 year gap in mine because I had to go into hospital and the recovery took forever I got an interview and when they started asking about my previous experience I spoke about my last job and then said I then had to leave as I fell ill but I'm fine now they wasn't bothered in fact they were pleased I didn't make anything up.

Answer 2

well my husband had many breaks for working full-time, etc. they ask you during an interview. don't make excuses for it, or apologies, on resumes and applications. if they like what you have to offer, they'll ask during the interview. they understand that life happens, don't sweat it, just play up your achievements.

Answer 3

Yes, of course they are interested in your circumstances, but remember that your CV is their first impression of you and your previous history so you need to make sure that you're explaning things properly on the CV to ensure that it isn't an automatic rejection.

If you were to write something on your CV like:

March 2006 - August 2008:  Career break due to extenuating circumstances

... well, that immediately sounds a bit dodgy.

If you were off work for reasons that were beyond your control, e.g. you were ill, you were caring for a sick family member, whatever it was, then I suggest you actually give the reason.  I'm aware that you probably feel that it is personal information and you're probably uncomfortable about divulging too much, but it really will affect the outcome of your application.

I would also avoid using fancy phrases like "career break" or "sabbatical".  These immediately sound pretentious and like you're trying to hide something.  If you were unemployed, acting as a carer, whatever it was then it's technically not a career break.  You didn't sit there and think, "right, I'd like to take a year off".  You took the time off (I assume) because you didn't have a choice.

Also, it depends on what job you do - some roles are more forgiving of gaps on your CV than others.  For example, it's not uncommon with IT contractors who earn £500 per day to have a gap of several months and when asked why, they reply "I didn't feel like working ... it's not like I needed the money".  (Not kidding ... I've had some candidates say that to me.)  Whilst you may not be in a high-paid role, the principle still applies that contractors can drop in and out of the workforce as they please, so you may be best to look for temp work now in order to get back into the workforce.  Once you've got recent experience, then you can look for a permanent job.

I think, though, that if you have been off for a very long period of time, there are going to be some industries where things have moved on so quickly that your knowledge will be completely outdated so if this is the case in your industry, you need to recognise that it will be harder.  I do a lot of work recruiting in the computer game industry, especially for marketing roles, and if I had a candidate who had been out of work for the last two years then probably it would be difficult for me to consider them due to changes in the industry and in technology.  Your only answer then may be to take a more junior position for a while and work your way back up.