Anyone who has stayed home -- especially with small children -- knows that it often can be harder than a day at the office. But regardless of how difficult being a homemaker is, employers are likely to view time spent raising a family as a gap on your resume. To focus the hiring manager's attention on your skills and competencies -- and prevent him discarding your resume -- highlight the relevant information while minimizing the potential negatives.
Instructions
1. Use a functional format for the resume, instead of the traditional chronological approach. A functional format groups experience by skill set as opposed to listing employment by date. This technique downplays the gap in your resume while highlighting your work experience.
2. Write a summary targeted to the specific position for which you are applying. If you are seeking a position in human resources, for example, you can highlight your skills while combining your total years of experience: "Motivated HR generalist with expertise in classification and compensation and labor negotiations. Five years experience in both a practical and classroom setting."
3. Highlight your qualifications upfront if your experience is lacking -- or you don't have any. Typically, the education section is last on a resume. But if your work experience is minimal, or unrelated to the job you have applied for, place information about your educational and industry qualifications upfront. Highlight recent qualifications to emphasize to the employer that you have kept up-to-date on current industry standards.
4. List the transferable skills you gained while a homemaker if you don't have relevant work experience for the job you are seeking. Whether you acted as a coach for your child's Little League team or balanced the family budget, the skills you identify must be pertinent to the job for which you are applying.
5. Include any volunteer work you completed during your years as a homemaker to demonstrate your continued involvement in the workplace while you were not formally employed. Note any recognition you received from the organizations with which you volunteered.
