How to explain a one year gap in CV after graduating?

[hopelessgrad]

I graduated one year ago and have been unemployed since. I have no idea how to explain it and am feeling really down that I have messed up my career before it's even began.

Seeing as this anonymous, I'll explain honestly the gap:

• Decided to have a few months off after finishing university (September-January. I had savings put aside specifically for this). I was incredibly stressed and felt burnt out.
• January-March: looking for jobs, no luck
• March: lockdown so no luck with anything

This year I have suffered really badly with anxiety, even before COVID. However, COVID has made the anxiety a lot worse. I have an underlying health condition which makes me high risk (but not extremely clinically vulnerable) and I have barely gone out aside from walks. I managed to go in a handful of shops during the summer but not since then.

I have seen two really great opportunities that I am planning for applying to. I am anxious about COVID as it's impossible to social distance or work from home in those jobs, but I am more anxious about my career. However, now I worry about how to explain the huge gaping hole in my CV?

I haven't ever been to the GP about my anxiety, would asking for a phone call appointment help by giving me a tangible evidence for why I have been unemployed for so long?

How do I explain this gap on an application form or during an interview?

I think you can generally assume that everyone else applying is in the same boat. What have you been doing in your forced hiatus?

I think you should just tell the truth. Say you budgeted/saved up to give yourself some time off after graduating (being able to budget is a good skill!) and obviously you couldn’t foresee covid so have unfortunately not managed to secure employment during lockdown.

I wouldn’t necessarily mention the anxiety unless you feel comfortable doing so especially as you don’t have a diagnosis. If you are able to get a job then some of that anxiety might decrease anyway? Just my honest opinion. I do interviews at my place of work and I honestly wouldn’t be that bothered if someone hadn’t worked for a year. I’d be looking to see if they were suitable for the current role and covid is a perfectly valid excuse for not working!

Explain it, don’t dwell on it and focus on the things that make you right for the role. Good luck!

Absolutely what @ChippyTea16 said

I think you should just tell the truth. Say you budgeted/saved up to give yourself some time off after graduating (being able to budget is a good skill!) and obviously you couldn’t foresee covid so have unfortunately not managed to secure employment during lockdown.

Travel plans curtailed by COVID? Plenty of people take a gap year after uni. Or just be honest and say you were ill, though you’ll need a good answer for whether that is going to have an impact on your ability to meet their needs.

I really doubt they’d ask for evidence - they just want an explanation, Covid is a pretty obvious one.

So does something like this sound ok:

"After graduating I had budgeted to have some time off to think about my future career plans. I then started looking for jobs in X field. However, I have found that the COVID-19 pandemic has made it difficult to find a job. In the meantime, I have been completing online courses and volunteering in a family member's small business whilst job hunting"

I am not sure whether to mention the volunteering in a family's business as it is a very casual, sporadic thing, but it has helped keep me sane whilst job hunting.

Sounds good to me! Is this what you are planning to say if questioned about the 1 year unemployment situation? I mean you don’t have to explain up front in writing do you?

It sounds perfectly reasonable to me and I would mention the volunteering. Have your examples ready for what you have done and how they might transfer to the role in question.

Do you explain gaps or ignore them? It's a risk either way. As a small business, we can't afford - time or money to interview everyone with concerning gaps, so we would rather people were upfront and explain.

If you are explaining, do that in your covering letter. In your CV focus on completing online courses and volunteering in the family business Describe what you did, what you learned, the impact it had how it helped you develop.
Don't forget to talk about building relationships, if you are good at it - it's an important skill - especially with people outside your immediate circle - you'll have examples from Uni you acn provide.
Answer the job description like every line is a question, even if you don't have the skill - one person got an interview on the basis of being the only person who talked about what we did like she understood it and was keen to learn the skill, it really made her stand out and she genuinely came across as genuinely interested, without sounding sycophantic.
Have you tried targetconnect.net/ for internships/graduate jobs and advice?
Good luck!

I am not an HR expert but am recruiting a graduate role at the moment. Trust me, loads of people have gaps. Personally I wouldn't write the paragraph explaining the gap (unless you are specifically prompted to do so), but would include course dates and volunteering on your CV.

If you are applying for a role in a school, then you do have to explain any gaps, but your explanation is absolutely fine.

Some people put far less eg. Bringing up family; Career break; Travelling; Looking for work.

Thank you all for the replies.

The job is for the NHS so I think it is similar to schools where you have to explain any gaps.