How to Explain Employment Gaps in Your Dubai Resume

If you went through an employment gap and now planning to get back to work again, you need to address your career break in your resume for Dubai jobs properly. The employment gap left unexplained in the resume makes the Dubai recruiters suspicious and doubt your commitment to the job. Whether you took a break from your job to look after your family or a new child, search for a new job, pursue higher education, handle family business, or could be any other reason. Don’t let your career break stop you from working again. By explaining your employment gap in Dubai resume with a justified reason and highlighting the things you learned or the skills you gained you can impress the recruiter. 

Read this blog to know how to explain employment gaps in resume for Dubai jobs here. 

What is the Employment Gap in Resume?

Employment gaps are periods during which a person is not working formally and on a break. Employment gaps can happen due to a number of reasons like being laid off, time taken to search for a new job, pursuing higher education, learning new skills, time taken to look after a family member or a child, etc. The employment gaps could range from months to years. Employment gaps are common, however, need to be addressed properly in a resume. 

Also Read: How to Get a High Paying Job in Dubai?

How Do You Explain Employment Gaps in a Resume for Dubai jobs?

To know how to fill employment gaps on your resume you can check out the tips given below. 

1. Determine whether you need to explain the career gap or not.

You don’t need to mention your career page in your Dubai resume if it was 10 years ago or 5 years ago. However, if your career break was in recent years, then you need to mention it in your Dubai resume. You can also skip explaining your employment gap it if happens only for 15 days or a month. Determining if an employment gap should be listed on your Dubai resume is the first step in filling it out. Only justify resume employment gaps it it were for a long period of time or happened recently in your career. 

Also Read: How to Write a Dubai Resume 10 Years of Experience

NOTE: While justifying employment gaps in your resume for Dubai jobs make sure you don’t over-explain things. The ideal length of a Dubai resume is a maximum of 2 pages. So, justify employment gaps in your resume in short. 

Also Read: Why You Should Write 2 Page Dubai Resume? Tips to Shorten Your Resume

2. Choose Functional Resume Format

You can make your employment gaps look less obvious to the UAE recruiters, by choosing functional Dubai resume templates. Instead of going with the reverse chronological Dubai resume template, make your resume in functional resume template. A functional resume has a work experience section at the end and a skills, achievements, and education section on top. If you have an employment gap for more than a year we recommend that you choose a functional resume template.

However, if your employment gap for just for some months, and you have a good work history and skill set for the job then you can go with the usual chronological resume template.

Also Read: How To Write Dubai CV As Per ATS System. 

3. Justify the Employment Gaps

Now to address your employment gaps you need to mention valid reasons. One of the best ways to justify employment gaps in Dubai resume is by highlighting what you learned. Dubai recruiters hire candidates who show continuous learning and skill development. By justifying your employment gaps with valid reasons and highlighting skills you learn you will make a positive impression in your Dubai resume. 

Suppose you took a break to look after your family business, you can mention you learned leadership skills and improved your communication skills. If you took a break to pursue higher education or some skills that you can highlight and match with the job you are applying for. 

Also Read: Top Skills to Add in Dubai Resume for Success

How to Fill Employment Gaps on Your Resume Examples

Here are some ways to justify employment gaps in your Dubai resume:

1. Helping in Family Business

Family Business Manager, Mumbai, India | 2020 – 2022

• I managed the family business, which helped me develop leadership, communication, and customer service skills
• I handled sales and client interactions, improving my problem-solving abilities.

2. Pursuing Education or Certifications

Higher Education Student, London, UK | 2019 – 2021

• I completed a [Degree/Certification] in [Field], which improved my knowledge in [mention relevant skill].
• I took courses on [skill] to stay updated with industry trends.

3. Freelancing or Skill Development

Freelance Graphic Designer, Dubai, UAE | 2021 – 2023

• I worked as a freelancer and handled multiple projects, improving my [specific skill].
• I took online courses and practiced [skill] to enhance my expertise.

4. Personal Reasons (Health or Family Care)

Full-Time Parent, Abu Dhabi, UAE | 2018 – 2021

• I took a short break for personal reasons but stayed updated by learning new skills and networking.
• During this time, I completed certifications and attended workshops to stay active in my field.

Professional Development & Volunteered, Doha, Qatar | 2022 – 2023

5. Job Market Challenges & Staying Active

• • While searching for a job, I attended webinars, networked, and worked on personal projects to keep my skills fresh.
  • I volunteered at [organization], gaining hands-on experience in [relevant skill].

List of 10 Good Reasons to Justify Employment Gaps in Resume

Many people go through employment gaps in their careers for various reasons. Some have to go through employment gaps voluntarily while others do involuntarily. If you have employment gaps you should justify it with valid reasons. Following are some of the reasons that you can add in your resume to justify employment gaps 

Where to Mention an Employment Gap on Your Dubai Resume?

The best place to address your employment gap on your Dubai resume is in the work experience section in the same timeline when it occurred. This will help the recruiter understand your career history and timeline better. 

How to Include Employment Gap In Your Dubai Resume?

• Place it chronologically within your work experience, just like a regular job.
• Use a job title that describes your activity (e.g., “Freelancer,” “Full-Time Parent,” “Higher Education Student”).
• Add key skills or achievements to highlight you learned something from it. 

Also Read: How to Write Work Experience in a Dubai Resume

We hope that this post on How to Explain Employment Gaps in Your Dubai Resume was helpful and informative. If you need a perfect Dubai standard resume that explains your employment gaps well, you can check out our resume writing services.