I have a "dilema" I guess you could say. I am wanting to go back to work. I have not worked in 10 years, due to being a stay at home Mom. My youngest will be in Kindergarten in the Fall and I want to start working on my Resume.
Since it has been so long, what do I put under my work history? Do I go far back as 10 years or even 15 years? Also I have held many different positions with different companies over my short working years. How do I find out the exact dates of when and where I worked? Is there a website that holds all that information that I can easily access?
I never thought I would return to the work force. My passion is here in the home. However, raising 3 kids on a military salary is just not cutting it. Any advice you can give about the resume AND how to enter the work force after so many years... would be greatly helpful.
Thanks all in advance.
Thank you for all the responses! They were all very helpful. I made a wonderful resume and have already applied online for 5 jobs within my area of interest.
Thanks!
See websites:
How to build a resume for a homemaker...
http://www.bing.com/search?q=how%20to%20build%20a%20resum...
Building a resume with gaps
http://www.bing.com/search?q=gaps%20in%20resume&mkt=e...
Best wishes!
Maybe you should do a "skill oriented" resume instead of focusing on your job history. Go to Careerbuilder and Monster and see what they say, but I've read in the past that if you have gaps, you should rearrange your resume to highlight your assets.
If you did any volunteer work, don't discount that. Did you help organize things for the PTA? That's a skill and shows you were involved with something more recently. Did you do something for the Girl Scout troupe? Again, that's something you can highlight to show organizational, communication and/or leadership skills.
You need look up types of resume's because you do not want to a cronological one having such a huge gap in job history. I think the kind you will need to do is called a hybred. It just lists your skills and basic education and accomplishments without focusing on being at home for that time. Make sure you list every accomplishment too... raising a family is a very managerial position and you need give yourself credit for that. Also make sure to include the volunteer work you have done as well. As far as finding openings try loging in to linked in, ask people you know, go to the local Chamber of Commerce website to find other non-mainstream ways to look for jobs. Good Luck!
Depending on what field you are looking to get into, are there some classes you can take? My mom is unemployed and got a grant thru Walmart to go take computer classes at the local community college. That way, you'll have new skills to list on your resume in place of experience during the past 10 years. Besides that I would include the experience that you do have from those jobs over 10 years ago. Good luck!
Most places will ask you to go back at least 10 years... when I recently changed jobs they asked me to go back that long and account for both employment and periods of unemployment. I was in graduate school for a bulk of that time and then took off time after my son was born. They wanted basic Month/Year information. Essentially it was a "what have you been doing" chronology of the decade.
There isn't a website that holds that information, but if you recall the names and locations of the companies, call them. Because of the length of time they may not have those records. You could also check your old tax returns and see if you have that information.
My suggestion would be to do broad date ranges.
1985-1989 Various administrative assistant positions (detailed information available upon request)
1989-1991 Receptionis
1991-current Child Rearing
Be honest, but not specific... it's better than guessing or making it up! Truthfully, if they want you to go back 10 years, then you will proudly identify your occupation as Child Rearer and make sure to highlight the specific skills involved in raising a family and maintaining a home.
I would put "Stay at home mom" under the job title... Then maybe list like 3-4 jobs that you held previously... unless you have job experience further back that would be beneficial to the job you are applying for, then go back to that job. :)
one more thought: when I reentered the work force, I listed my work experience as "BK".....before kids. It was quirky & caught the interviewer's attention.
If your true passion is raising kids in the home, perhaps your true opportunity isn't in the outside workforce but in continuing taking care of children. I'm certain even in the military there are needs for excellent child care. Before I made one single solitary move outside the house, I would look into how I could care for other children inside my house or even inside of theirs. Perhaps even being a nanny or something like that may work for you. Just some different food for thought.
