housewife going back to work resume

Example Resume for a Homemaker Returning to Work

Lori personal and professional experiences have helped her cultivate a broad writing portfolio, spanning publications on subjects like education and parenting.

Learn about our Editorial Policy .

Moms who decide to stay home with their children for a number of years usually never regret that decision. It is rewarding in a different way than a career. However, when it comes time to re-enter the workforce, knowing what to put on a resume can be challenging. It's true that you've used specific skills keeping a home, but how do you word that so an employer will be impressed?

Sample Resume for Moms Going Back to Work

Download the sample resume template by clicking the image below. If you need help with the document, check out these helpful tips .

• Hurricane Safety Tips: Make Sure You're Prepared for Anything

The resume sample provided features volunteer activities, education, past work experience and professional affiliations. The PDF is editable, so you can replace the information in the document with your own information and print right from your desktop. In order to keep the formatting of the document you will need to download and save it first before making your adjustments. Remember to use a heavy bond, resume paper for a professional appearance.

Using the Sample Resume

When customizing this sample resume for your own use, you will need to adjust each section to match your unique situation.

Order of Information

The order of information in this sample resume is created to highlight important skills. Some of these skills you've likely learned as a homemaker, but you'll want to focus on the skill and not highlight the fact that you learned these skills running a household.

While some employers may admire and appreciate the work involved in keeping a household running, others will feel that it isn't as pertinent as actual workplace experience.

Contact Information

At the very top of your resume, you'll want to include your name and contact information. Some people prefer to put their name as a header in a bold, dark font. This can come in handy when the employer is looking back through candidates coming in for a second interview as they can locate your resume quickly and do a fast review.

Stick to basic fonts, such as Arial or Calibri. Although a script might look pretty, it can be difficult to read and doesn't look as professional as industry standard type. Also, if you are emailing the resume as a .doc, .docx or rich text format, it might not translate well if the person on the other end doesn't have that exact font installed on his computer.

Check and double check that your contact information is correct. The phone number should be current and include the area code. If you have an email, include that as well as many employers communicate online.

The objective should tie into the job you are seeking. If you're trying to land a job as an executive assistant, then the objective should tie into the role an assistant plays.

• For example, you might write: To obtain a position as an assistant for a busy executive where my management skills and organization can help the office run more efficiently.
• You wouldn't write: To obtain a position where I can help others learn to cook.

It might seem obvious, but it is easy to forget to tailor the objective when applying to different companies. Take the time to read the job description and make sure your objective ties into it.

This is where you can list all of those wonderful skills you've picked up as a homemaker. Not only have you had to manage daily household tasks, you've likely scheduled vacations, been in charge of shopping, created budgets and many other tasks that can translate well to an office environment. Here are a few of the different skills you could list here:

• Adept at creating and maintaining a budget
• Making detailed schedules for multiple parties
• Keeping financial statements and filing annual reports
• Conflict resolution expert
• Managed fundraising activities

Keep in mind skills you've picked up through volunteer work or participating in team sports with your children as well. You may have even used some of your time at home to learn Microsoft Office suite or basic web design skills. This is the place to list those skills or other skills you have.

Keep the descriptions short and to the point. A bulleted list is an excellent way to highlight your marketable skills.

This section of the resume is a place to list your higher education. Even if you did not complete your degree, you should list where you went to school, how long you attended and the skills you learned. You can also include certifications and specialized training in this section.

Skimmable Format

There are different ways you can format the education section. For example, you can format it like our sample, with your degree, school and year graduated or years attended on one line and any special awards or honors just under. Another way to format the education section is to list the degree on the top line with the year graduated and then the school directly under that with additional information in bullet points.

The main thing you need to keep in mind is whether your resume is skimmable. Those doing the hiring tend to be busy executives or human resources managers who want to glance at your resume quickly and make a determination if they'd like to proceed with an interview.

Work History

If you've been at home for a number of years, your work history may be lacking or show a big gap in time. One of the reasons for listing the work history further down on the resume is to keep from highlighting this fact. If you worked before staying at home, list these work experiences and the skills you learned while there. If you have a very sparse work history, you may want to focus on the next section instead.

Homemaker Description

It can be hard to know whether you should include your time as a homemaker in this section. It is probably best not to list a homemaker description here or try to be cute and call yourself an 'executive decision maker' or 'head diaper purchaser.' Instead, if the employer questions the time you've been out of the marketplace during an interview, you can just answer with a simple explanation that you stayed home with your children until they started school, entered high school, etc.

Then, go right into highlighting the skills you learned through volunteer work or other activities during this time. That will put a positive spin on the time out of the workforce. Many employers appreciate the skills needed to run a home and care for children, but some will not understand the myriad responsibilities required to stay at home with children.

Volunteer Experience

Volunteer experience can be just as valuable for learning skill sets as career experiences. Some of the things you might include here:

• Serving as secretary of the local PTA
• Creating a newsletter for the softball league
• Maintaining the church website
• Starting a mommies' day out with the local preschool organization
• Doing public relations work and creating flyers for the local animal rescue shelter

Your volunteer experience is likely as unique as you are, but whatever type of volunteering you've done, it can help highlight your skills and work ethic for potential employers.

Professional Affiliations

If you belong to organizations that are related to the type of work you're applying for, this is a good place to list them. Using the example of an executive assistant, you might include a membership in the International Association of Administrative Professionals or the Professional Association of United Methodist Church Secretaries.

If the affiliation is more social in nature, then it probably doesn't belong here. You may be able to utilize work you've done for that organization under volunteer experience or skills, though.

This is another place where you need to pay attention to what the job description states. Some companies request references upfront. If that is the case, you should include a second sheet with a list of professional references. This doesn't mean your mom or best friend; you'll want to include references from people like:

• Former employers
• Organization directors for whom you've volunteered
• Former clients
• People you've volunteered with
• Pastor of your church
• Others who can vouch for your dedication and work ethic

Before you list anyone as a reference, check with that person that it is okay to use them as a reference while you seek employment. You'll obviously want to use only people who will give you a positive review.

If the job description does not ask for references, then you should use the standard that is on the sample, which is "References available upon request."

From Home to Work Again

Transitioning into the career world after being home for months or years can be a challenge. No matter what your education, previous work experience or skills, using this sample resume can help get you started on your path back into the work force. If you find that you need additional assistance, consider hiring a professional resume writing service.

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Click here to directly go to the complete resume sample.

How to make a stay at home mom resume?

Being a homemaker is not an easy job, yet women handle it with grace and ease.

Looking for a job while juggling with your responsibilities at home may not seem easy but we have the perfect solution to help you restart or kickstart your career.

You may or may not have any professional experience but if you are ready to start working or get back to your old job profile, it is achievable.

It is not mission impossible, so keep reading to get the best guide for writing your stay at home mom resume.

In this blog, you will learn the proper and professional way to write your flawless homemaker resume. So read on to get the information we have laid out for you in this blog.

Let us begin this guide by introducing you to all the things that you will learn in this blog:

• What to write in your stay at home mom resume and how to write it?
• How to write your professional experience in an effective way?
• How to make an impact with your stay at home resume skills?
• What format to use while framing bullet points in your homemaker resume?

What is a Stay at Home Mom Resume & Why Do You Need It?

Your homemaker resume acts as the first point of communication between you and the recruiter. It is your ticket to land a job.

Your stay at home mom resume is the first step towards your dream job. It is a virtual representation of the skills which are required for the job that you are seeking.

The recruiters get an insight into your professional experience and your capabilities through your resume. Your goal here is to make sure that your resume is flawless and impressive to get an interview call for your target job.

But the one thing that you need to tackle here is the ATS system. Most recruiters rely on the ATS (Applicant Tracking System) for their hiring needs.

If your resume gets parsed by the ATS system, it has a higher chance of ranking in the ATS system, which means your resume will have a higher chance of getting shortlisted.

You need to curate a resume that is ATS-targeted. A resume that is not ATS-targeted might fall short and may end up never getting shortlisted.

While writing an ATS targeted resume is not easy, it is something that you can accomplish with this guide.

This guide will help you write a job-winning stay at home resume from scratch.

Also Read: How to craft an impeccable resume?

Stay at Home Mom Resume Sections

Picture in your head of how your resume will look after it is created. Do you like what you see? or are you unable to picture it clearly in your head?

Your resume needs to be divided into different sections to elaborate on the different details about you and your skills as well as your work experience.

Arrange your stay at home mom resume sections in the following manner:

• Personal Information
• Profile Title
• Summary/Objective
• Professional Experience
• Certifications (if applicable)
• Additional Information (if applicable)

Do Read: A perfect guide to sections in a resume.

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Header

Most of the time people ignore the importance of the profile header wherein it is an important factor in a resume.

Follow the given points to write your resume header the right way:

• Your header should be written using the largest fonts between 16-20 font sizes to make it stand out in your nstay at home mom resume.
• It should be placed at the top-most part of your resume.
• Now if you have a middle name, use only the initials of your middle name and place it in between your first and last name.
• Example: Joanna Aquamarine Smith should be written as "Joanna A. Smith".

Take a look at the perfectly composed resume header which is an ideal stay at home mom resume example:

Also Read: Tips for creating a resume header.

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Personal Information

The personal information section in your homemaker resume should consist of the following details:

• Contact number
• Current location

LinkedIn/Personal Website

Your contact number.

Provide only the active number that you use for a recruiter to get in touch with you. They would not bother calling you repeatedly till they get you on the line.

Remember, it is you who is looking for a job because in a sea of resumes the recruiter can always pick other eligible applicants if they cannot get to you.

Give your country’s ISD code as a prefix before your phone number and a plus sign (+) before the ISD code.

Example:(+1) 82374 29371

As your email ID is the official means of communication between you and the recruiter, it should be professionally composed and should not include fancy email names.

Take a look at the examples below:

Example 1: beautyqueen@xyz[dot]com Example 2: emilybronte@xyz[dot]com

On observing both examples, you will find that example 2 looks more professional.

Example 2 uses the real full name as their email ID. This is the correct way of composing emails.

Current Location

Always give your current location in your resume. If you are looking for a job in your own country, simply mention the city and state you are living in.

In case you are looking for a job in another country, simply mention the name of the city and country you are residing in.

Adding links of your LinkedIn account and personal websites can be an added advantage and it will allow the recruiter to understand your professional identity without limiting it just to your resume.

Also Read: Dos & Don'ts of writing the personal information section. >

Another stay at home mom resume example of your personal information should look as given below:

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Profile Title

Your profile title is your latest job title. It lets the recruiter know where you stand in your career. It also states if you are an experienced or an entry-level applicant.

Use the 2nd largest font size of 14-16 in your resume to write your profile title.

Look at the example given below to check how your profile title should look like in your homemaker resume:

Here we have presented the stay at home mom as someone who has worked as a content editor and so the profile title is written accordingly.

Now the recruiters are well aware that the stay at home mom is a content editor. Likewise, your profile title should speak about your field of work and your professional status.

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Professional Experience

This is one of the most important sections of your resume. It is this section that will allow you to elaborate on all your skills and experience.

Do not miss out on any important details while filling this section.

Keep in mind that you need to update the recruiter with all the important aspects of your professional experience and relate it to the present job that you are applying for.

Frame your professional experience section in your stay at home mom resume by following the points that we have mentioned below:

• STAR format
• Framing points

Grouping & Highlighting

Star format.

This is what the STAR stands for:

• S stands for situation : The situation/backdrop/context of your contributions
• T stands for task : The actual task that was assigned to you
• A stands for action : The strategy you used to execute the assigned task
• R stands for result : The result/outcome of your action in the form of an achievement figure

Use the STAR format as it is the ideal format for structuring the professional experience section of your stay at home mom resume.

It establishes the cause-effect relationship which helps your resume stand out. It also helps in advancing your job application as you can communicate your achievements in the form of an achievement figure.

This is a practical demonstration of your skills as quantifying your achievements shows the extent of your expertise in your chosen domain.

Framing Points

It is your responsibility to keep the recruiter interested in reading your stay at home mom resume, so make it worth the read.

If your resume fails to do the bare minimum of being read by the recruiter, your chances of getting shortlisted drastically dwindle.

Here are two examples showing the two ways in which people compose this section of their resume. Your task here is to evaluate them:

Corresponded with authors to develop preferred documentation style as per the clients' requirements

Culminated 2+ manuscripts with a word count of ~5k for various authors

Scrutinize the manuscripts using editing & proofreading to create a high-quality product

Scanned for typos to avoid errors to enhance the authors' work quality

Framing Points: Analysis

It is very clear from the two examples that framing points (example 2) help in enhancing your statements in a resume.

Using bulleted one-liner points makes it easier to list your roles & responsibilities in your resume. It also makes your resume easy to read and comprehend.

There is no point in writing a bulky and lengthy paragraph in your resume (example 1) as it makes no sense when you drag your points for too long at a stretch.

Both the example are stating the same thing yet example 2 is more specific without unnecessary words unlike example 1 which makes your resume look bulky.

Another important aspect of composing your professional experience section is the grouping & highlighting of your points.

This will efficiently highlight your skills and achievements in your homemaker resume.

Grouping your points under unique subtitles makes your points specific and highlighting the important keywords helps the recruiters stay interested in your job application.

Let us look at these two given examples to compare how grouping & highlighting your statements in your resume is better than a plain statement:

• Compiled subject requirements & worked under the supervision of senior writers

Coalesced with writers, graphic designers & type-setters to create error-free articles & stories every week

• Facilitated the timely delivery of manuscripts & articles for clients to meet deadlines
• Collaborated with the Editorial team to complete 20+ copy-editing assignments for timely product delivery

Manuscript Analysis & Line Editing

• Coalesced with writers, graphic designers & typesetters to create error-free articles & stories every week

Product Delivery & Copy Editing

Grouping & Highlighting: Analysis

From the two examples given above, we can see that it is easier to understand example 2 as it is better organized than example 1.

Creating unique subheadings for grouping similar points makes it easier to create a clear picture of your professional caliber.

Highlighting your points directs the recruiter's attention to your key achievements under each point. Thus, it enhances your chances of getting noticed by a recruiter which ultimately helps you in getting shortlisted for a target job.

To conclude, use grouping & highlighting to frame your professional experience so that the recruiters can identify your achievements and capability.

If you have an existing resume, get it professionally reviewed by our in-house team of resume experts at Hiration.

Also Read: How to compose the work experience in your resume? .

Given below is a sample stay at home mom resume showing what a perfectly composed professional experience section should ideally look like:

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Education

Your education section will come right below your professional section and it will help enhance your professional skills.

Your course of study highlights your knowledge in the field of any specific job position. So make sure that you provide the field of education course that you possess.

For those who do not have enough or zero experience, your educational qualification may play a vital role in positively influencing the recruiter.

While education is not as relevant as your professional experience in terms of a job application, it can make all the difference to your job application when you are applying for an entry-level job.

Given below is the format that you should follow when composing this section:

{Name of the school/university} | {Location} | {Dates} (in month and year format) {Name of the degree} | {CGPA}

Do Read: Guide on how to list education on resume.

Look at the example given below to see how your education section should look like in your resume:

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Certifications

Any certification(s) that you have completed should be mentioned in the certifications section of your resume.

It will help enhance your educational qualifications and professional experience.

Relevant certifications will make you a stronger candidate as it shows that you went the extra mile to go and get certified (even though your target job does not explicitly demand it).

As a result, it will give you a better chance than other applicants to land an interview or the job.

Your certification section must include the following details:

• Name of the Certification Course
• Name of the Affiliating Institution
• Location of the Institute
• Dates of enrollment and completion of the course (month and year)

The above points should be aligned using the format that we have mentioned below:

{Name of certification} | {Affiliating Institution} | {Location} | {Date} (in month and year format)

Also Read: How to list certifications on resume?

Time to shine by holding up your skills on a banner. Not exactly a banner in literal terms but you can use this section in your resume to mention all your efficient key skills.

This section will highlight all your expertise for the recruiter to notice at a glance itself.

Your key skills should contain the keywords used to describe the job profile you are applying for. It helps your resume to rank high in the ATS (Applicant Tracking System)

Make sure that these key skills are connected to the points stated in your professional experience. Your key skills should be justified before they are framed.

Your stay at home mom resume key skills section should ideally look as given below:

In the example, you can see that your skills are standing out. Well, that is the whole idea, to attract the recruiter towards your potential.

You can also see that your technical efficiency is written separately under the skills. It is to specify the exact tool you are capable of using.

This adds weight to your skills section and lets the recruiter acknowledge your potential while shortlisting your resume.

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Summary

A summary should be written for the homemaker resume only if you have 3 years of professional experience.

But in most cases, resume for stay at home mom with no work experience should avoid writing a summary as it does not help in covering the existing career gaps.

Read the following points to write a summary of your stay at home mom resume:

• Start your summary by mentioning the years of experience you have. Keep in mind that the recruiter will read your summary for roughly 6-7 seconds so make it count.
• Write only 3-4 lines of the summary to make it an on-point statement. Do not overstretch your summary as it would seem unnecessary and irrelevant.
• Your summary should contain a brief explanation of your past work experience. So when you curate this section, make sure that you cherry-pick the best highlights of your career to enhance the effectiveness of your stay at home mom resume summary.

Do Read: How to write the perfect resume summary.

Stay at Home Mom Resume: Objective

A resume objective is often written by those professionals with 0 to less than 3 years of work experience.

For stay at home moms, a resume objective should be written vis-a-vis a resume summary as you have employment gaps.

Objectives are often written to cover up the gaps in your career. As a stay-at-home mom, you will have to write an objective that includes your experience as well as your activities during your gap.

Follow the given points to write an objective for stay at home mom with no work experience resume or resume for homemaker returning to the workforce:

• Mention all the details of your past professional experience and focus on how you managed to keep yourself busy during the gap of your professional journey.
• Never write a stay at home mom in your resume because that is an unprofessional way to address the gap in your career.
• If your skills are presented correctly the recruiter will be more focused on your capabilities and not your gap.

Here is your stay at home mom resume sample to have a better understanding of how an objective is written:

Don't Miss: Detailed guide on creating the resume objective.

Stay at Home Mom Resume Samples

Here is an example of how your stay at home mom resume template should look like:

• Correspond with authors to develop preferred documentation style in accordance with client requirements
• Culminate 2+ manuscripts with a word count of ~5k for different authors
• Scrutinize the manuscripts through multiple rounds of editing & proofreading to create high-quality end product
• Scan for typos & avoid errors of omission or commission to enhance the quality of the authors' work
• Interweave research data to create 7+ articles on a weekly basis for the official blog & social media platforms
• Research & subsequently compose 900+ words of content about various blogs for client reference per week
• Engaged in outreach programs to empower stay-at-home moms with basic computer knowledge
• Participated in education workshops for 100+ children-at-risk to achieve universal child literacy
• Taught English language to 30+ students of Seashore High School through their online portal
• Vetted articles by writers & prepared enticing drafts via Adobe Illustrator 6 for the final review by the Chief Editor
• Coordinated with the Design team to prepare graphical outlook & layout for clients based on their industrial needs
• Compiled subject requirements & worked under the supervision of senior writers to analyse writers' manuscripts
• Coalesced with writers, graphic designers & type setters to create 5+ error free articles, news & stories on a weekly basis
• Facilitated the timely delivery of manuscripts & articles for clients to meet deadlines with 100% accuracy
• Collaborated with the Editorial team to complete 20+ copy-editing assignments per week for timely product delivery
• Prepared an effective checklist for proofreading & ensuring quality before signing off the manuscript for printing
• Delivered high quality content free from grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, & false notions
• Generated 30% revenue for the publishing house by assisting the Marketing team during the ' Annual Book Fair '
• Published 40+ articles in collaboration with other publishing houses for the monthly issue of the Publisher's Journal
• Top 10 percentile of the class

Key Takeaways

• Never mention stay-at-home mom in your resume as it is not the professional way to write your status
• Make sure to follow the grouping & highlighting method while writing your professional experience
• Do not forget to mention your achievements by adding figures wherever possible to specify your points
• Write a summary if you have 3+ years of experience. If you don't, write a resume objective
• Focus on what you are capable of executing effectively and write down your skills
• Provide details of your extra-curricular activities during the gap of your career to avoid being assumed as an idle applicant
• Emphasize on your education and certifications for enhancing your chances of being shortlisted

Now that is a wrap of the blog and you are ready to go write your stay at home mom resume. Follow the guide you just read through and frame your flawless resume to achieve your dream job.

Go to Hiration resume builder and create a professional resume for yourself. Additionally, reach out to us at [email protected] and you can get 24/7 professional assistance with all your job & career-related queries.

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How to Write a Resume as a Stay at Home Mom Returning to Work

Stay at Home Mom Resume| How to Write & Example | Resume.com

Staying at home to take care of your children is meaningful work that develops new skills and provides you with challenging experiences. However, it can be difficult to translate this onto a resume that will distinguish you as an ideal candidate once you decide to rejoin the workforce. This article explains why creating a stay-at-home mom resume is beneficial, lists steps for updating your resume when returning to work and provides a template and example that will help you craft your own resume.

Why is a stay-at-home mom resume useful?

After spending time out of work to care for your children, it can be difficult to leverage this as an applicable experience once you decide to return to work. Additionally, an employment gap can give employers the wrong impression and discredit your employability. A resume for a stay-at-home mom can help to reintroduce you into the job market and show a hiring manager that you have maintained your skills and experience as well as developed new ones while you were parenting.

How to create a stay at home mom resume

Here are some things to consider as you revise your resume as a stay at home mom:

1. First, consider adopting an alternative resume format

A majority of resumes are written in reverse chronological order, meaning that the most recent experience is listed towards the top of the page. Though that works well for those on a traditional career path where each position usually brings an increase in pay and responsibility, it is less effective for a stay at home mom because it can accentuate the employment gap. Fortunately, there are other options, such as a combination or functional resume, that emphasize your skills rather than your professional experience.

2. Second, craft a resume summary or objective

You can draw attention to your qualifications for the position you are applying for by including additional resume sections, such as a summary statement or an objective. These additions will consolidate your skills, experience and intent, giving hiring managers a clear picture of how you could be an asset to their team.

3. Third, incorporate volunteer roles

Serving as a stay-at-home parent usually allows for opportunities to work in a volunteer capacity with your child’s school or extracurricular activities. Though the work is unpaid, it can still be a wonderful way to showcase your skills and demonstrate that you still had applicable responsibilities during your employment gap. When describing your volunteer work, use action words and direct language, just as you would with past professional experiences. Make sure to highlight any accomplishments in these areas as well.

4. Fourth, mention any freelance work

Even though staying at home with the kids meant a break in full-time, salaried work, you may still have worked as a freelancer, temporary hire or contracted employee. It is beneficial to include any of this information on your resume. It will communicate that your skills are still intact and can fill the gap in your employment history.

5. Next, utilize your references

Providing references can be a great way to assure employers of your abilities despite being away from work for an extended amount of time. Make sure that the contact information is accurate and that the reference is willing to affirm your skills or experience.

6. Then, decide whether you should include your stay at home experience

There are many arguments both for and against including your experience as a stay-at-home mom on your resume. It can be beneficial if you are looking for a role that would benefit from this experience, such as teaching, but could be inapplicable in other industries. Ultimately, only you can decide whether you would like to include this experience on your resume.

7. Lastly, keep your stay at home experience relevant and professional

In many cases, a cover letter is a more appropriate place to explain your employment gap as a stay-at-home mom. However, if you do decide to include this information on your resume, focus on the details that are relevant to the position you are applying for.

Here are some guidelines to help keep your descriptions professional:

• Avoid giving the position a funny title
• Only include transferrable skills and responsibilities
• Avoid providing an exhaustive list of unrelated chores

Stay at home mom resume template

Here is a template to follow as you craft your own resume:

[First and last name]

[Phone number]

[Link to website or online portfolio]

Objective: [Strong, descriptive adjectives] [position] with [years of experience]. [Relevant accomplishments (optional)]. Seeks to use [relevant skills] as a [position] at [organization].

[Name of school], [Dates attended]

Professional Experience:

[Name of organization]

[Job title]

• [Bulleted list of achievements and responsibilities]

Volunteer Experience:

[Position], [Dates]

• [List of hard and soft skills that are relevant to the position being applied for]

Stay at home mom resume example

Here is an effective example of a resume for a stay at home mom who is rejoining the workforce:

Sarah Holliday

1234 Marigold Avenue, Seattle WA 98101

(555) 555-5555

[email protected]

SarahHolliday.com

Detail-oriented and tenacious writer with a Master of Arts degree in English and 7+ years of experience seeking to utilize language and communication skills as an editor for Creative Solutions.

M.A. in English from the University of Portland, August 2011 – May 2013

B.A. English from the University of Portland, August 2006 – May 2010

Professional Experience

ACME Enterprises

Lead Content Writer

August 2016 – January 2018

• Led a team of six writers who were responsible for developing the company’s web page content including home pages, customer-facing advertising and blog pages
• Performed quarterly performance management evaluations of three writers, sharing the responsibility of performance evaluation with the senior editor and the publisher

Quorum Publishing

May 2013 – July 2016

• Edited manuscripts for science white papers in the areas of chemistry, pharmacology, genetics and medicine
• Led the content editor team, supervising two other content editors and their work, which involved handling the last round of edits and providing feedback
• Reported on their work in quarterly performance management evaluations to the senior editor
• Evaluated manuscript submissions and worked with writers to help them improve their ideas and thesis
• Took the lead in developing style standards for the content management team based on AP Style

Tomorrow Publications

Copy Editor

January 2011 – April 2013

• Reviewed and corrected manuscripts to improve accuracy and readability using AP Style for manuscripts
• Corrected manuscripts for errors, omissions, inconsistencies and repetition of text and words
• Checked manuscripts for caption errors and graphics for consistency with the narrative and text of the manuscripts
• Work with UX web team to create web page content in support of marketing materials

Idlewise Press

Proofreader

June 2010 – March 2011

• Proofread and fact-checked manuscripts about open source technology and emerging technologies in artificial intelligence
• Reported errors to the lead editor
• Collaborated with editing team to ensure accurate and consistent quality of work involving graphic design and text

Volunteer Experience

Hillsdale Preschool Board

Volunteer Secretary

August 2019 – Present

• Record meeting notes and read the current report at the beginning of each board meeting
• Keep track of votes on board issues and report these at board meetings as part of meeting notes
• Serve as a liaison between board members to update information or correct errors in meeting notes
• Report amended information or correction of errors during board meetings
• Maintain diaries and logs of meetings
• Manage meeting schedules and appointments, specifically for the board president and vice president

Hillsdale Preschool

Newsletter Writer

May 2019 – Present

• Manage and write content for the Hillsdale preschool website and newsletter paper version using AP Style for all articles
• Manage and maintain the newspaper advertising budget
• Meet with local advertisers to secure funding for the preschool newsletter

Skills 

• Technical writing
• Proofreading/editing
• Communication
• Microsoft Office

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'Returnships' Help Stay-at-Home Moms Get Back to Work

When former stay-at-home mom Lori Hill decided to return to work after 22 years, she knew it would be a challenge. But she wasn’t prepared for just how hard it would be. On job interviews, most of the hiring managers she found herself sitting across from were men half her age.

“I would walk into some interviews and I would get the impression [of], ‘Oh, what’s my mom doing here?’” says Hill, who worked as a software developer for 10 years before taking a career break.

Hill felt a double stigma around being both female and older in an industry with few women, and which seemed to prefer younger employees.

“The interviewers didn’t know what to do with me,” Hill told NBC News BETTER.

After she explained to one interviewer that she left the workforce to raise her kids, he responded, “Are you sure you want to work full time?” The question angered Hill.

“If I wasn’t looking for a full-time job I wouldn’t be putting myself through all that pain of interviewing,” she says.

Explaining the Resume Gap

Hill’s job search started in 2011 and lasted a frustrating four years. She became self-conscious about the long gap on her resume, and left out specifics like dates and the names of employers that would reveal her age.

“I was really sensitive to my age being the disqualifier,” she says.

Resume gaps are damaging even if a job seeker has only been out of work for a year, according to New York City executive recruiter Rick Aronstein, who heads product recruitment at AC Lion.

“The lower the technology threshold is for the job, the easier it will be to reenter,” Aronstein says. “The more qualified your skill set is, it should be easier, but technology skill sets can atrophy if you’re not using them all the time.”

But concealing a resume gap can be self-sabotaging, explains Aronstein. He says candidates are better off using the gap to explain why they left work, especially if they had a good reason for it. “[Recruiters] are always looking for a narrative that is understandable that doesn’t raise a lot of eyebrows,” he says.

Skill Sets Change, But Aptitude Stays the Same

Employers worry that return-to-work employees don’t have the latest technical skills, according to Carol Fishman Cohen, CEO of career reentry firm iRelaunch .

“I argue that it’s a temporary condition,” Fishman Cohen says. “It’s just a matter of updating yourself, and once you learn it, you’re caught up and you’re using these technologies just like everyone else.”

In Hill’s case, the technical skill set required in her industry had transformed greatly from when she left in 1993, but she knew her aptitude hadn’t changed. She took courses at a local college to learn mobile app development and picked up freelance projects to apply her skills. But working alone kept her out of the loop on the industry’s ever-changing lingo, which made interviews challenging.

"Quite often someone would ask me a question during an interview and I would be like, 'I don’t really know what that is'" Hill remembers. "And then I’d go home and Google it and I’d be like, ‘Oh, not only do I know what that is, but I actually used it.'"

The interview process had also changed from when Hill was right out of college. For example, many of her interviews involved solving formulas on a whiteboard.

“You never can predict what the problem will be,” Hill says. “It’s kind of nerve-racking."

Catching up With a Fast-Changing Industry

In 2015, Hill landed a job at NBC News in Seattle after a friend who worked there advocated for her to get an interview. The mother of three was faced with a new work environment that tested her confidence. She was older than most of her co-workers, including her boss. Email and instant messaging made the pace of communication much faster. Even the out-dated tradition of putting two spaces after a period — a rule she learned in high school — seemed to reveal her age.

"People judge you...It's not necessarily being a mom and being female, but it's being older and not with the times."

“The engineer I was working with, he was really, really specific about how everything needed to be formatted in the code,” Hill says. When the engineer was reviewing a comment she put in her code, he saw two spaces after a period and wrote “not necessary.”

“I feel like people judge you on that,” Hill says. “It’s not necessarily being a mom and being female, but it’s being older and not with the times.”

Hill acknowledged that returning to work took “a big dose of humility.”

“If you don’t have that big dose of humility, I don’t think you can do it, because it’s quite humbling,” she says.

Seeing Return-to-Work Employees as Assets

Some companies are beginning to offer ‘returnships’ — internship programs to attract talented job seekers who have taken career breaks and need to revamp their skills. In 2016, IBM launched a 12-week reentry program that helped the company source 17 interns, according to IBM executive Jennifer Howland, who oversees the program. Like Hill, many were women who had been out of the workforce for up to 20 years.

Howland sees that as an asset: “They’re not out trying to find themselves like you might find with a university student who’s in their late teens and early 20s. They know what they want to do.”

According to Howland, returnees have fewer job relocations because many already own a home, are less likely to go on maternity leave or have special childcare needs and have years of professional experience. She says they are typically enthusiastic about getting back to work.

“It’s humbling to see that this small program could have so much impact on the women who go through it, and they’re visibly in tears when they leave,” says Howland.

Few companies have formal reentry programs as part of their diversity initiatives, but those that do often expand them once they realize how effective they are at attracting skilled employees, according to Fishman Cohen. Currently, 30 companies participate in the program.

“In the STEM programs, 60-100 percent of the interns are converting to full-time employees,” Fishman Cohen says. “Those numbers are stunning.”

Returnships: The Key to Easing Back into the Workforce

Haritha Choudhary was one of the women who found employment at IBM after taking a seven-year career break to raise her son. Formerly an electronics engineer at Motorola, Choudhary was apprehensive about returning to work. Through the IBM reentry program, she received training in data science, a field much different from the one she left behind.

“During my internship I had to use new programs, new tools, new applications...so it was a bit of a learning curve,” she says.

The program included a number of on-boarding programs that introduced Choudhary to the corporate culture, resources and people at IBM. She said the program boosted her confidence and helped her transition into the workplace. It also gave her a chance to put her training into practice without a lot of pressure.

“The realization that my engineer brain was still functioning along with my mommy brain was such a relief for me,” says Choudhary, who is now a full-time employee with the company in Westchester, New York.

The returnship was the first and only job Choudhary applied for when she decided to rejoin the workforce. The engineer doubted she would have found work without it, despite her 10 years of professional experience.

“I definitely don’t think [I would have been able to find work],” Choudhary says. “It was the reentry program that was the key to being able to return successfully.”

Julie Compton is a freelance journalist in Brooklyn, New York. Follow her  @julieallmighty